Five things I would have done differently at university

[@debajyotisg]

Can somebody go back in time and give Oxford Simon a hug. He needs it. I volunteer.

[@Sora-pk7wg]

Lool that's cute He def needed it

[@livintolearn7053]

Ah good idea. Let me find the time machine's keys...

[@fearlessopher5213]

Things he would do differently: 1. End his relationship before going to uni - which led to the neglection of a support group during uni 0:49 2. Work LESS - led to less time to socialise, also would have allowed him the time to work smarter 2:39 3. Committing to extracurricular activities - would have led to better mental health, which would have improved his life at uni 5:13 4. Find study group - makes studying more fun and alleviates the pressure to learn everything by yourself 7:35 5. Use external resources - makes it easier to understand difficult concepts, also led to his grade increase when he implemented this method in his final year 10:55

[@fearlessopher5213]

baldy hardnut that’s not what he did/said though, he worked everyday. I just summed up what he said

[@fearlessopher5213]

baldy hardnut lol he said he grinded every day - he thought he didn’t deserve to be there so he had to work harder than everyone else. I think you should listen to it again mate

[@fearlessopher5213]

@baldy hardnut i doubt it too, but i'm just going off what he said

[@andy96dev]

love this, going to copy this trend of summarising on a comment!!!

[@achillesarmstrong9639]

save my time ty

[@AndrewDotsonvideos]

Definitely guilty of working hard more often than working smart.

[@pedroestrada2510]

Please make a collaboration with each other! Maybe the differences between graduate school in the US and UK.

[@AndrewDotsonvideos]

@@PapaFlammy69 oi papa

[@Batwing-lb6oz]

Una leyenda frente a otra :0

[@willsonbasyal7883]

How's it going, bois?

[@itsfinnickbitch63]

Andrew Dotson would you recommend going to university if i’m not that type of person who can do homework or other schoolwork in my free time

[@jasonlove9172]

I'm currently pursuing a masters in psychology and although our fields are very different, you have been a constant inspiration throughout this journey so far. Thanks for that.

[@sebastiantian8388]

I was studying Psycholinguistics for Masters and learned very few in Psychology, because all my lectures and seminars were so miscellaneous. Also, i could even spare enough time for my own research so i skipped some in my last academic year.

[@zeyn4792]

If you have the time to answer could you possibly explain to me what psychology is like at university? I'm a second year college student going to uni next year but stuck between picking physics which has cool topics and makes you sound smart vs psychology where i would love to get a job as a therapist or something of that sort. Thank you very much.

[@jasonlove9172]

@@zeyn4792 I guess it depends on the type of psychology you pursue. my university offers clinical psychology, neuropsychology and research psychology, All of these are really interesting and are all worth pursuing. It can get a lot of work sometimes but in postgrad in particular, you have less contact time than undergrad to allow you to work more on your research. Does that help at all?

[@zeyn4792]

@@jasonlove9172 Yes that makes sense. It definitely does seem interesting and in all honesty is more appealing than the incredibly difficult physics topics where i would have to put in insane hours just to barely understand it. My mathematics is pretty weak so i'm not sure if physics is right for me, as much as i do love the subject field. Sounds like psychology is also a lot of hours but it seems to be more reading and understanding based right? As opposed to understanding and applying, if that makes any sense. Thank you very much for your time.

[@jasonlove9172]

@@zeyn4792 Yeah there is definitely more reading and understanding of concepts. However, depending on the field of psych you take, you might have to do stats. My course is particular is very stats intensive which does take a lot of work.

[@canchem9825]

I had to take a break because I crashed so hard during my Chemistry undergrad. If anyone feels like they are slipping, go see your uni's counselling services before it's too late.

[@afborro]

Same here during my PostDoc at Oxford. people often think it must be a privilege working in such a place but I had a bad time, mostly due to faults of my own I admit, but I never did go to counselling. In the nineties social problems were not nearly recognised enough in academia compared to today. Knowing that now, I would certainly have done some things differently back in the day. It isn't all it is cracked up to be at Oxford from what I learned about their college system either IMO. I had a much better time elsewhere in other universities.

[@TheGigglingwombat]

I'm currently at Oxford, doing exactly this and ignoring the exact same advice. Thanks for hitting me with it in a way that has actually made me listen. It feels immeasurably reassuring that someone has gone through a very similar experience to me.

[@handsomecaveman]

I would never have guessed that Simon lone-wolfed his undergraduate degree. He seems like the type of student that others would just flock to, so perhaps his time at uni changed him quite a bit. Having gone through my studies mostly on my own, I can attest to the fact it leaves you with some regret on what could have been and the friends you could have made or kept. I don't think it's all bad, though. Studying this way taught me a lot about myself, where my limits are and how I best pick up a new subject. I could have made it easier on myself, sure, but at least I came back stronger from the challenge.

[@Swetlana0]

I have watched Thomas Frank's space repetition videos but would love to hear your perspective on it and how personally you implemented it.

[@lilyenpointe7448]

Completely agree!!

