To do lists!

Revision planning has turned me into the most obsessive planner I have ever come across. I'm not joking.

Really not joking.

Basically I've got everything planned out so that I finish a week ahead of schedule, which is when my orals start: English on Monday the 10th of June and Spanish on Friday the 14th. It'll give me time to do a few mock papers in the spare time I have around those two exams before the "Big Week".

In case I'm not the only one having a slight "what happens if I don't meet the conditions of my offer, I won't be able to go to uni, I won't be able to ever become anything, therefore I need to revise 20hrs/day and OMG I'm so stressed" kind of time, I've put together a list of tips to help keep a lid on exam stress:

• Have a look at Andrew Johnson's "Exam Support" app (here). I use it most nights before going to sleep and it basically talks you through a relaxation exercise and teaches you coping mechanisms for exam stress. It's not free, but I bought it for my exams last year and found it to be a great help then too and I'm pretty sure I'll need it once I'm at uni too. 

• Get yourself organised: if you're stressed about not being prepared then do something about it. Get together with a group of friends (who'll actually get work done!) and set about putting in as much last minute effort as you can. It'll make you walk into the exam room with more confidence and we all know that confidence is key.

• Make sure you talk to your friends and family, they may not understand exactly how stressed you are but having a good support network around you is really important if you're struggling with exam pressure.

• Always keep in mind that the exams only last a few days. A few days out of your entire life and tose days will be out of the way before you know it and you'll be able to get on with your summer holiday.

Let me know how you're all getting on with revision and how you're coping with exam pressure. Are you worried about your exams? Do you think you have it all under control? Let me know in the comments bellow! 

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Review: Sussex Uni Admissions Day

Jubilee Building - Sussex Campus on Admissions Day

As you can see from the picture, we were lucky enough to experience the campus at it's finest and were reminded at various points throughout the day that Sussex had won the award for "Sunniest Campus in the UK" (although there was some debate amongst current students about the accuracy of that factoid). Anyway, the aim of the day for me had nothing to do with deciding whether or not Sussex was the place for me, but I was there with the intention of finding out more about the course I had already firmed and getting more of a feel for the campus. 

The day was pretty hectic, arriving at 9.30 to 'sign in' and receive a full schedule for the day which started off with a presentation of the School of Law, Politics and Sociology. After that the politics and sociology students were taken off for their subject-specific courses whilst future Law students stayed on for our talk.  

After that I had a look around the campus again, and went to look around the student accommodation because I didn't bother to that during the Open Day in September because I didn't think I'd actually get any offers from them...

Then, I went to a talk about American Studies which was great and made me really look forward to starting that too. There was lots of talk about the year abroad that comes with the course which made me certain that it's the right course for me. 

All in all it was a really great day, but again like I said, I didn't need convincing. If you did though, you were more than welcome to ask any of the students/staff about whatever you needed to know about and everyone was really approachable. 

I'm pretty sure you will all have finished pre-decision visits by now, but if not, I would advise you to:

• Go with a plan in mind: work out what matters to you (accommodation, location within a city...) and work out what you're going to do during your day with that in mind.
• Don't be afraid to ask questions: whether they're questions that have been bugging you for ages or that you come up with during your visit just ask someone, it's what they're there for. 
• Have a look around the town as well as the campus: you won't be staying on campus 24/7 and chances are you'll have to move off campus after the first year so get a feel for the local town whilst you're there.

Let me know about your experiences of admissions days and how they influenced you're final decision below!

Like what you've read? Vote for me (India Bottomley) as the UCAS Connect blogger of the month -> here <- Thanks!