However, the team has been assembled. They will start posting in the first week of March. While you wait to meet the new bloggers why not check out previous bloggers for an inside look at first year life at The University of Auckland. Just select the blogger profile down the side of the page to view that bloggers’ archive.

We’re looking for a new team of first year bloggers to write for this blog.

The aim is to give high school students an insight into what university life is really like, straight from the horse’s mouth – literally “the inside word”.

But because horses can’t talk… This blog needs you!

What we’re looking for is:

• One blog post per fortnight,
• An ongoing commitment for your first year at uni,
• Enthusiasm and creativity!

In return you’ll:

• Be given training and support,
• Be paid for your time,
• Gain valuable experience,
• Get to help future students find out about uni life,
• And who knows…maybe even develop a fan club!

If you’re interested then I’d really love to hear from you. Please email me with the following:

• Your name,
• Hometown (and hall you’re staying in if you’re from out of Auckland),
• The degree you’ll be studying,
• Why you would like to be involved,
• A sample blog post – imagine you were writing a Year 13 blog and pick any week during the last year to write about. You might pick a specific time like study week, the school ball, sports week, or do a more general blog post about deciding what to study at university, your thoughts on leaving school… or anything really. Your blog post can be any length (or you can use 500 words as a rough guide).

Please send it to insideword@auckland.ac.nz by Monday 26 January 2015 and I’ll get back to you by the end of January.

I really look forward to hearing from you! If you have any questions then please get in touch.

Simon Crook

09 923 4292

insideword@auckland.ac.nz

Well here it is. My FINAL blog post.

Firstly, my exams went as hoped! I have gained entry into both pathways into medicine – Health Sci & Biomed

Secondly, I have moved out of UniHall yesterday and am now home. I admit, it was a very bitter sweet moment. Saying goodbye to the people who have made a building in central Auckland feel like a home didn’t happen with ease. There is comfort knowing though, that it won’t be the last time seeing them, as we will all undoubtedly bump into each other next year (not to mention I’ll be living in UniHall Apartments with some of them!)

Best year ever with these guys!

Next year…

I like to think I have strengths in writing, and also have a greater interest in health at a holistic level as opposed to the more scientific aspects to health. So if you haven’t already guessed, I intend on studying the Bachelor of Health Sciences with the aim gaining a place in Medicine in 2016.

Final Words of Wisdom:

1. Make sure you apply for every degree that you have an interest in because it’s always better to be turning down offers than not having the option to do something you love.
2. Sort out your accommodation and finances for Uni ASAP because this will make the transition from home and school to University so much easier. (If you can, live in a Hall!)
3. Do not be afraid of Uni. There is a lot of misconceptions about what Uni is like. To be honest, Uni Life is really a time to grow as a person, and meet people you couldn’t imagine life without, whilst of course, balancing good grades and the odd night out ;)

And thanks,

I would like to thank you all for taking the time to read my blogs over the year! I have loved being an Inside Word Blogger  and highly recommend the role to anyone who thinks it might be something for them. Don’t think you need to have experience – I didn’t.  Just be ready to help aspiring uni students with everything and anything you yourself would have liked to have  known in the lead up to Uni Life.

I have learnt a lot about myself through blogging and hope the same can be said for those of you who have read my blogs! Lastly, with University and leaving home not too far away now I leave you with my number one piece of advice for next year:

“Kia kaha, kia maia, kia manawanui” – “Be strong, be brave, be steadfast”

Wishing you a very merry Christmas, New years, and University journey!

Ethan

Well, the time has come where we must all say goodbye to our first year of uni.  I finished my last exam on Friday and I don’t think it has quite sunk in yet that I’m leaving Uni Hall and my first year for good, even though I can hear people dropping things outside as they try to pack their cars to leave and I see my own suitcase, ready for me to pack.  It’s been quite the year, and to top it off (and because I’m guessing you don’t want a full commentary on each of my exams which is all I’ve really done in the past two weeks) I thought I’d share my final bits of first year wisdom.