[@Swetlana0]

Would also love a similar video on things you'd have done differently during PhD as I'll be starting phd this fall myself!

[@talkbackdoe7470]

Me 4!!

[@danielaveragomez986]

Thissss!

[@ZukunftBilden]

Me too.

[@tedlovejesus]

University is the place you learned what is “regret”, “procrastination” and “bad investment”🕺🏻

[@samjoshi1812]

Still 3 years off uni and I've got a firm grip of regret and procrastination already

[@alexismisselyn3916]

I thought so too, turns out I was blind that whole time, and I can barely see now

[@krox477]

Everyone

[@satishsinghal101]

I am a ph. D. in engineering. I completed my ph. D. almost 40 years ago (without vaunted google). These are the things that worked for me in university courses: 1. Master material covered in a lecture the same day , or at least before the next lecture. 2. If professor is a bad teacher, then go to library and get every textbook or monograph on the subject, and study from them until you are totally clear about the concepts you need to learn. I also always had my own neatly written notes on every class, with numerical examples solved by me. In math courses, I pretty much wrote the solution manual to the textbook. In ph. D. I read every research paper, other ph. D. dissertations, handbooks, professional society publications - anything that remotely related to my research. I was in engineering, but I read extensively , the topics in Physics and chemistry as well. I did massive number of experiments and data collection, and finally carefully chose data sets on whom I could write the best interpretations. I did my own mathematical model to further throw light on my data set. All this was done, with zero help from my thesis supervisor. He just gave hints in early part. But he had already left the field and moved on to other topics.

[@mendbayarj.8992]

Fantastic!

[@callmeseni4713]

I'm currently doing my masters and my undergrad years were really difficul, I had to move really far away and adapt to seeing my parents only 3 to 4 a year. My advice is mental health comes 1st no matter what. Don't ignore the signs of anxiety and depression. Also get to know people and don't feel sad if you don't make friends right away. And never feel pressured to drink and do other drugs. It's your body, It's your choice. You can have fun and enjoy going out without it.

[@faznaz7455]

Reading this gave me some shivers as i feel that you've summed up all of my downsides and struggles in my own uni life perfectly.

[@michellegiroux8677]

I couldn’t agree more with this video. Although my degree is a masters and not PhD, it’s mostly in part because of all these aspects (except I’m a chemist and not a physicist). I also went into university with a significant other and my quality of student life went up exponentially after we broke up in second year. In high school I always played sports and was super involved within its community (I was also a coach and a referee), but once I got to university I stopped because I felt I didn’t have the time. I worked and worked all alone and when it came to moving out of residence in second year, I didn’t have any friends to move in with. I did an extra year in residence instead. I was in the top percentile for grades ans started also working in a lab in my second year of a 5 year degree. I took on research ans training other students and quickly burned out. When I started my masters degree it was the same, I seemingly didn’t learn as well from my mistakes, and left after 2 semesters because of major burnout (though this was also during the pandemic which made having study groups and social gatherings impossible). I’m happy to say I found a better fit for grad school and went on to get the degree. When he mentionned being told to have a work life balance but didn’t do it, I related so hard. My university for undergrad preached an 8-8-8 schedule. 8 hours of work, 8 hours of sleep, and 8 hours of being social which included having lunch with friends and extracurriculars. Although their system didn’t really include self care and the need to sometimes be alone, watch a movie, read a book, etc., I understand the intention behind it abs deeply regret not taking the time to continue my sport, join any extracurricular, or go to a party. For any young students out there, the advice comes from people out there who have been though it.

[@kennethng9653]

I'm a first year undergrad doing maths and physics and things are getting out of my control. In the first semester, I at least tried to finish all the assignments, go to lectures and prepare for tests (and I was neither at the top nor the bottom, just hanging somewhere in the middle), but now in the middle of the second semester, I'm starting to feel very unmotivated and lost. It's not that I've lost passion in physics or maths, but I just can't get myself working. I started skipping lectures and tutorials, didn't do well in class tests though I safely passed all of them. I'm also an introvert and not quite sociable, so I ended up staying my room all the time wasting time on youtube and found myself skipping meals on a regular basis. I've watched tons of videos on study techniques, self-discipline and procrastination, but then I'm procrastinating on doing what I know is good for me. I'm miserable, lonely and feeling helpless.

[@TmartFan]

Go outside for a walk. Try to get enough sleep and eat healthy food.

[@lucijavidergar7425]

You actually make me feel like I'm going in the right direction. I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety in my 1st year. I'd hang out with someone who'd drain me of energy and I was so burned out. I'm only socializing with people I like now. And I don't study as much. I actually failed a year but I don't regret it. I've been actually pretty happy for like the past 3 years :)

[@kem7261]

4th point... study groups are eyes openers, I used to think I wasn't good enough at physics that everyone else knew better than me and I was behind everyone else ... gosh the thoughts !!! Till one day I joined one study- group and I realized my classmates had problems understanding some problems as well which made me happy not in a bad way but after that day my confidence somehow increased a bit and felt less afraid of discussing topics with my study-mates!! Advice 4th helps and inspires!!!! The more perspectives the better the picture!

