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The Secret Rules of University:
Know before you Go!
Thomas Smith
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YOU ...
are now making university plans.
will invest several years and thousands of
dollars.
are setting course for life & career success.
want the best return on time & money spent.
dont want nasty surprises
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Thomas Smith
Grew up andgraduated from apublic high school inToronto
Earned a Bachelor ofCommerce from theUniversity of Toronto
Went on to do a
Masters in Economicsat Oxford University
Now works in financein London, UK
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This presentation
After finishing university and leaping from
school to a career, Thomas wants to share theadvice he wished he had received before
starting.
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This presentation ...
is about how to reach academic success and
how to move from university into your career.
is not a motivational talk, but practical and
strategic advice.
wont help you choose your field; it will give
you things to think about, but not tell you
what to do.
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Two Questions About You
1) How high are you aiming?
2) Where are you on your university timeline?
... in high school and applying
... just started
... nearly finished
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How high are you aiming?
How you approach university depends on thecareer youre aiming for:
I want to go on and do a PhD.
I want a professional career as a lawyer or
banker.
I just want to pass and get a job.
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Where are you on your timeline?
Stages on your university timeline:
Early years: finishing high school, first year orsecond year undergrad
Later years: third and fourth (and fifth) yearundergrad
Some advice applies to ...
the early years. the later years.
all years.
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Advice for All students
No matter how high youre aiming
Early years:
Keep your options open
All years:
Careers are long
Beyond mountains, there are mountains
Start planning next summer in September
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Advice if you are Aiming High
Early years:
Schools are only good if you must compete
hard to get in
A qualification is only valuable if lots of people
fail at it
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Advice if you are Aiming High
Later years:
Third year Its really important.
Reference letters must be planned in advance.
Do assignments strategically.
For all years:
Pain is temporary, grades are forever
One strike and youre out
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Keep doors open for yourself
At the start, you never haveenough information to makebig decisions.
Never make a commitmentyou do not have to make.
The world will change, andyou will change.
You need time andexperience before younarrow your focus.
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Careers are long
You will have multiple jobs,
and each will last multipleyears.
Dont sacrifice a long-termcareer goal for one that pays
off immediately. If you only realize in fourth
year you want somethingdifferent, go back and do it.
Get yourself pointed in theright direction; dont worryabout how fast youre going.
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Beyond mountains, there are
mountains In mythology, heroes conquer
the mountain and end inVictory.
In school and work, you neverget to the end where you
enjoy the fruits of your labour. The reward for hard work is
more hard work.
Education continues forever,youre still at the start.
After climbing a great hill,one only finds that there are
many more hills to climb.Nelson Mandela
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Plan next summer in September
Relevant work experience:
1. Provides you with practicalknowledge you wont learnin school.
2. Sets you apart fromcompetitors whenacademics are not enough.
3. Is not just about makingmoney you want
experience in your field.4. Should be organized early
in the year. Dont wait forspring to start!
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University is more than education
Elementary, high school, and skilled trades
training are about acquiring knowledge.
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University is more than education
University is also about separating the
smartest people from the rest.
It is a competition which decides some people
are smarter than others.
Succeeding is a SIGNAL to employers and
other universities that you are smart and
committed to your field.
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Signalling Value of Education
Fields with codified knowledge (engineering,
science) have very clear standards.
Brand of school matters less.
Fields with hazier achievement measures (law,
business) have more relative standards.
Brand of school matters more.
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Signalling Value of Education
Very bright people who choose easy degrees
are not signalling to employers how smart
they are.
Ask yourself:
Do few people attempt the course?
Do lots of people fail to get into the course?
Do lots of people fail the course?
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Aiming high: where others fail
Chartered Financial Analyst: 80% who start do
not finish
Top MBAs: only 10% of applicants get
accepted
Pure math degree: few people even attempt
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Grades
Grades are permanent
All grades count
Grades can always be higher Every point on your grade can get you to a
better post-grad or career.
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Pain is temporary, grades are forever
For grad school or a competitive career, gradesmatter a lot.
Employers are concerned with these:1. The school you attended
2. The degree you earned
Grad schools are also concerned with these:3. Your GPA
4. The professors with whom you studied
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Grades
You have two levers to pull your grades
higher:
1. How hard you work
2. The courses you select
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How hard you work
You have to:
Memorize pointless
material
Pull all-nighters
Miss parties and
family functions
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Good grades are not enough. Go for every point.
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Courses you select
Dont make university harder on yourself.
I thought taking a Quantum Physics elective
would be fun.
Electives should be at the intersection of
interesting and easy.
Interesting so you dont get bored and neglect it.
Easy enough that you can get a good grade.
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One strike and youre out
Your transcript needs to be a pristine,
unblemished record
One bad grade can ruin the whole thing
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One strike and youre out
If a course threatens to ruin your pristine
transcript, dont be afraid to drop it if:
You have done poorly on early tests.
The probability of doing well looks very low.
Your supposedly fun elective is a lot more
difficult than expected.
A required course has begun poorly drop it
and take it again.
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3rd Year: Penultimate Year
The year upon which you are actually judged.
Graduate schools want your application
between Sept and Jan of your final year.
Grad schools will decide on you before you
ever finish 4th year.
You cannot leave important courses until 4th
year.
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3rd Year: Penultimate Year
If you are going straight to work after 4th year:
You will be applying and interviewing during
4th year.
Employers will only be able to judge you on
the grades, projects and work experience you
have before 4th year.
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Reference Letters
Employers and grad schools need more than a
number to judge you on.
You need personal testimonials to support
your work ethic and enthusiasm.
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Reference Letters
For a good reference letter:
The writer must know you and have good
things to say about you.
The writer should come from a department
relevant to where youre applying.
The writer should be well-known in their field.
This is very important for PhD programs; a high
quality application requires high quality referees.
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Strategic Research/Papers
In later years, focus your assignments on the
niche in which you want to work.
Bend assignments away from general work
and into your area.
Professors will usually help you with this; if youre
showing a real interest you can deviate from the
syllabus.
Now you can use your current course work to
prepare for your future.
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Strategic Research/Papers
This is especially important for PhD
applications.
Grad schools will want to see that youre
interested and experienced in research.
For a PhD application you should do an
independent research course during your
undergrad.
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Final thoughts:
For a PDF of this presentation, email
(The chart on page 12 is much easier to read
in PDF).
Work hard.
Good luck!
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mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]