Top 10 New Year Resolutions for Students in Short Courses

Taking short courses this year, out of interest or maybe to up-skill - or perhaps you are just taking that degree slowly. Whatever your situation is there are unique advantages, disadvantages and obstacles for students of short courses which other students simply don’t have to contend with.

Because your special and your needs are different you might get a kick out of the top 10 New Year resolutions for students in short courses, you may even want to tackle one or two of them yourself!

1. This semester, I will only go out with friends on Saturday night if I have completed all of my work due on Monday, so I can have Sunday free to study ahead.
2. I’ll be my own driving force: When covering subjects in short courses it is up to the individual to use the course outline as a guiding post and cover the relevant ground in the reference material. I’ll be my own driving force.
3. This quarter, I will turn in every essay on time, so I'm not docked any points from the overall grade. I will be disciplined.
4. I’ll work around boring professors: There are some bad teachers out there but I won’t let that be enough to make me quit. I’ll disconnect the course from its boring lecturer and remember that its mastery is important for me for the reasons I have chosen this short course.
5. I will research and secure an internship by the end of this semester with people and in a field of study I care about.
6. I will go to the library to study every Wednesday night from 4:00 – 8:00 (or whatever times I can consistently set aside). Every short course I take will see an improvement in my grades.
7. I’ll build a foundation for next year: First year short courses are the frame on which second year courses are built. Therefore, I’ll build a foundation in a subject field that is meaningful to me.
8. I will study for fifteen minutes every night for the next three months, so I can score well enough to carry on to the next short course with prerequisites secured.
9. Since I'm juggling work and school, I will secure a flex-time schedule by the end of January so I can work forty hours and study fifteen.
10. I’ll measure my performance in a detached and unbiased way: By doing this I won’t suffer from unfair grading and I’ll recognize when it’s time to get serious.

At the end of the day if you are taking short courses you already realize you need a degree of motivation and self-discipline. Making resolutions is cool way to define what your expectations are of yourself and to give yourself a little more focus. Yours may not be on this list or may be a modified version, one better suited to your particular schedule, lifestyle and short course. It doesn’t matter, the important thing is to set goals and then aim for them.

The Wikipedia definition of a New Year’s resolution is simply: “A commitment that a person makes to one or more lasting personal goals, projects, or the reforming of a habit. This goal must be reached by the next New Year. Keep in mind that this is a goal, not a wish and should be something that you as a person could strive for.” Good Luck!