It's so strange to think that in two days, this won't be my view anymore!

Get Involved

This is something I look back on and wished I’d worked at a bit more.  I got involved in stuff my floor was doing, and got involved in my classes, but I think getting involved in things like clubs or sports is a really good idea.  It’s easy to sign up to clubs etc. at the clubs open days at the beginning of each semester, but I think the knack to feeling involved is to keep up with attending meetings/practices (or whatever your club of choice does) throughout the year!

Do what you want to do

Prepare, ladies and gentlemen, we’re about to go on a life-coaching spiel.  It’s totally cliché, but I really do think university is a highly important time for developing the person you want to be.  You have waaayyy more independence than you do in high school and, for the most part, it’s your choice what you do with it.  It’s not really a matter of ‘deciding who you want to be’ (we’re not all protagonists in stereotypical American college movies), as much as making choices that you’re proud of and learning from the inevitable mistakes you will make.

Exhibit A: Don’t be like yours truly and forget to fill out the administration information on your exam script – big oops!

Right, I’ll stop giving philosophical advice now… (but really, do remember to fill out your exams properly!)

Remember that university isn’t the best thing for everyone, and not every part of university life suits every person

I don’t want to be a party-pooper with this point, but I think it’s an important thing to think about before you start uni and while you’re going through it.  There’s nothing wrong with admitting that university just isn’t what you want to do, and there’s also nothing wrong with finding out while you’re there that it just wasn’t what you were expecting and you don’t like it.  Everyone has parts of uni that they don’t like; whether it’s having to take a prerequisite paper that you’re really not a fan of, or someone in your tutorial who you really don’t get along with, or feeling ridiculously stressed because you have heaps of assignments due at once, or your coursework didn’t go well so you’re super worried about exams.  This is normal!  But, keep in mind this next point…

By the end of the year, you will want to do this with your notes!

Make the most of everything

Well, as much as you can.  Having a positive attitude about it can really make a difference.  Make the most of the fact you’ve got the opportunity to explore a high level of knowledge by attending as many of your lectures as you can (and in all seriousness, this will help you with exams HEAPS).  Make the most of having a new kind of life with a new kind of independence.  Make the most of meeting new people – whether that’s through classes, clubs, halls…wherever!

Make the most of selfie opportunities (and great friends!)

Congratulations to everyone who’s finishing the academic year and best of luck with next year!

Sian :)

When you start university you will have many expectations about what your experiences of uni life might be from the stories you have heard from your friends, parents, teachers and of course – TV!  One of the most important messages that ran through all these impeccable sources was that you only get out of life what you put into it. A cliché? Certainly. But I have found it to be very true and people I know who didn’t throw themselves into their new lives have not adjusted very well to uni life. They no longer see their old friends very often and haven’t made new friends. Make an effort to talk to people, make new friends and surround yourself with people who bring out the best in you and who you enjoy spending time with.

Studying Engineering at Auckland has been a roller coaster to say the least. There have been papers that I’ve loved, others that I absolutely detested and which caused me nothing but stress, but that’s all part of the experience. Conquering the difficult things can be so satisfying.

Some people come into Uni knowing exactly what they want to do and others (like me) have no idea! I have been back and forth all year trying to decide on my specialisation and I have changed my mind four or five times as my enthusiasm for certain courses waxed and waned.  After thinking long and hard about my choices, the verdict today is that would like to do Chemical and Materials Engineering or possibly Electrical Engineering next year but like so much around here, it will ultimately depend on my grades.

While the year can seem like such a struggle because of the workload and the huge variety of compulsory papers you have to take, I think that it’s a really good thing to have a taste of all the specialisations in first year. I’m very grateful for the opportunity I have had this year to study everything from dynamics to systems engineering.  You really do need to try before you buy and I speak here as an experienced shopper. Some courses I thought would be boring turned out to be really interesting and others that looked interesting proved to be more challenging than fun. If you’re like me and are not really sure which specialisation to take it’s best to leave the choice until the end of the year.