[@inessamaria2428]

Wise words. My degree had a lot of group work, but I´ve never been good at working in group, I am more a solo worker. But I admit it would be great to share ideas and studies sometimes with people that really enjoy the subject, not just an obligation.

[@alexiam.290]

I'm in my first year of a 4 year undergraduate Fine Arts course and I can honestly say all of this works. I wanted to study abroad (coincidentally, in the UK!) but I had to stay close to home because of Brexit and other life situations and before I started I used to think I'd doomed because of it. Luckily I met my current best friend, who's in my class, a few weeks before we started and I'm so grateful for that. We've been sucking it up together from day 1, talking about our concerns, supporting each other through 10-12 hour-long days of work, proof-reading each other's papers, sharing hundreds of litres of coffee... As an 18-year-old it's really hard to work on your self-esteem, especially with all the changes that come with uni (also, ESPECIALLY when you're constantly being compared to others in a course such as Fine Arts), so having someone there to remind you how necessary you are in their lives, someone that's just as necessary to yours, makes the whole ride ten times easier, even if I didn't get to study abroad. A good support system and a healthy mindset are key.

[@ATGDev]

I really don't understand how anyone can push themselves to do so much work everyday, I barely feel like I have enough time to go through lecture notes let alone textbooks let alone other courses notes! How does one do this shit???

[@l.1244]

Extreme discipline. I'm an electrical engineering student here in Germany in the TU Munich which arguably has one of the hardest ee undergraduate course in the whole Western world. Every day the lectures start from 8am and end between 3 and 4 PM. After that, even though completely shattered, still hit the library for another 4 hours minimum, often even 5 or 6 hours before I'm constantly fading away and end the session. Even BEFORE our first exams 40% (!) dropped out and after the exams another 50% (in some exams we had passing rates of 20-30% with an average grade of D-). Either you are extremely disciplined, work hard AND smart or you will just fail completely. That's the price you pay...

[@Yoyimbo01]

@@l.1244 yeah had a friend who did his exchange year in TU Munich in the math program. he got one full year of what i would call the academic equivalent of anal rape

[@Yoyimbo01]

that said, things don't have to be that way. I have been very lazy during my 5 years and I still manage even though I'm not particularly clever either. All one really needs is a big interest in the subject matter and some minimum level intelligence, if you pick a school with a reasonable pacing. And that point of his you're referring to, just listened to it, it's ridiculous and you are right to complain lol

[@l.1244]

@@Yoyimbo01 yeah math is especially hard at tu Munich along with electrical engineering and physics. However, on the other side they do support the excelling students a lot. In math for example the uni has a program called topMath in which the very best math students may research with their professors and publish papers and even study for their PhD during their bachelors so that they can finish it 1-2 years earlier. It's do or die.

[@l.1244]

@@Yoyimbo01The thing is I don't want to pass my exams with Cs and Ds. But I understand your view of things.

[@Smitch117]

Awesome advice, overall I would say to remember that at times its OK to slow down, it's not a sprint. On a side note we graduated from our PhD programs at the same time! Thanks for the recommendation, I've never watched Community but now I will.

[@davidgerard5792]

Yes! Use all the resources. I got through four years of biomedicine (heavy anatomy focus) with the lectures, labs, and readings, but I also used extra textbooks (I actually bought extra anatomy texts then and I still use them - Handy for reference in postgrad and teaching), watched tons of different youtubers, hunted down research articles, and found websites like radiopaedia.org and terminologia-anatomica.org. Fill otherwise dead time with reading/revision - For example, keep a deck of flash cards on you. Waiting for the bus? Whip em out! Long commute? Read an article.

[@baxterclagmoar9333]

I'm in my second year of an undergraduate course in creative media (film and animation type things) and you are a huge motivator and inspirational figure for me. I totally relate with the lone wolf mindstate, I've struggled to connect with anyone so far outside of my classes. I still study alone and for a degree that should be all about collaboration and sharing of ideas... well I simply don't. But after seeing this I've realised I need to step up and try a bit harder, take the opportunity to reach out. Thank you!

[@michaelstein7510]

Great advice, Simon. I had a miserable experience doing my undergraduate thesis project to graduate with college honors, because I didn’t manage my research time effectively or communicate with my advisor enough. I didn’t do nearly enough work in the first semester, so by the time the second semester came along, I had to research and write a 100-page paper in about six weeks, then defend it. I survived, but I made it way too difficult for myself. I had to work seven days a week for 15 hours to finish, and I didn’t see my friends or family for months until I was done. At one point, I was so tired and stressed I burst into tears. Academic burnout is a real thing, no matter how passionate we are about our studies. So for any students about to start a long research project, make sure to plan your time out well in advance and hold yourself to deadlines. Better to finish ahead of schedule than fall behind. And make sure to talk regularly with your advisors. They went through the same experiences as you, and they’ll know how to help you reach your goals. Stay on top of your mental health and get adequate sleep as often as you can.

