Life as we know it

-By Aretha Zhen

Life as we know it

“I think Josh Duhamel from the movie ‘Life as we know it’ is truly one handsome guy!”

“No, he is definitely not handsome at all"


"Well your perception of who is handsome and who is not is utterly devastating!”

“No, it is you who has no taste at all!"

"No, it is definitely you!”

Cuttttt….. I’ll stop writing more about any stupid arguments…..

Hmmm well my beloved readers, hello! Please don’t be surprised with the stupid arguments I put up there. Those dialogues happened between me and my friends approximately a year ago, a time when we used to have arguments regularly. However, it only made me realize that although my friend and I may come from the same country but we indeed have different tastes. Well, that's why this post is called - life as we know it. Life could be kind and life could be bad too.

Coming to Australia as an international student, I'm sure a lot of you would have found out that Melbourne might be very different from your home country. It could be a lot bigger or a lot smaller. But all of this just makes me realize that studying in a different place is a new challenge. And the biggest challenge that possibly confronts us all is the difference in opinion and culture.

Getting back to the stupid dialogue I put up there, made me realize that everyone is different. No matter where we end up in the future- whether here in Australia or back in home countries or even some other planet (hehe..just joking. Sure thing not another planet, unless we are the crew of Star Trek, which I think will be quite cool:D), we will have a clash of opinion with others. All we need to remember is that everyone is different. So just be yourself, embrace what life offers you and get back every time life wants to beat you down. Just remember, life itself is one great big adventure! That’s why this life is the life as we know it!

As for my life at Deakin, the first time I came here I just went - oh My God! The term was very hectic as I had put a lot on my plate and I was going crazy trying to cope up with everything. I was stressed out and I knew that I needed help so I come to Student Life - the absolutely magical place where we can find out any information we need. From them, I found out that Deakin has a special service for international students called ISS - International Student Service Support. Just fix up an appointment with the ISS office and tell them your difficulties.Trust me, speaking to them really helps!

Up till today, Australia has been treating me well and I believe it will do so in the future. I try my best to enjoy every single moment of my student life here and am trying to make the most out of it. We international students, being away from family, can keep quite busy with either work or studies. But try to find time to spend with friends, and obviously, time to visit and explore this beautiful continent. Never forget, wherever you are now or in the future, keep trusting yourself, make new friends, and enjoy your life!


Cheerio

Melbourne: the city we all love

Do you want to get on the right foot in your studies? Why not get to know your tutors/lecturers?

-By Erzsebet

Can you remember your years at school? You may recall you had one teacher for each subject, am I right? I remember every year the dreaded fear I had before going back to school and not having a teacher that I have worked well with or that I liked. At uni, we have a different system. We have a tutor and lecturer for each class we undertake to help us better understand our work.

Before I started at uni, many people who never really knew what it was really all about tried to make me believe that it's a lot like school. You have a single teacher for each unit, they take the class and the rest is all independent study. Although it's partly true about the independence, Deakin has proven to me something of a completely different nature. Let me tell you about it!

I came to university from a two and a half year ordeal of correspondence study due to ill health. Let me assure you, it was by far one of the hardest experiences of my life! I came to accept that going back on campus wasn't going to be easy and I really needed to work around it.Not to forget that because of my ill health, if something unexpected occurred, there would be someone who knows about it. I took the courage to contact my unit chair. I first visited the handbooks and got their name and then searched the staff directory to get their contact details.

I think it was the best decision I could ever make. It gave me a chance to speak to the unit chair and get to know what would be expected of me. I also learnt that by getting to know your lecturer/tutor early on, you can learn a lot about them. You're also looked upon as an individual as opposed to just a student who is undertaking a course because they need it to get into their career. The lecturers/tutors at Deakin are well known leaders in their chosen field and I have learnt that they are always willing to guide you along. You're not left alone in the dark. You can gain so much insight just from getting to know your lecturers and tutors! It makes a big difference in your approach to your study and everything else!