My advice for getting the most out of your study and aiming for the best grades you can is really very simple – be consistent. Go to all your classes, stay on top of your work, don’t leave things until the last second and ask for help straight away. Slow and steady wins the race!

While study is important so are your friends! Engineering has a great culture of fun and a real sense of community. If you can, I encourage you to go to the Steins, have fun at the Ball, volunteer, join a club, make time to see friends and go out for lunch or coffee, hang out with classmates in the cafeteria or the library. Having great people around you makes Uni so much more fun and the wonderful people I have met have made this year an absolute blast.

I would like to finish up by thanking every one of you who has taken the time to read my blogs, asked me questions or commented on my posts. I hope you have enjoyed getting to know me over the course of the year and I hope that my blogs have given you some insight into what first year Engineering is like.

Good luck for exams and all the best!

-Emily

Anyone that knows me personally can vouch for the fact that I am rather unemotional. 100% Stone-cold. However, I’m a tad emosh that you all will no longer have the privilege of my fortnightly blog posts….just kidding. But I will miss this!

I tried my hardest this year to give you all answers to questions I had when I was figuring out my plans for uni, and I hope that somewhere along the way I succeeded in that!

Here is some last minute first –year advice from yours truly:

-          Don’t go into uni with a bunch of expectations. Uni is nothing like what you see in the movies. But it is what you make of it. Don’t expect rowdy parties every night, but at the same time don’t expect to be holed up in your room 24/7 studying. Don’t expect to love every single paper you take, yet don’t dread something without giving it a go. Simply put; expect nothing. Your first year will be full of pleasant and not so pleasant surprises.

-          Be *somewhat* social. I am beyond introverted. That combined with the fact that I didn’t know anyone in my classes left the social side to uni pretty uneventful for me. If you’re the same, never fear! If you want to be a social butterfly in your first year, you can. And if you don’t, so be it! Unlike high school there is no forced interaction. You’re not made to be *friends* with everyone around you. Although I would recommend being polite (kindness doesn’t cost a thing people!) I suggest introducing yourself at the beginning of the semester to the people in your tutorials especially. There will be people you like, and people you don’t like. So like I said, don’t expect too much. Everyone I have been surrounded by at uni has been beyond lovely. Who knows, you may even meet a particularly lovely person along the way *wink wink*

-          Don’t procrastinate. Hah…yeah. So I failed terribly at this and I made no secret of it. My first year consisted of continuously finding something a thousand times more interesting than my assignments, and then proceeding to prioritise said interesting thing. Don’t do this. But…I bet you will anyway.

-          Study. This is a no brainer. Why am I even putting this in here? You’ve all been told this a million times before…But seriously, just do it. Or at least try. Or pretend like you are…

-          Get your finances sorted. This applies to everyone. If you are one of the many relying on Studylink to fund your first year, I cannot stress enough how important this is. Don’t leave it till the last minute. It can take a long time to get your application approved and there is nothing worse than going into your first year and not having any income. You will know first-hand what it means to be a “broke uni student”. If you aren’t relying on studylink, it is still important to sort out how you are going to pay for things. If you’re moving out of home, especially in Auckland central, rent ain’t cheap. If you’re working, suss out your hours to fit around your study. Work out how much an average week will cost you and make smart choices about where you go from there. If you find yourself tossing up between buying a week’s grocery’s or clubbing, then you know what you need to do…

Well that is all from me! Forever! *tear* If you ever come across me at uni, don’t hesitate to say hello. I promise I’m not nearly as antisocial as I make myself out to be! :)

-Marybeth

I woke up on Tuesday morning with literally no agenda, and had a minor internal freakout – surely there’s something that must be done!? Which there always is of course; next semester’s courses, study link (urgh), and this last blog post.

I do feel that it is of the utmost importance that I now include something about how fast the year has gone. (#standard) Because it was literally yesterday that I moved into Uni Hall with all my bags and boxes, and it seems absolutely ridiculous that it’s all over. I have no idea how I’m going to move all my stuff out next week. I have even less of an idea as to how I managed to accumulate it all.