[@yunsuuu]

Ugh that sounds horrible! Makes my stomach flip just reading this... ive been there too although not as intensely. You are strong enough to have made it through tho!

[@itobyford]

DON'T START a relationship before going to Uni - then you won't need to end one!

[@Simon-nx1sc]

As an engineering student, I don't see what all this fuss is about

[@EDLuke246]

Having friends to study with is huge, and is exactly what came to mind when you mentioned 'smarter' ways of working. Once I found that group it became so much easier. In fact, I think this is why I found my first 2 years of study the hardest (and least enjoyable) and, bizarrely, the last year of my Undergrad and my masters degree the easiest. All nighters for revision and coursework were really challenging, but damn funny at the same time. And once I'd hit my stride and found this method of learning that worked for me, it became easier even with significantly more work. You just get better at solving problems and you know more about how your own mind works. Glad you talked about mental health - I think it could be the biggest challenge for students struggling at University and that support network is really important. Enjoyed it Simon!

[@LiciTheCrawler]

Gratz on getting past 200k! At this rate you'll hit 1 mill before Hat Films lol Also thank for the tips!

[@ramokhan7997]

Am guilty of wishing to change many things from my Uni days especially considering I only achieved a 2:2 and scraped it into teaching. I was far too immature for my age and was not good at applying myself or having any real interest in Business Information Systems - the name of the degree even sounded abstract and confusing. Feels like different life time ago (2001-2006)

[@a.kataoka2917]

Simon : Your relationship must end after entering uni! Me (a month before entering) : Should be a joke mate Me (a month after entering) : Ah-huh! As I told! Me (2 months after entering) : You were right...

[@lewismassie]

My response to the points here (second year chemistry BsC): 1. I was told this. I was also single (still am). Good advice tho. 2. I constantly worry about balancing this. I don't feel like I'm doing this properly ever. Sometimes I read a question and have no idea where to start, other times I feel like I've seen it before. 3. I kept trying this, but they keep shutting down due to lack of management. First year I had good times with the Mountaineering society, this year much less. I've signed on to be on the committee of the space society for next year as of last week. One of my most annoying traits is that I really struggle with allocating time and sticking to it when it's a time I set myself. It just doesn't align itself in my brain properly. 4. There's 6 of us, and we each bring something to the group. We don't have lab partners really, but I do chat to people and help with writeups. I suck talking to people in general though, so that is a bit of a bottleneck. 5. I try not to just google stuff, but eventually I end up doing that. I also try not to outright tell people the answers. Also, please keep an eye on your mental health. It can kill your degree before you even get to the first exam.

[@Widur42]

Its interesting how you were not part of study groups at undergraduate. Here in Germany, when studying physics (as i did) you basically have to work in groups as many courses (especially practical ones) REQUIRE coorporation and interaction between students in order to be passed.

[@ebtsoby]

wow, here in england we have to sign an academic integrity form that says you do all your coursework on your own without collaboration

[@Abii290]

I have done 4 years at Bristol and my boyfriend has done 4 years at southampton. Seeing him every week would have ruined my social life and uni experience. We see each other once a month max and have both made amazing friendship networks and had an amazing undergrad experience. I don’t think it has to be all or nothing.

[@koipen]

As someone currently finishing their undergrad in Cambridge, which is academically probably pretty similar to Oxford... I feel like a big thing people worry about too much - particularly people just coming to uni - is planning things out too much and being concerned with *the uni experience*. I noticed that I started enjoying my time here much more when I stopped caring about this preconceived notion of what I /should/ be doing but rather taking every day in its own terms and enjoying my life as it is. That meant not caring about getting on all the committees, going to all the parties or getting a starred first from every supervision. Part of what has made this last year so relaxed for me I think (compared to many of my friends) is that I have very consciously asserted to myself that it's okay when I occasionally screw up academically / socially / whatever - life goes on after uni and there's no reason to stress out so much about it.

[@robertdavis1783]

I love hearing retrospectives like this. In undergrad I knew a grand total of 3 people in my major, which I only really worked with towards the end. All my close friends were from other departments, which really made it hard since every assignment was basically done in isolation. Funny enough, I had the opposite situation regarding resources: if I didn't constantly scan for lecture notes from other universities/textbooks/online references, there's no way I would have survived. My mindset was "If I don't understand the explanation in lecture/the textbook, I can probably find another one that will help me figure it out quicker."

[@CianMcCarthyMusic]

The past is what makes us what we are today. Definitely had the Lone Wolf mindset in my college days but hey ho... it allows one to have a bit of nostalgic angst towards that period - which is kind of nice.

[@EllieMackinRoberts]

I love how you frame your late-night (totally normal) anxiety as a "thought experiment". 😂

[@rickharriss]

I went to Uni at 45 to gain a degree in design with teacher status. What would I have done differently? I would have picked an easier end of course project. In 1994 I elected to build a single person electric car. Mmmm big error, LOT of work, hard to resource, only finished 80% of it. Did pass my degree but could have done better 2:2. Life lessons - Plan, decide what you want/like doing, find out what is required do something positive towards that aim at least every month. Review progress. I am now 71 and at no time in my life have I stuck in a job I didn't enjoy. It's worth thinking about. You do however need marketable skills to be able to change easily. I was a computer engineer before Uni.

