Hello Freshers!
We hope you’re as excited as we are about starting a new journey here at MTU. MTU represents a new phase and a fresh start for you, no matter what experiences you’ve had in education. You will be busy, so remember to make a conscious effort to get off to a Good Start. Good Start Ambassadors have themed your first four weeks of the semester:
- Finding your Feet
- Belonging
- Getting Down to Work
- Striking a Balance.
We think you’ll find these useful as you settle into university life.
For this first week, we are going to help you find your feet at university!
Finding Your Feet Academically
As a new or returning student, you’ll find it helpful to get to know the college. We’d recommend that you do this by exploring the MTU website to see what is available to you as a student of MTU. Here are some examples of what is available to you now that you are a student:
Open Access - Bishopstown Library
Free access for students to computer and printing services, as well as digital libraries and academic journals, Office tools and more. This service can be accessed in all campuses or on PC.
Academic Learning Centre and Navigate - Bishopstown Campus/Zoom
Get a better understanding of something you’ve covered in a lecture or of a particular area of your module. The ALC and Navigate also offer support with skills for university, including writing and presentations. See studentengagement.cit.ie/alc and studentengagement.cit.ie/navigate for more information.
Academic Success Coaching - Bishopstown Campus/Zoom
Student-led, tailored sessions to help you figure out your goals, motivations, strengths, priorities and your best way to plan for success at university. Check out studentengagement.cit.ie/asc for more information.
It’s a good idea to have your laptop charger, a pen and refill pad on hand for note taking in lectures. Staying organised from the start of the year creates productive habits that will make learning easier later on.
Another good tool is a designated study and learning area. It could be a desk in your bedroom, or preferably a quiet space in a separate room. There is a library available on all MTU campuses. Whatever works for you!
We recommend that you make a study plan with a planner or with apps like Google Calendar and Notion. Scheduling time to wind down is a useful way to ensure you don’t overwork either. All students have access to Office suite and the full Google suite, which also provide great organisational tools.
It is important to be aware of distractions such as your phone or people around you. We recommend apps like Forest or Flora to motivate you to stay focused.
Finding Your Feet Personally
Exploring your campus is the best way to familiarise yourself with it. Go for a stroll and see what you find!
New to the city? Familiarise yourself with bus routes to MTU through mycit.ie/bus and bustimes.org.
We suggest you have your MTU Smartcard on you at all times, you will need it for getting into the library, gym, exams, medical centre, reprographics centre and more.
You can research the various supports available to you at MTU on the MTU Website. Resources include the Students’ Union, Access Service, Counselling Service, Medical Centre, Library Services, and many more. Find out what each of these can do to make college life easier for you!
It’s great to take advantage of any Student Discounts available on the services you use on a regular basis. For example, the average student will save around 30% when using a Leap Card as opposed to cash. Find out what discounts you can avail of to help you day by day through sites like studentbeans.com and UniDays.
Finding Your Feet Socially
Get to know your classmates by participating in class discussions and speaking to someone new every day. It can never hurt to know the people around you better.
Sign up to a club or society on the MTU Clubs and Societies portal and introduce yourself to the students representing the societies and clubs that you have joined.
Check out the events and competitions that will be running during the four weeks of MTU Good Start. This can help you network with the people who you share your campus with, and give you a chance of winning prizes and Good Start goodies!
If you have a question or would like to chat with a member of the Good Start team, send us a DM on our Instagram or on Facebook @mtugoodstart. We will also be hosting some competitions in each campus, so keep an eye on our social media to keep up to date!
Best of Luck,
The Good Start Ambassador Team