This post doesn’t have an exact topic, but I thought I’d quickly share a last couple of things…

Life lessons from Beth.

Life lessons coming from someone who still hasn’t even figured it out herself yet. Life lessons from someone who can’t even shave her legs properly; I’m talking about a cut that’s at least 6cm on the back of my calf; it’s one nasty looking example of my inability to life successfully. Life lessons from someone who managed to rip a hole in her shorts during a shift at work, and spent a shift being rather cheeky…. (I know).

I’m severely under-qualified for this, but I’ll try to suggest some useful stuff.

- Get your papers sorted early. This applies every semester – that way you have a better chance of getting into streams that give you a nice timetable. And if you get in early you can fit together your classes so they’re close together and so you have no awkward one hour breaks, or even having whole days off if you’re lucky.

- Force yourself into the habit of studying a little bit regularly. It’s honestly the only way you have a chance to retain all the information that will be thrown your way. It helps with tests and exams because you only have to review the content rather than relearn it all. Plus then you don’t have a huge stress out beforehand, and you wont have to cram or worry about running out of time to study. Just go over lecture content even if you think you know it. Seriously.

- Separate your study space from your room. You’ll work better and more efficiently in a place with less distractions, and when you do take breaks, they will actually feel like a break, rather than another five minutes checking Facebook whilst Cecil is open in another tag, completely disregarded.

- Don’t be an idiot and take a course that you never did in high school. Don’t be Beth. Physics is a cold and heartless friend, I will tell you that. Seriously consider taking a foundations paper or else you will struggle.

- Join a club. You’ll make new fraands that are probably fairly similar to yourself, and it’s a good time. (See Anna below. She possibly has more issues than me.)

- Do some sort of regular exercise. Join the gym. Don’t forget leg day. Attempt to control your intake of ramen and pizza. Joe… Ronak… *Cough*

- Don’t worry if your year is not a blur of crazy moments like something out of Project X. It’s not meant to be. Expect that you will have to work hard, and you may not enjoy every moment of it.

- Become a blogger! It’s another great way to meet people and get involved with heaps of things!

- Enjoy your last year of high school while it lasts. You don’t appreciate until you’ve left! Get into good study habits in your last couple of years because you will value them when you come to uni!

So there’s just a couple of things I wish people had told me. Mostly get yourself organised, you’re a semi-adult now. Also, I’m going to be in another video about my first year experience, which we are filming next Monday, so keep an eye out for that! If you haven’t seen the Courses and Careers day video featuring Jibi and I, then you should totally check that one out, our fame starts there, obviously.

Hopefully you internet creepers have all enjoyed my blogs, I had fun writing them,

Love from Beth

xxx

P.s. Floor 3 is cool. That is all.

P.s.s. Sorry for all the random pictures, but they make things more interesting. Clearly Joey has been a source of comedic brilliance all year.

P.s.s.s. Here is the cookie pizza I made… GUYS WE DO NOT SELL THESE. They’re a pain to make, and I personally thing individual cookies are better. We do sell giant cookies of one flavour – get one, they’re delicious.

I am sad to say that this is my last blog as one of the first year student bloggers. It’s also kind of exciting however, as it means in just a few weeks, I can say that I’m a third of the way to getting a bachelor of science.

For any of you readers who are going to be first years next year, think about applying to be a blogger! A blog will go up soon with details about how you can apply, and I hugely encourage those of you who want to, to do so.

To finish my year of blogging off, I thought I would leave you guys with the ‘sample’ blog that I wrote when applying to be a first year blogger around late December last year. Hopefully if any of you are interested in applying, this will help. Otherwise, I have had a great time writing these blogs and I feel really honoured that I was given the opportunity. If any of you come to UoA next year, say hi! Other than that, I wish the bloggers of next year, the best of luck – you have some big shoes to fill :P. Hope you guys have a great summer and maybe I’ll see you again in a future ‘where are they now’ blog. Who knows. Any way, best of luck for the rest of the year, it was so great writing for you all.