[@ONeill01]

I was top of my year and one of the top graduates in the UK within my field, in hindsight, I wonder if it was even worth it at all; burnout, sleep deprivation, working until I was sick and sent to the hospital several times, auditory hallucinations, heart palpitations, amnesia after my brain simply crashed after exhaustion, caffeine toxicity, weight gain, splitting headaches, trapped nerve in the hand, temporary light streaks in the eyes, paranoia, depression, stress never alleviated until a year after due to taking a graduate job straight after Uni...

[@hteur1]

You should share your experience as much as possible ; you would do hundreds of students a great service.

[@kostaslekkas10]

I'm really interested in your take on how a relationship should be treated during University or any other tips of yours on the matter . Maybe you should make a video about it !

[@TheJarJarKinks]

Damn. I should go socialize a bit more. I'm sitting here, alone, in the middle of the night, taking a little break from studying differential equations for a test tomorrow. MIT is kinda killing me, and I've felt more than a little burnt out a few times already... I should probably make things easier on myself now, in my freshman year, than in my senior year. Hopefully, a study group helps.

[@georged9913]

Man , the thing with the study group is, its so hard to actually do (Mechanical Engineering in the UK). I realized the benefits of a study group in my undergrad, and made a huge effort to bring people together. Yet it failed every time. The people who were keen to do a good job wanted to be by themselves (like me in the beginning of undergrad). And the people who were keen on meeting up were more keen to socialize and talk about everything but studying. Maybe it was the particular Uni, but it simply didnt work out. Engineering might have played a role, since I noticed that the vast majority of the people there didnt do engineering because they liked it, but because they were told they'll get a good job out of it etc etc., rendering their approach to the studied material completely passionless.

[@haruhidaso]

Quarantine has actually made me relearn how important study group is. I was frequently “using” some of the smartest kids in the class during my undergraduate to explain to me when I am confused. I was taking elementary particle physics this semester and I really missed the study group I had when I was utterly confused about Lagrangian Density and Covariant Derivative. Also I didn’t know QFT treated particles as a field until last week of the course haha

[@couch_philosoph3325]

I have been studying for 2.5 years (i work 40% to pay everything myself, so to not go mad i need at least one year longer) and ive always had my bf who lives 2 hours away. I agree that i dont socialize as much as other students, but it doesnt really bother me. Most people who study at uni together will part ways after uni. My best friend has always been at a different school (we met abroad and that was when i was like 15). If you truly have a bobd with someone, youll keep it up even if you are apart

[@nihaarrshah]

couldn't agree more with every single point, especially finding a study group!! Thanks for making this video :)

[@b4itstarted]

I have 5 weeks left of undergrad (I'm in the USA doing a typical 4 year degree). I agree with all your regrets/tips, especially ones that have to do with mental health! 1. I wish I worked less - same as you. My school has a minimum number of credits to be considered full time, and there's a suggested maximum, but the maximum isn't a hard limit. Because of this, I often took WAY too many classes at once because everything interested me. In order to do well in all of my classes, it would often get to the point where I never socialized and never took a break. I'd work while eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I finally learned my lesson during the first semester of my 3rd year where I existed in a dissociative-depressive state for pretty much that entire semester. I remember basically nothing about that semester - nothing about the contents of my classes, nothing about anything that happened in my life. The only thing that got me through were all the study groups I set up. I probably would have given up on homework much sooner without my friends there to keep me accountable and keep me going. 2. More extracurriculars, particularly choir! I just joined choir for the last semester of my senior year and it has been SO AMAZING. Rehearsals are always the highlight of my day. It gives me the best dopamine high, haha. 3. I wish I followed my heart when it came my major. I spent the first half of my undergrad as a biochemistry major for the wrong reasons: (1) I'm good at chemistry and biology and (2) it sounds super smart. I eventually switched to just chemistry because I really enjoyed it but also because I needed to graduate in 4 years and two years of biochemistry only left me with so many choices. Since making the switch, I've discovered many new interests. Knowing what I know now, I wish I entered as some kind of statistics/computer science/physics major. I actually considered switching from biochemistry to chemistry-physics but that would have required an extra year of studies that I couldn't afford.

[@jacktagg6406]

I think my main regret is not making friends with people in my house (6 flats of 6 per house). I was good friends with people on my course and in my flat. However 4 of the 6 in my flat were also on my course. As I do a healthcare course we were on a different campus to the majority of other undergrads. Hence, not making friends we people in the house/from other courses made me feel a little trapped; it was almost impossible to have a conversation without someone mentioning your course!

[@MrTroutsdale]

Things I would change would be more time choosing the uni and modules, actually getting help when I needed it, work experience to prepare me when I left.

