• March 26 2019 •

The other day a recruiter asked me about my R experience. I told him about the project I worked on in R (aka the only one) and how, since it has similarities to Python, I could probably pick up new functions and libraries if needed. I even mentioned a specific library I learned about in my course and how certain parts are different in R.

He told me it was refreshing that I was honest and self-aware about my skill level in R. Because he’s had dudes tell him they’re R superstars only to completely fail the supposedly simple test in R. I wasn’t worried telling him this because, let’s be honest, this is an entry-level position for a bachelor’s degree. The recruiter knows this. There’s no point in pretending to be an expert. Just make sure you can show that you’re competent.

He also REALLY loved my resume. He even said that my resume made him think, “damn, I need to step up my game” about his own resume. Because it’s easy to read and has everything laid out properly. It is something that recruiters definitely notice when they actually look at your resume rather than just shoving it through an ATS.

how to manage your time wisely

Hi all, during the quarantine all of my schedules have mixed up. I feel like I start to procrastinate and multi-task more and lose track of my time management. I make this guide for me and for those of you who face the same problem. Hope this help! ❤️

Here’s some weapons for your essay writing arsenal!

Hemingway Editor Calmly Writer  The Most Dangerous Writing App Purdue O.W.L. One Look Thesaurus JSTOR Google Scholar

Reply with your favourite or other great websites I didn’t include!

Need this for next year! probably will be helpful

Hiya everyone so AP self studying (i.e., taking an AP test without also taking a class on it) is a great way to earn more AP credit (which colleges love), and can be easier than you think. 

So in case you’re interested, or just curious, here’s a masterpost where I’ve compiled a bunch of self-study resources and tips. I hope you find it helpful !!

ESSENTIALS (all of these are gold)

which AP’s should I even attempt by myself? : vvvvv helpful article. Make sure you have read this before deciding which AP’s to go for; I highly highly recommend it.

choosing the right prep book : best pdf guide (from a guy who aced 22 ap’s!!) make sure the edition you buy is up to date !!

free textbooks masterpost : you need a competent, up-to-date, AP-level textbook for the subject[s] you plan to take. it will be the source all of your material, so you need to interact with it (more on that below). your textbook is like your teacher, only the difference is you get to choose whether it’s a good one or not! 

annotating from textbooks : this is a v helpful youtube video. It is a great way to take your own notes from your textbooks interactively without getting bored.

tutors and study groups : you don’t have to study alone! There is always the option to work with a tutor or study group, which can relieve a lot of your stress.  

plan with excel : time management is the most important part of self studying. No one’s giving you a test, no one’s assigning you homework, and no one is making you show up to class. Sooo it’s up to you to designate some regular time to study. Excel can be an extremely helpful tool for planning (more on how to study below)

chibird : always cheers me up!

masterpost of calming things 

advice on balancing 3+ AP’s

when you want to give up 

HOW TO GO ABOUT IT (in which I actually give advice)

You need to put in time and dedication, because the best way to self-study is to literally set up a mini class for yourself.

No, you do not have to take out 50 minutes of every single day! But you will need to designate regular time to read from a textbook, take notes, and even give yourself tests, if you’re up for that. 

Helpful time ideas: My cousin self-studying for AP Psychology this year and she takes out one hour of every Saturday and Sunday to read from her textbook and review! (the moral of this story is that weekends are v good times to self-study!) Find at least one time every week where you are free for at least one hour and use that hour to study! 

Divide your time into learning and reviewing. I like to use half of my designated study block for learning new material, and half for reviewing old material. 

Every so often, do a cumulative review. My rec = every 3 weeks. Cumulative reviews are extremely important because you don’t want all the information falling out of your head when you are working so hard to learn it !!

Use good review methods that work for you! Check out the Feynman method (I just discovered it, it’s neat). Do whatever you want for your review, just make sure it helps you :D +5 super secret study tips omg

GIVE YOURSELF TESTS!!! This is so important! Studies show that you learn material much better if you write a quiz or test on it. (This is a legit study I swear but I am just too lazy to look it up right now :DD) It’ll be just like real class! And ok if you don’t want to write your own, I would recommend your AP prep book.

Finally: please remember that there is a difference between losing your motivation, and realizing that you are too are too stressed or can’t handle your workload. Your metal health and your sleep are always more important than an extra AP. If self-studying is costing you sleep or happiness, it is not worth it.

I hope you guys found this masterpost helpful; please if you have some wisdom or insight to share, don’t hesitate to add it. And if you do plan to self study this year, I wish you the best luck !! 

coffee, journaling and a view of central park, what more could I ask for?

for future reference

Extended Essay Tips! (from an IB student with senioritis)

I finished my EE last week. Here are some tips that I wish I would’ve had while I was writing mine!