So, take the opportunity while you can! Get on the right foot of things early :)

Housemate rules and regulations

-By Ninah

What you need to know about share houses is that every house is different, so whether you are moving into a share house for the first time or whether it's just a transfer from one to another, what you need to realise is that the difference between a good and a bad shared house experience is the people. Now there is nothing you can do that will guarantee awesome housemates. It's basically a luck thing, except maybe moving in with friends. But the following tips that I'm going to give will help in living with awesome and not-so-awesome housemates.

Tip No. 1: Chocolate is a huge commodity within the share house community (especially with girls). It can gain you favours such as lifts to town and it can subdue the anger of a fellow housemate.
WARNING!! Keep chocolate out of reach from housemates or it will disappear without a trace.

Tip No.2: Hot water is essential for a good shower as we know; the trick is having one of the first showers of the day so that it doesn’t run out part way through your steaming hot shower and leave you screaming like a girl who has seen a gigantic spider.

Tip No.3: Having a sound system or earmuffs is useful as walls within share houses are not usually very thick and you never know what you might overhear from the rooms around you; there are just some things that were never meant to be overheard....

Tip No.4: Following on from tip No.3 there are some signs that are put up on doors as warnings of not to enter unless you want to completely destroy your life as you know it (if you are not sure though it's best just to knock first before entering). They are:

 





What's behind door number 1?? The tie is usually an indicator that...well if you don't know already I won't ruin it for you, ask a housemate they will enjoy telling you.

What's behind door number 2?? The sock means exactly the same thing as door number 1 it's just people's preference to what to put on the door. Again ask a housemate what it means if you don't know already.

What's behind door number 3?? If there is a sign on the door read it as it usually tells you exactly what not to do, but if it tells you to punch yourself or to stand on your head I would advise you not to follow those instructions for health and safety reasons.

I hope these few tips have been helpful to you newbies of the share house community, and I hope it has brought back some good and possibly some face-palm moments to those who have been in share-houses before. If you have any questions that need answering or if you want more tips just comment below and I'll get back to you

May your alcohol keep flowing and your hangovers be short.

Tootles,

Your fellow Housemate,

Ninah

Getting involved in clubs, societies and other groups

-By Jayne

Groucho Marx once said he wouldn’t belong to any club that would accept him as a member. While I appreciate the dry humour and ironic self deprecation with which Marx intended this statement, I have to say I disagree. I have been involved with a few clubs in my time, and without exception involvement has proved to be an enriching and infinitely rewarding experience. Well for me anyway-whether the club has been better off for my involvement is probably debateable ;)

In two cases now, I have been a group founding member. There’s something electrically exciting about the energy involved with starting a group (or even a social movement) at grass root level! However, whether you start a group of your own, or join a pre-existing group, the experience will surely be enjoyable, and could possibly be the beginning of a new career or study direction. At the very least, you will meet some great, likeminded new friends!

I’m going to tell you a bit about my most recent experience with clubs and societies here at Deakin.

When I started as a first year mature age student last year I felt isolated and lacking in connection with others mature agers. Never fear, I won’t bore you with that tale again (yay they all chorus in unison!)... but read here if you are interested ;)

I had tried to contact the mature age club listed on the DUSA website without success. It turns out that the committee members of that club had finished their studies leaving the club somewhat alone and unloved. I was extremely frustrated with this, so I began to entertain the somewhat crazy and delusional idea of starting my group. I’d started a group once in another life-so why not? Why not indeed. Oh no reason at all...other than the small fact of being a full time student and single parent with a gazillion other responsibilities. Hmm. Maybe not such a great idea, the sensible side of my brain reasoned. However, as ever, the more impulsive side raged against Ms Sensible and the seed was sown. Being somewhat lazy, a notoriously adept procrastinator who never actually gets many of her ‘brilliant’ ideas off the ground; I typically did nothing with it...*rollseyes at self*