[@mileskidson1970]

Hey so I'm literally just starting my undergraduate degree in Physics and Computer Science so this was such a great video for me to watch at this point in time. It hit home a few things that older students have told me recently, such as looking elsewhere for notes and other explanations on things. Thanks, Simon so much for making this. Gonna get my shit straight right about now and start scheduling.

[@berserker8884]

I really really second the external resources part. Everyone is pretty much conscious about other things you mentioned, the problem however often lies in personalities and problems of an individual(sometimes depression might be a part or some other illness or just the fact that some of us discovered what we can do too late or the fact that some groups just dont want to take in new people, etc. Life is hard and the fact that Oxford was hard for you is okay and part of what makes your life what it is). But the thing that most, even the best, forget or think is outrageous, is the external resources advice. It is incredibly incredibly powerful and useful to use several resources to get a different view on the same object, as then you will understand it better, but more importantly, as an undergrad there is no better way to start developing research/problem solving skills. There is no better way to start doing research than, well, doing research! Why dont we need a basis to show that double dual is isomoprhic to the original vector space? Can I "derive" brachistochrone on my own? Etc. Dont be afraid to ask the difficult questions that have nothing to do with the curriculum of your courses, have fun, explore, play around with wild ideas! In the end grades do matter but never as much as your skills!

[@Archeaon]

I'm Italian, I recently finished my 2-years master in Applied Physics, after the 3-years Bachelor. My experience was totally different. I've always found study groups distracting and with too many breaks. At home I managed to stay 8/16-consecutive hours on the same subject carried by anxiety and desperation leaving my room just to go to the bathroom and to eat. Taking excellent grades and sometimes building up exams in the matter of a week from scrap. Everyone should know himself from high school and come with its own system. Anxiety was my better friend when I was studying and groups just a distraction. Said so I loved computational Physics and it was kind of a drug for me, I knew when I started and not when I would finish

[@tanyab7318]

@Archeaon I agree! I've never liked study groups because of the waste of time. Bible study groups are fine. But I always had more scholastic success when I focused/studied on my own. What I am thankful for is that I did take time to socialize, which happened to be outside of my field (medical technology and then biochemistry) and some of those folks are still dear friends 30 yrs later).

[@BingoBongoBengo]

The pc/mobile app Anki is a great spaced-repetition flashcard program that everyone should use because by god does it help

[@MrYounis26]

Ben How do you use it? I tried one day to go to the web but it seemed way too detailed.

[@BingoBongoBengo]

@@MrYounis26 If you download the app rather than the web version its much easier, you just click get shared decks or make your own and get to it. If you still struggle there are loads of blogs talking about it, like AJATT or BritVSJapan.

[@MrYounis26]

Ben Is the app version called anki driod

[@ashleylawler6823]

Yes working smart not hard is my motto for this year!

[@ecoomber]

I lived at home for uni to save on costs. But what it really cost me is my student social life and added distance (literally and figuratively) between me and supports like study groups and academic advising. If I could do it again I would have gone to uni in another city.

[@cameronparkinson8580]

Very true what you said about working hard over working smart, I luckily managed to realise during my first year at uni though. Also found spaced repition to be a really efficient way of doing it. Would strongly recommend a revision program called *Anki* for anyone looking to use spaced repition. It's basically a program to make falsh cards, free to download, but it does the spaced repetition part for you. Only down side is its a pain in the arse to keep on top of (you'll get an amount of revisiews to do everyday, though you can cap them if you want).

[@KhanStopMe]

Great advice, I definitely will be doing these!

[@ellieoberstein4172]

This video really resonates with me, especially the part about receiving advice but not taking it! Why are we so bad at taking advice and learning from other people's experiences??!‽ Why do we have to fail ourselves before we realise we have to change?!!!?

[@matthewfinis6723]

This video incredibly frightens me.. I’ve watched quite a few of your videos before but it has never been as apparent as it is to me now how much of myself in see in you (particularly when you are describing all of the poor decisions you’ve made / bad habits you’ve developed).. I don’t know where I am going with this comment but I guess I just wanted to say that if there was ever a point where something was going to make me realise what I was doing it is happening right now, so thank you

[@lucascopp4050]

Very interesting, especially the bit about mental health and studying, never really thought about it. As a high school student who’s always told “prioritize your class work over everything else” kind of inspires you to change your outlook. You really opened my eyes thank you Simon.

[@erikrusso9808]

Haha damnit, I needed this video two years ago! I dated a girl in my undergraduate class, which was a huge mistake, because when we broke up I didn’t really have any good friends there and my mental health was getting so bad to the point of me almost dropping out because of my depression. The workload was so overwhelming, I study computer science engineering at KTH, one of Europe’s best engineering universities. Hopefully my third year can be more positive

[@lorro7585]

Wait, can we just appreciate that T-Shirt for a minute? It is truly world-class

[@tatjanagobold2810]

Thank you so much for sharing this with us, Simon! I am going to attend my first year of studying physics in October and I am bursting due to the excitement! Yet, I want to do everything as best as I can and hearing your advice really helps me stay a bit more relaxed because I tend to put myself under pressure.

