|
Hello again TL. This is just a blog asking for some help with a few things.
I'm doing my final year in CS at a "good" UK university (You can find out where, in my previous blog post) and I'm just starting to feel the pressure of a bunch of things from the education, and in a way, I just feel like I can't just do everything that I want to be able to do, due to it being potentially harmful to my health.
For example, I am now stuck in a rut of writing up dissertation work/coding a prototype user interface for my final year research project, and trying my best to succeed in the other modules that I am currently taking this semester. I just feel like I can't succeed in both my modules I chose for this semester, and continue fighting towards a first-class degree and first-class grade for my final project. (For any non-UK people reading this, a first-class degree, or a first-class grade is equivalent to an A) I've been up until 4am most of the past few evenings working on my project work, and to get up at 6:30 for a 90 min commute to university to work there all day, and then come back home and do the same cycle again. My body is starting to feel the havoc this is doing to me. Yet I have to continue working, because I just have so much I need to be doing.
I've been getting straight A's for any assessed piece of work I have received so far. But the big stress and panic on my mind is that my advisor is almost disregarding any amount of work that I do in my other modules, and stating that I should be devoting very little time to my module based work and instead putting that towards my project.
This has not been going well for me as a person, or even as a student. I've had a history of not being able to look after myself when it comes to the crunch. I've consistently neglected myself when the shit hits the fan, and I just recover from it once it calms down again. People I know from University like to joke that I'm not human, due to the fact I work such ridiculous hours and do so on very few hours of sleep or very little food. My advisor just says that I should merely be working harder. But what can happen if I am working my absolute hardest, to the point of mental and physical health problems. My advisor doesn't seem to understand that my home student commute is not very friendly and that living on campus wasn't an option for me. Doing a 9-6 day of lectures + assessed working labs and then being expected to work well into the night, on very little sleep and a 90 min commute time either way, is incredibly brutal.
I just don't know what to do right now about all of this. I write this to you at 4am... again, I would typically have to be up at 6:30 for a triple block of lectures, followed by project work all afternoon, but that will not be happening today due to the fact of being so damn tired that I just have to sleep for more than just a mere few hours.
Have you guys here got any advice or help that you can give me for this? I'm just getting more and more upset at all of this and I just don't know what to do. I've tried giving myself some "me" time, but then I just get further behind with the work that needs to be done, and then I panic more, and do more ridiculous things to make up for the "me" time I spent.
 
|
What is your plan for your life post-degree?
I ask this because it should determine how you approach your study and accordingly what you value when you are studying. If you looking to go into post-grad work then gaining exemplary marks is key. However if you are looking to move into industry, marks whilst important need to be balanced with actual outcomes you can show. For example, your portfolio of work becomes relatively more important than the absolute mark you obtain.
If university life is pushing to the breaking point you need to justify why that it is the case. Perhaps delaying your course work until the dissertation is complete? I don't know I am not a UK student. Just keep in mind that there are always options open to you.
Good luck!
|
I plan to get a first-class degree because I'm in the process of planning to emigrate at some point in the future to the US, to not only be with most of where my friends are, but also for the job prospects. I want the first-class degree because I'm partially a perfectionist, partially a mentally unstable crazy person who just gets too caught up on small mistakes and gives up on them.
As for showing work that could land me a job, I've been showing this to a local software developer company, with the fact that I have a passion for coding, and that I enjoy it. I have the knowledge of such, to back up the grades that I'm earning.
I want my final project to be an impressive piece of work that I can then use as a propeller to get me into an industry job at a good company. Whenever someone sets me a bar, I try my best to jump over it with confidence and swagger, but this bar just seems like it's too high for me to jump.
I cannot delay the coursework unfortunately, as it has such a short turn-around date. I have 3 weeks to effectively go away and study up on a new and confusing topic, and then code a solution, not including the other two pieces of coursework released in the next week or so. They too, have a 3 week turnaround period.
So for what I have right now, is not as much as I will have in around 2 weeks time. I'm making the blog post as an "in advance" thing to try and see what I can do to help get past these problems I'm having.
Thank you for the good luck. I'll be needing it.
EDIT: I accidentally a letter.
|
Spend more time on your project. No one will give a shit about your grades once you graduate unless you're doing post-grad stuff, which you said you aren't.
It's pretty easy to get wrapped up in grades for the sake of grades while you're still in school. Once you leave school you end up looking back and realizing that it was all a carrot.
|
The first answer to the blog was very relevant, it really depends on your post graduate plans.
Personally, I totally winged it and played BW non-stop. I graduated my computer science master degree with mediocre grades (was quite good for someone who didn't even attend the classes), then joined a consulting company as an intern working for almost free. Since I was doing really well, they hired me with a nice package.
Who will ever care about the grades as long as you're a very good employee.
|
Isn't this standard for all engineering students in final year? Me and my buddies would spent countless over nighters in the lab feeding off of combo pizza deals and convenience store eggnog. Sure, we complained about how bad we had it, and that no one we knew could relate to how hard we worked (which is still true, judging by my friend base), but it strengthened us beyond belief.
Don't panic, keep plugging away. It's a day by day battle man. Finish strong, don't cut corners, and at the end you will be able to grab your friends that you've shared the same pain with and you can laugh about the painful days over beers and nachos in some dreary pub. Thought this was pretty standard to go through.
|
|
|
|
|
|
EPT