1. Pick a topic you’re genuinely interested in!!!

This is IMPORTANT because you’ll be doing a lot of research and writing about this topic. If you hate what you’re writing about, it will be that much harder to motivate yourself to actually get stuff done.

2. KEEP TRACK OF YOUR SOURCES

It might be annoying in the short term, but it will be so helpful in the long term when you don’t have to sort through 30 different journals and books to find one specific fact to cite.

3. Make a quality outline!

Outlining should really be the hardest part if you’re doing it right. It is so much easier to move things around and work on structure with an outline than a completed paper. Also, a thorough outline will make compiling the rest of the paper so much easier.

4. Try to start earlier rather than later

This is an obvious one, but really. Senioritis is real. SO REAL. By march of senior year you pretty much know where you’re going next (at least in the states) and doing high school stuff is really difficult motivation-wise. Start your EE early so you can have it done by the time all of your motivation to succeed leaves you.

5. 4,000 words is way less than you think it is

It sounds like a lot, but it really only leaves space for either deep explanation of one VERY specific topic, or a surface-scratch explanation of a huge topic. This is IB, so they want deep. Pick a specific topic.

6. Online libraries and databases are your friend

Google scholar?? GOOD SHIT FOR THIS PAPER. I have no idea how anybody wrote the extended essay before the internet.

7. Chunk it.

Don’t try to write this paper all at once. Break it up into small tasks and work through it that way. Not only will it make the whole process seem more manageable, but your writing will sound less frantic and your ideas will be more coherent.

8. Enjoy it!!!

We have such a cool opportunity to explore a topic that interests us and write about it! Take advantage of this! Enjoy learning about a topic that’s is fascinating for you! Take pride in your writing! Acknowledge this opportunity that so few high schoolers get to have and appreciate it. The EE can be overwhelming and stressful and scary, but at the end of the day it’s so cool and has been a super positive experience for me :)

OneNote is literally god’s gift to this earth. [ header art ]

I downloaded OneNote onto my mac air through my school’s office365 [which is a microsoft email login thing but is easily accessible on any kind of device and you can just delete the email acc later if you want]. OneNote can be accessed on a laptop, computer or ipad/tablet. i believe OneNote is available on the appstore as well?

I use OneNote as a digital bullet journal / planner and to write down all my study notes. i also have actual books for my study notes but i tend to prefer OneNote.

OneNote is super easy to use! think of it like an actual book:

1. DESIGNING THE COVER

When you open OneNote for the first time it will ask you to create a Notebook. You can name it whatever you wish and even choose the colour of it! You can have as many Notebooks as you like, so go wild !!

2. CHAPTERS

In your Notebook, you can have “chapters”, called sections or tabs. Depending on whether you use OneNote as a bujo or for study notes, these tabs can look like this:

3. PAGES

Time to fill your chapters! These pages will contain all of your content. Whether that’s a weekly spread in your bujo or a page on DNA molecules in your humanbio Notebook. You can have as many as you want! Pages on OneNote tend to look like this:

Once you click on which page you want, it’ll open !

4. SPREADS [for planners]

Spreads are completely personalised and customised depending on you! Anything you do in your physical bujo you can do on OneNote. Habit checker? Tables? Homework diary? Inspirational quotes? Cute doodles? Day-to-Day planner? 

This is just an example of mine, you can do WHATEVER YOU WANT with yours !!

5. STUDY NOTES

My study notes are basically just what my teacher says during class or puts on the board, which is why they’re almost always in bullet point form like this:

But obviously, you can edit your notes to be however you’d like them !!

6. OTHER INFO

One feature i really like about one note is the fact you can make the paper look like whatever you want. such as blank paper, margined + lined paper, graph paper etc. this is really helpful when writing notes and especially drawing diagrams !!

also, across the top is literally everything you’ll ever need.

IN CONCLUSION:

Please download OneNote !! it’s so user-friendly and customisable. I was honestly shocked that more people weren’t using OneNote in the studyblr community. It’s such a lifesaver near test + exam time because all of your notes are in one place !!

also, OneNote autosaves and doesnt close if you close your laptop [as long as you’re not logged out or the computer is shut down] so you’ll never lose your work !!

HERE is another post about me yelling about OneNote lmao

If you have any questions or problems, feel free to ask !! ((-:

relatable

I once heard that being in IB is procrastinating homework by doing less important homework. If that isn’t true I don’t know what is. I literally was disappointed that I had finished an assignment earlier because now it means I have to work on a project that I really don’t want to do.

“It’s never too late.”

Don’t worry. Start now. Get up, take a few deep breaths, stretch, count to ten with your eyes closed. Then take out your books and a notebook and a pen. Get on with it. Start reading, annotating, take down your notes. If you feel your focus faltering, sit back, take a few deep breaths, walk around a bit, get back to your books. It’s never too late.