[@1991elliot]

No regrets. University is one chance you get in life to live mostly on your own terms and a time for experimenting and learning. Most people learn more about life by going to university than the degree itself.

[@msz9523]

Undergrad in Edinburgh, postgrad in Oxford and my regrets are pretty much the same, except for your first point, because he's now my fiance, so apparently I can't say I regret the relationship anymore. It surprises me how intelligent people can be SO stupid sometimes.

[@andyhartley]

Simon's Glossary: MOOCs - Massive Open Online Courses (cause I guarantee most of you didn't understand what Simon meant)

[@abdiganisugal825]

@Simon This comment needs to be pinned

[@janesomerville9036]

I tried all of these things, some pretty successfully, and honestly I was still miserable. I think I just didn’t like being in college. So glad I’m done.

[@rossellalandi8914]

We share more than I thought... Sometimes one cannot really "attract their tribe", though being alone during uni makes studying way harder.

[@Kristina-cw2do]

If I could re-do uni again, I wouldn't have blown off the easy classes and I would have done my homework because that took a toll on my grades.

[@Campaigner82]

If I ever study again, I’ll definitely follow your advice.

[@titlespree]

Network as much you can! Best time for that... 👬

[@Felixkeeg]

Point 4 is absolutely the most important thing of all of them: Find yourself some friends or at the very least some people you are comfortable with. If you're having a great time during the semester, your mood will increase drastically. Studying for exams with friends is actually fun - even if you are stressed out and at each others throats at times. Should've done that from day 1

[@unabashedindividualist6232]

If I could do college over again, I'd spend less time trying to get good grades... just pass your classes bare minimum, don't strive for accolades or excellence in the classroom. Then I'd spend my extra free time actually working on my own skills and knowledge. I'd be a lot further along in my career if I'd have done that.

[@ghenulo]

The one thing I would have done differently: Dropped out sooner than I did. I tried to remain optimistic and stick with it, but I could really have saved some emotional trauma by quitting far earlier than I did.

[@haydenbarnes5110]

I would really like to heed this advice now that I'm at Oxford myself, but with COVID-19 I can't help but spend time by myself

[@sjege]

I'm setting up a learning group tomorrow, thanks for the motivation!

[@firefyfe6211]

Thank you so much Simon for once again being a source for inspiration, self improvement and wellbeing. Luckily I had the privilege of going to a fantastic school with a classroom that had a healthy attitude towards both fun and, not just learning but understanding as well. Looking back now, I'm somewhat bewildered by how I've failed to bring so many good influences, advice and habits to university with me. However, now that you've made me aware, I'm going to make a few necessary changes to my third term of first year. Thanks again :)

[@paulafunaro1890]

What is that green dot at the bottom right corner? Can't stop seeing it

[@bobobobic9330]

WOW the first one hit me hard

[@MrCrownedClown]

So I am doing my phd at the moment. First of, I agree withe everything he said. But maybe some small points. A. Finding external resources is much easier with having a study group, since different people just do things differently. B. Look out that your study group is not too large, since from some point on they seem to make you less productive in my experience. I found 4-8 people ideal. C. WORK LESS, more extracurricular!! I got a burnout and was 1.5 year psychological treatment. Do not do this! I later found that working 6-8 hours in the week days and 4-6 hours on the weekend days are enough. But you have to find your own balance. D. And maybe generalize his point with relationship: Try to be in the town and with the students at your university as much as possible, otherwise it gets much harder. That sadly also includes going home to your parents every weekend and long distance relationships. You can still do both but it will hurt your university experience, friendships and grades. So be aware it does have a costs.

[@kendrajohnson6535]

Thank you Simon. I loved this! Some great advice that can be applied to life outside university as well. Thank you so much :)

[@shashanklaskar2943]

Thank you. This was insightful and informative. I'm in my 2nd year right now, soon to be 3rd. And I've fallen into the same pitfall of not socialising, and studying alone. Though it's less because of academic thrust from my side, and more because of my inane, boring personality(I've been called that) and low people skills. Thank you for this vid though. It was inspiring in a way. I'll take lessons from this and hopefully implement them.

[@ghenulo]

Socializing? That's where you say something and people give you a dirty look and walk away, right? Yeah, it didn't take me long to learn to be quiet, sit in the back, and get to class early so that I wouldn't receive the evil eye while I was walking to my desk.

[@neverland9887]

This is the honest video so far... I’ll be in the fourth year of undergraduate studies this September and I’ll definitely take your advice into serious considerations.

[@azaph_yt]

If I could do undergrad again, I would play fewer video games. Agree about working smart though, sitting in the library for 8 hours doesn't necessarily mean that you get a lot done. Better to set goals like "work through chapter X and Y today" rather than "study for X hours"

[@lukesaunders4776]

This sounds awfully familiar! Since starting a masters course I had to change a lot, study with people and make friends, I wish I done that at undergraduate to!

