Money, money, money!

-By Tenille

Now that you’ve enjoyed your first trimester at Deakin (and might be sitting exams now), I hope you’ve all had a blast.

Most of you would have had to purchase textbooks and new stationary, which would have put a major dent in your budget. Paid for parking permits, lunches, as well as hanging out with your new mates and spending some cash. Have some of you come to the sudden realization that you need more cash, a part time job, and have no idea where to start?

Well aren’t you all so lucky that Deakin provides a service called Jobshop! The title really speaks for itself. The staff there makes finding a job much easier, especially if you haven’t had to look for a job yourself before.

Don’t worry if you are off-campus either as Jobshop is also available online, just go to http://www.deakin.edu.au/jobshop and log in with your Deakin username to access all their services.

When I headed off to Uni after High School I’d never had a job or even attempted writing a resume, and I realized I had no real savings apart from some money I got for my eighteenth. That’s when I stumbled across Jobshop.

I went in to visit them one day and they help me perfect a resume as well as helped me browse for some jobs. I’m so glad that I did it too, as now I have a part-time and casual job, which just makes costs for Uni and other essentials so much less stressful.

So if you’re strapped for cash and need a job head into Jobshop on your campus today, or simply log on online. And best of luck for your exams!

Stay classy,

Tenille

Me and my buddy - procrastination

-By Jo

Procrastination creeps up on me and watches over my shoulder.

I feel its breath on my neck and my concentration is swayed.

The pages of my textbook flutter and the words blur ever so slightly.

I shake my head and try to throw it off, but the damage is done.

I may be five minutes into a study session or an hour or...maybe I never got that far...

The kettle is boiling, another cup of coffee is what I need, but the caffeine takes time to work on me so I should feed some dragons in Dragonvale or see if the Angry Birds are up for a game...and...
I haven’t read today’s news, must catch up with that...A text? Might be important, best check it to be sure. 

Ah, Mother’s roses are in bloom...meh...that essay won’t write itself you know?

The voice of reason kicks in, but procrastination tells me there’s always tomorrow, the sun is shining and well, not to be rude, but all that sitting on your butt is leaving you kind of out of shape...Oh! When did I last go to the gym? Or for a walk even? Hey...I could walk around the shops, then, it wouldn’t seem like exercise...

See what procrastination did there? Yeah, now I’m procrastinating about the vehicle I was going to use to procrastinate my way out of study, it’s clever stuff, no doubt about it, but it doesn’t help me pass my degree. It just adds stress.

But the essay is due and the exams are getting closer and I’m way behind in my readings, my notes, how many lectures did I miss? 

Deep breath, deep breath, knots in the stomach, headache that’s dull and persistent, racing heart from panic or too much caffeine, bad moods, can’t sleep, can’t function, deadline looming, indigestion. 

HELP!

It’s time to implement the emergency plan (which should be my initial plan all the time).

Switching off social media devices (if I can’t be trusted and that means deactivating Facebook and Twitter, just for now).

Setting a time to check my emails.

Turning off my mobile phone – the world survived just fine without them for eons, I can survive a study block.

Getting out of the house, away from distractions – go to the library, a computer lab, a public park or a cafe.


Learn to say ‘NO’ and mean it. Others have to respect my choice to get this degree, and not interrupting is all the help I need them to give me.

Remembering that my body can’t survive on coffee, chocolate and toast for a whole trimester.

Most importantly I must always sleep – I find it very tempting to feel guilty over the number of study hours lost during a night’s sleep. Unfortunately they are necessary and come to terms with that for my sanity.

Who needs a GAP year when you can travel and earn credits?

-By Vanessa

OK I must admit I am a study tour addict.

I have been to Tunisia to study Arabic.

I have been to China to study Chinese Commercial Law.

I have been to Hong Kong, Frankfurt, Prague, Geneva, Basel, Paris and London on my last trip on the AEF study Tour and maybe I still have my sights set on just one more before I graduate.

My Bucket list

 

Climb the Great Wall of China

Walk in Tienanmen Square

Eat chocolate in Switzerland

See the terracotta warriors

 Ride a camel through the Sahara

Go shopping at Harrods London

Dance all night at the 5 story nite club in Prague     

Ice skate on the Eiffel Tower

Ride on a Junk in Hong Kong

Walk on Tower Bridge aka London Bridge

Eat Frankfurt's/sausage in Frankfurt  

 

Stroll along Lake Geneva   

Celebrating New Years in a remote location with locals aka Sahara Desert.

I could go on but you get the idea.

In any case, remember travel insurance is an absolute must. Trust me, seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time out the back of an ambulance in Paris makes you really appreciate it.

  



O.K so its not all play, but even the serious aspects of Deakin University Overseas Study Tours are truly amazing!



Who's the STAR?

-By Noel.

You are! After all, these blogs are for you to read and to make the most of. :-)

Anyways, I've been inundated, lately (and even at the time of originally posting this!), with people asking me about STAR, which is currently in Read Only Mode; therefore, the following information is for those who want to know about more about it, in preparation for Trimester 2.

To that end, this is simply a FAQ Post; the questions you see below are those that I've actually had to answer many times to my colleagues last year.

• What exactly is STAR?
• STAR (Student Timetable Allocation [and] Registration) is a web-based application used by Deakin to, based on your preferences, allocate your classes to create a (theoretically speaking) clash-free timetable.
• Why the need for STAR?
• In secondary school, your teachers would have created your structured timetables for you. At Deakin, however, the timetable is more flexible in nature and allows you to have a say in when your classes are held.
• How does STAR work?
• I'll let Deakin explain that for you; feel free to click here.
• How do I use STAR?
• Deakin's STAR Video Tutorials can be found here.
• So, how do I access STAR?
• You do so by clicking here and logging in using your username and password.
• But I've forgotten my username and/or password... What should I do?
• You could contact ITSD; however, provided you can answer four simple questions, a more convenient way to retrieve your credentials is to click here. To that end, your Deakin Card or Letter of Offer can provide you the answers to two of those questions.
• Are there any important dates, pertaining to STAR, that I should take note of?
• Yes; here they are.
• I want to only do three days; yet, my timetable is spread across five... What gives?
• If you're doing a full-time course, you're expected to be available across all five weekdays.
• Is STAR only used for on-campus units?
• Yes. This explains why the off-campus or online units don't appear on STAR. Having said that, you should be able to see your Trimester 2 Units as well; if you can't, for some reason, then I'd suggest you should check your enrolment via StudentConnect.
• I have a timetable that clashes... Where do I go from here? 
• I suggest you go contact the Unit Chairs in question for advice.
• I know you haven't answered everything there is to know, regarding STAR; where is Deakin's FAQ?
• Here you go.

Anyways, I hope this helps to answer your questions;

until next time, do take care. :-)