secret rules of university by thomas smith

8/13/2019 Secret Rules of University By Thomas Smith

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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

2Secret Rules of University - Thomas Smith


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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.

Secret Rules of University - Thomas Smith


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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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Your transcript needs to be a pristine,

unblemished record

One bad grade can ruin the whole thing



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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

[email protected]

(The chart on page 12 is much easier to read

in PDF).

Work hard.

Good luck!

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]

secret rules of university by thomas smith

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