[@jacobsed4279]

Pretty much spot on on everything. My mental health was awful at university, to the point of severe social anxiety. I studied at Exeter too and saw you a few times, but was too scared to say hi lol. It looked like you were very popular haha. We could have been friends 😭

[@qwertyuiop-ip8rc]

I'm only at GCSE but I suppose this is the best time to get all those things wrongs.

[@seanku4479]

Everyone is talking about how important is to do extra curricular activities, but what if I just genuinely am much more interested in doing academic work ?

[@superduperfreakyDj]

There is a difference between academic work and long hours of pure excruciating studying. Do not underestimate how hard college classes are.

[@ariellau9170]

in my final yr rn. would not have gone to uni if i knew it was like this.

[@christineasaba4730]

Am going for my PhD and am defiantly doing things different. School can still be fan while achieving highly. Thank you Simon, I needed to hear this :-)

[@magicman12323]

Hey Simon, From watching many of your videos I gather that you have given many presentations. I think you should do a video on how you prepare for a talk, how you manage any fear of public speaking. I think that could be a super helpful video.

[@paulg687]

Here's the best advice - on your first day, you go to the library and you get all the past papers for all the subjects. You then study the hell out of them and work out how to do those. You will find that your course work and your seminar work is not at the same level as the exam papers. The exam papers are much harder. You will find there's a very high percentage of the same questions, or very similar every year. You don't have to work yourself into the grave. Just do that and you're going to pass easily.

[@RashmikaLikesBooks]

Exactly!

[@skypausebgp2615]

I agree wholeheartedly.

[@fluffynipples]

Interestingly, my mental health in my personal life improves when I am happy academically. I'm weird :c

[@tommasobruggi6614]

Hi. I’m a theoretical physics student. I’m having similar issues of probably studying too much. My problem is that I think I have too many passions and interests. Would you suggest trying to focus on a few as there’s no time to develop all interests

[@Xmasadus]

Love the poster in the background. FOR THE EMPEROR!

[@CazAvery]

My undergraduate? No, I wouldn't change much. My Masters??? Well that's a whole different story. I think the main thing I had to learn was that sometimes it's ok to not do all the work. If you have a good grasp of the concepts and can discuss them - then you don't need to read all three 80+ page chapters/journal articles. (I did/do Arts degrees). Also, if you are left with the choice between 'do no work today' and 'go in but cry' always choose to not do work, looking after yourself is always more important than whatever work you needed to do that day. I'm still learning how to work smart... I'll hopefully get there one day, ideally before the PhD ends!

[@veloxlupus303]

I’m currently doing a integrated masters in theoretical physics (currently in 3rd year), and my trick is to just work all year round, but to work fewer hours. So, for example, since September 2018 I had 3 days when I didn’t do any work (New Years when I burned out, one day when I was sick and then one day I traveled a lot and didn’t have time). I work as much during holidays (or more even) as I do during term time (and i week during weekends as much as during weekdays). Effectively this means that I do not work that much per day, so I have lots of time for other fun stuff, and I still come out close to the highest scoring students. I almost never burn out, and I never fell into having mental health problems either (but I can’t aay for certain that this was because of my work routine or because of my metal disposition). I also spread out working throughout the entire day, alternating between work and other stuff from when I wake up to when I go to sleep. So yeah, I would suggest this routine as effective for myself, but idk how it would work for others.

[@veloxlupus303]

O to put some numbers for further reference; what I consider “average daily work rate” is about 4-5 hours. at least that’s what my average comes up to, but that ofc fluctuates depending on the day. Sometimes on bad days I work 2-3 hours, on good ones 5-6, and on great ones 6-10.

[@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat]

I love that the phrase 'smart youtube mafia' has taken off. And the related videos I'm seeing here are all smart youtube mafia channels so conspiracy confirmed! I'm starting a masters later this year and these points are all things I think I should consider! :)

[@blenjamin]

That's how *smart youtuber* mafia works?

[@bethford1150]

Totally agree! I was in a long distance relationship for the first year of my undergrad... not a great idea! But coming back into second year single, I had time to throw myself into lots of societies including netball, climing and surf and made some incrediable friends :) Anyone about to go to uni, listen to the advice given!

[@AJ-pi8wz]

I just started a course in Chemical Engeneering and I must say that I already regret not studying calculus from the very first week haha

[@michaelstein7510]

My roommate freshman year studied engineering and I was amazed at all the different courses he had to take for his degree. He was studying areas of calculus and physics that I had never even heard of before. He had to study and do math homework for about five hours everyday just to keep up, outside of the actual classes and his internship. I have a ton of respect for all you engineering students.

[@soundharryaamanoharan6940]

This video is the most relatable I've ever come across in utube! - am in my final year of undergrad... Jus 30 days to b done with it... And I've realised every bit of it! ❤️Simon to make this video!

[@RexBuyeo]

I would have not worked part-time and made a bigger effort to find extra funding. I would have even resorted to getting subsidized loans because in the long run I would have been able to pay it back quickly as a STEM major.