That was until I met some passionate likeminded students via the Facebook page for one of my subjects (yay social media!) Meeting up with these amazing people, who had similar ideas about the need for a new mature age group became the catalyst for ACTION! We formed an executive committee, became affiliated with DUSA as a club, held a highly successful stall all throughout O-Week at Burwood...and the rest is history. We even formed ties with other such groups at other Deakin campuses; even other universities. Some awesome friendships have been made via our club. I love knowing so many great people to whom I can turn for study support, advice or just a chat; it has made me feel a part of something amazing and wonderful. And observing how the mere existence of the club has eased the transition into uni for many first year students is incredibly rewarding.

While starting your own club may not be something you are interested in, I’d definitely urge you to check out the DUSA clubs page, and if there is something there that tickles your fancy contact the club to express your interest. And hey, if you are interested in forming your own club or group, it’s not that hard-it just takes passion and a few like-minded souls. If I can do it, anyone can.

Hopefully this post has been useful (if not, perhaps at least you enjoyed the lolcats? ;)) You can find out more about joining a DUSA club, or starting your own club or group here J

Clubs can help members out with study support and advice

N = the least favourite grade

-By Jo

Results are usually a relief, they arrive, you got what you wanted, sometimes more and sometimes less, but it usually means you can tick those units off your course and sigh happily that you’re still on track.

That’s how it usually goes for me, until trimester one last year. Of the four units I had taken that trimester I had completed three of the optional assignments, but the fourth one remains on my hard drive to this day, approximately a day away from finished but totally useless to me. I went into the exam knowing a pass would be very hard to come by – but not turning up to the exam would have made me feel worse.

I chose to sign up to receive my results by SMS.

I paced the house from 4 pm.

I held my mobile in my hands from 5 pm.

I stopped pacing at 5.40pm when the message tone sounded.

Here’s where I would normally open the message as quickly as possible and announce my results to my family and then share by email with fellow students.

But I sat.

I starred at the message preview in the lock screen of my mobile phone.

I waited, but I wasn’t sure for what.
There is a certain last minute hope that is hard to give in to. After some time passed I concluded that the marks were there and as they weren’t going to change I had to be brave and look.

There were three credits that I was happy with and one dreaded ‘N’.

I sat and starred some more.

Perhaps I should have gone to my lecturers and told them about the intense semester I had endured and the house move, and my physical health problems, but I hadn’t, thinking I could never fail.

Then I went into denial. I sent an email to the unit chair, one to my lecturer to see if they had got it wrong (after all it was the only logical explanation).

Then I went into meltdown. 
This unit was a pre-requisite for a unit in trimester two, and for a unit the following year. I had effectively added another year onto my degree not to mention the extra fee for when I repeated the unit (back then I didn’t know the textbook would be updated by the following year so on a very tight budget I was going to need another textbook too).

All these thoughts kept leading me back to that assignment I’d missed. I kept comparing my results with that of my friends – how come they passed and I didn’t? Was I not as intelligent as them? Was it a cosmic sign that the powers that be felt I shouldn’t be in this course? Was it karma for lying to my mother in the 90s?

Then the tears and self-pity moved in and decided we should be roommates for the next week or so.

I didn’t access Student Advocacy (through DUSA) which is available free to all students, and which I should've accessed. I felt I deserved the ‘N’ like I’d deserved all my other marks. I had failed a unit and my pride and my ego were suffering from severe bruising! 


I found out that failed exam papers are looked at twice to make sure the grade is correct, that lecturers are usually willing to go over your paper with you and help you understand where you went wrong and most importantly the world doesn’t launch into an apocalyptic ending.

My failure highlights a few things for me – I’m human, life events do impact my study, it’s best to speak up as soon as this happens and maintaining a strict study time table is more important than it sounds.

‘The only failure is when you quit’ is now the first thing I write in my notebooks.