- Mere

MY SAMPLE BLOG FOR THE INSIDE WORD APPLICATION:

It’s 2am. I’ve reached that point of tiredness where I’m too tired to go to bed. So I just sit here, looking at the weirdest things like how much a lamp costs on Trade Me. I don’t need a lamp. My eyes hurt. I should go to bed, but I’m pretty sure I’m already half asleep. Since school has finished, I found myself in this position more and more wasting my days away because of pointless hours of TradeMe searching at ridiculous hours of the morning. This is my summer holiday. What I’ve been waiting all year for. Woohoo. What a blast.

It’s 2014. It still hasn’t hit me that in a couple of months I will be a university student. It’s crazy to think about because I’m still not sure what I’m going to study. I’ve applied for six things, all relatively related to a BSc, so now I’ll just wait to see what I get accepted into. People often say to me, ‘what can you picture yourself doing?’ my response is ‘travelling the world. Lying on numerous different beaches with one of those drinks they serve in coconuts with a bendy straw and a tiny umbrella thingy.’

The other question is ‘what are you passionate about?’ That, I think, is the hardest questions of them all. I’m only 17. How am I meant to know what passion is? Is it that feeling of the first night you can sleep with just a sheet on ‘cos it’s so hot? Or maybe that feeling you get when you watch your favourite movie again, or when school finally finishes and you get to stay up till 2am on Trade Me finding lamps. For me, I have no idea what I’m passionate about because right now I don’t even know what passion is.

To be honest, right now I am content with not knowing. For a really long time I was embarrassed to say that I wasn’t sure. For a while I didn’t even think uni was on the table. But now I’m happy with knowing that I will go to uni, but I’m unsure about the rest as of now. I feel sorry for those people who have every detail of their life planned out. I’ve realised that when I go to uni, the chances of me changing my plan are almost certain. I have no idea now so I’m open to any new idea that might hit me in the face. I just hope that when those people who have planned their life out, find that it wasn’t all they thought it was going to be, and change their mind, that they’re open to it, and they don’t give themselves a hard time.

Ooooh look! A lamp with a $1 reserve. OK so the base is cracked, the plug looks a bit dodgy and the seller only has 70% positive feedback but $1 for a lamp, what a bargain. I’ll add it to my watch list and see what happens. I feel ready for university. Even though I don’t know what I’m going to do, I almost feel like how does anybody know? It’s all part of the journey. To discover yourself, find out new things, learn your boundaries, blah blah blah, etc etc. That’s just me though. Everyone’s experience will be different, I’m just here to tell you mine. You know what? On second thoughts I won’t buy that lamp! I don’t even need a lamp!

If anyone needs any advice on anything, high school, deciding what to do, Trade Me, please ask me because I would love to help people who were in my position. But as for right now, I need to go to bed. Who knows, maybe tomorrow I’ll go to bed early!

Good night guys, have a wonderful sleep!

- Mere

And is there a time to actually get back to the topic at hand (law, people) that I sort of started off with in the first place?  Is there?  Well I guess I could just let you know how I feel…and give you some final advice…through song:

Disclaimer: I was going to go down the road of music I actually listen to this time. Like: Optimistic by Radiohead or Do I Wanna Know (which would become ‘Do You Want To Law’) by Arctic Monkeys.  Or pick something by Porcupine Tree or Fiona Apple. Then I considered going the other way, to write a parody of All About That Bass aka All About That Case.  In the end I decided to pick a fair middle ground: Ed Sheeran.

