How confident am I of

taking responsibility for my education?

How prepared do I think I am?

Managing my time?
Do I think I have the self-discipline to succeed in online learning
without a formal "classroom" to keep me on track?

Keeping my focus on the course objectives and assignments?

Taking responsibility for accomplishing my assignments?

Meeting unexpected problems or challenges?

Time management
Learning to plan your time effectively is one of the most crucial skills
you can develop during your time at HEC, which will:

help you in your future career

help you to complete assignments and meet deadlines

increase your self reliance and confidence.

Developing a study schedule

Planning your independent study time helps you to focus on your
goals and what is required to complete them. You're more likely to
stick to your study plan if you take into account your own study
habits:

what is your most productive working pattern?

what are your weaknesses in managing time?

Your schedule should include all of your work, study and personal
commitments. It may be helpful to develop a weekly schedule to
establish a regular working routine, and create longer term timetables
to help plan your studies further ahead and set long term goals.
Using a wall chart or calendar:
1.

include all the tasks you have to complete

2.

note the deadlines for each task

3.

estimate as realistically as possible the amount of time required

to complete each task

4.

prioritise in terms of urgency

5.

break down the task and set targets for completing each stage.

You should allow extra time for unforeseen difficulties, include time for
leisure & relaxation and be flexible and prepared to adjust your
timetable if you are getting behind.

Successful studying
Whilst studying you may find it useful to:

have a designated study area and keep it tidy - a chaotic desk

can give the sense of being out of control

alternate the tedious tasks with interesting ones, to stop

yourself losing concentration

do the most difficult tasks when your concentration is at its best

take regular breaks.

Prioritising effectively
Prioritise tasks by:

establishing a clearly defined objective

evaluating the relevance of different tasks to the final aims of

your assignment

distinguishing between aspects of your research which are key

and those which are marginal.

Reading
Reading for a degree requires different reading skills to reading for
pleasure. Developing understanding through reading needs to be an
active process, whereby you engage with the text, question and
develop your ideas in response to it.
Reading techniques
The most appropriate technique will vary according to the purpose of
your reading:

predicting the text - bringing to mind all the information you

already know about the subject and relating this information to
the text you're reading

sampling - reading short parts of a longer text (first and last

lines of a section/paragraph) to get a feel for the text and what
it's about

scanning - fast reading technique for locating specific

information within text

skimming - fast reading technique, taking in headings,

keywords, diagrams & illustrations to get an overview of the text
and assessing its usefulness

critical reading - once you've established that the text is

relevant, read critically and in-depth to get a full understanding of
the text -include note-taking and referencing.

General tips
Keep the purpose of the reading at the front of your mind, and:

be selective and evaluate your reading material

set manageable targets for your reading, e.g. one section at a

time, particularly if the material is information rich

after each section, try to recall what you have read

highlight or underline important points during first reading

make notes in the margin - i.e. observations & questions arising

from your response to the text.

Reading critically
Reading critically helps develop independent thinking and reasoned
argument. Ask yourself:

who is the author?

what's the purpose and viewpoint of the text?

what evidence is provided for the arguments?

are there other perspectives?

are there points missing?

Note-taking
Notes taken during lectures, seminars and research will form the basis
of your work, helping you to prepare essays and revise for exams.
Effective note-taking is a very useful skill which can help you to:

focus and concentrate

organise and record key details

gain a fuller understanding of the information and improve your

recall

save time and energy by working more efficiently.

Tips for effective note-taking

be critical about the material - assess its importance to the

subject matter, and its credibility

don't copy large amounts of text verbatim

always keep detailed notes of any resources used so that you

can reference properly later

review and summarise your notes afterwards

organise and store your notes so that they are easy to retrieve.

Note-taking techniques
The following are examples of note-taking techniques:

mind maps (e.g. spider diagram) - help you to visualise key

points and the connections and overlaps between them

tabular notes - help with making comparisons between points

flow charts - help to visualise steps in a process

index cards

highlighting and annotating.

Note-taking from lectures

To get the most out of your lectures, you may find it useful to:

find out the subject of the lecture beforehand and read up, so
that you'll be prepared for the key themes and ideas

don't try to write down everything - keep to main points

create a wide margin on each page so that there's room to

expand on your notes later.

Note-taking from written material

When note-taking from written material it is helpful to:

take reference details down before you start reading

reading the introduction and conclusion is useful for

ascertaining the main arguments and context

read critically.

Research & library skills

Good library and research skills can save a great deal of time when
searching for relevant material. First, identify the purpose of your
research - are you looking for specific information, or reading around
a topic more generally? Your starting point should then be the
recommended material on your course reading list:
1.

Decide what you need to know.

2.

Check that the material is current and relevant.

3.

Evaluate the source of material.

Check the quality of the information - websites and magazines
aren't normally peer reviewed, whereas text-books and journals
are.

4.

What is the purpose of the information?

Has it been published for educational purposes, in which case it
should be reliable. Be wary of commercial advertising which may
be biased.

5.

Look for evidence that material is reliable and accurate:

Look for references which provide evidence of research.
Look for accounts of methodologies and research findings.