This is Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud except I changed it up so it’s actually

I’m Thinking Out Loud About The Inside Word And Here Are My Final Words An Introduction to Finality

lyrics by Ed Sheeran and Debbie Tan music by Ed Sheeran

When our thoughts don’t work like they used to before
and studying  makes you fall on your feet
Yes, I still remember my first thoughts on uni
“lots of clubs, lots of candy!”….oh how naive

And, you know, I will (prob’ly) be here ’til I’m 70
At uni, I’ll try to try as hard as I did in week three
And I’m thinking ’bout how people get to LLB(Part II) in mysterious ways
Maybe just the 121 Exam
Well, me—I tried to get my life together one day
And I just wanna tell you I ain’t

So future first years,
learn these pro tips, learn through the years
I refused to sleep for a thousand years
Place my head on my pillow now
I’m thinking out loud
That maybe you should learn from where we are

When the breaks are gone and the holidays fade
And we all have to face our grades
When my practical advice doesn’t ring the same way
Still hope you won’t make my mistakes

‘But uni, dat educational appeal could never grow old, it’s evergreen
So many facts are forever in my mind (or just 2014)
I’m thinking ’bout how people get through uni in mysterious ways
Maybe it’s all part of a plan
Well, I’ll just keep on making the same mistakes
Hoping that you’ll understand

Hope I helped you out
I wrote a Bucket List for when your uni starts
Shared some thoughts in the form of a film noir
Inside Word, now here we are
Thinking out loud
That maybe you will learn from where we are
when uni starts, ready when you are

ALSO:  If you have any questions about living the uni life, law part 1, science, Auckland livin’, etc, don’t hesitate to contact me~  I lurk around here these days.

As an aside, I am currently considering studying any combination of law, science and commerce in 2015 :0oo and possibly not law.  131 was interesting, but just…not for everyone (including me).  Hmm…I’m not going to make any rash decisions so I’ll see how the 131 exam goes, and see what other degrees offer.  Guess I’m leaving you on a cliffhanger.

Thank you so much for reading :)
It has been wonderful to write here on the Inside Word.

All the best,
Debbie

I’ve enrolled into my second year of university, and the student loan has just gotten a whole lot bigger. I’ve decided to major in Management and Commercial Law, as well as continue with Property. As this is my final blog, I thought I would leave you some thoughts and feelings this year has given me.

1)      Be yourself:

“University won’t change who you are. It may simply change who you want to be.”

Leaving college and entering the world of university, you will meet new people. You might form new relationships. You might not. It’s not the end of the world if you don’t make awesome lifelong friends in your first year.

“Whatever expectations of university life you had, it’s unlikely they will be the same, by the end of your first year.”

2)      Challenge yourself:

Accept opportunities your old self wouldn’t. Challenge who you think you are. Go that extra mile and test your limits, whether it be taking up the opportunity of running a half marathon, studying at the General library from opening till closing (crazy), or deciding to go fishing instead of attending lectures.

“University is a place where it’s okay to make mistakes. Where you can voice your opinions freely, and no one will care.”

3)      Don’t forget why you’re here

Good grades, a social life and enough sleep. Some people argue you can only choose two. As Generation Z, we are faced with a whole new level of distraction including Facebook, television and YouTube. Get your priorities straight and understand that comparing your workload to others can help to keep you on the right track. If you’re the only person not studying, then there’s a problem, and if you’re the only person studying, good for you!!  There is a time and place for all three options. Setting your priorities straight and having self-discipline will help you find your own balance.

4)      It’s okay to say “No.”

Time management and organisation are things you will need to have if you wish to survive your first year. Time goes so fast, and before you know it, you’ll be cramming for your first exam. No matter how much you plan in advance, you will always find yourself behind. That’s simply the nature of the game. Don’t stumble in defeat, simply get on with the daily grind and be sure to find time to rest or enjoy the comfort of your bed. There will be times where being tired will simply be a state of mind, and there will be times where you will thank the University for recorded lectures.

5)      “Appreciate where you are today and worry about tomorrow, tomorrow.”

I have found writing these blogs and sharing what I have to say very enjoyable.

I’ve even decided to attempt to continue writing whilst on my travels to South East Asia, mainly so my parents know I’m still alive. Here’s the link: http://xandernzblog.wordpress.com/

Hopefully, I’ll start when freedom finally arrives.

All the best with exams, and whatever it is you choose to do in your future.

Alex