Student Snippets A Window Into The Daily Life & Thoughts of SLIS Students

Finals

Third semester: It’s a wrap!

I’m all done with my third semester at SLIS West!!! Even though my courses this semester were in many ways “easier” than my others, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced such a massive sense of relief. There was a lot going on in my personal life these past few weeks that made the end a major struggle. For example, the first thing I did once classes were over was to finally take my poor ailing five-year old to the doctor and find out he has a double ear infection (ouch!). I am a worrier by nature, and two things guaranteed to create a lot of worry for me are school and sick children. The difficult thing about being a mom AND a grad student is that you literally get no break. You’re with the kids all day long, and any “personal time” you manage to etch out must go to homework. You can’t just go to bed early one night if you’re super tired because then you’ll get behind in your homework and there will…


The End is Near

I have less than one week until my first semester is over.  My final project is due next Tuesday, May 1, and then I am done with my first semester at Simmons.  I’m happy, stressed, excited, and terrified all at the same time because it’s crunch time and I’m working away on my project and I can see my deadline looming closer but I know I have a break coming up (until my summer class starts). This semester has gone by so fast and I’m so proud of the work I’ve done and all of the new skills I’ve acquired.  In just this one class, I’ve learned how to conduct reference interviews, I’ve learned about ready reference sources, I’ve learned about ethics and professional standards in the library and archives industries, I’ve learned a variety of new search strategies and techniques for databases and web sources, I’ve learned about evaluating information and resources, I’ve learned how to plan and create a basic instruction session, I’ve learned about making LibGuides, and so much more!  I think…


Crunch Time

We’ve now entered the last two weeks of the semester, otherwise known as “crunch time.” I have three end-of-semester projects on the horizon that I’m busily plugging away at. Now is the time when my kids get away with a little extra TV in the afternoons and I remind my husband daily, “just two more weeks….” The summer break is so close you can taste it, as it hovers like a sunny promise just out of reach. Oh how the pleasure reading and the hobbies and the home organization projects are calling! In my experience, you never know quite how the end will play out until it is suddenly upon you, but this semester (so far) I feel like the crunch won’t be too bad. The end of the semester is always an exciting time, and not just for the prospect of homework-free evenings. It represents the culmination of all we’ve been studying and working on throughout the semester and usually includes some kind of presentation in front of our peers. The project I’m most…


School and Stress

I’m in the final push of my first semester of grad school.  I just checked Moodle for my online class and I only have four weeks left.  FOUR WEEKS.  This semester has been so amazing, but unfortunately it is currently the most stressful part of the semester with readings, essays, online forums, and final projects being due soon.  Add real-life interference and Fall 2018 class registration being this week and that leads to stress.  Here are some things that I am doing to combat stress that may be useful in your life: Make a list:  Making a list of everything that needs to be done and checking things off of it as those things get done actually can be very soothing because you can really see what has and has not been done. Walk:  My mom has always stressed the power of walking, and how much good it can do for you, and I never actually believed her until I went to college, and I got stressed while writing a paper.  I went on a…


One Rather Late Semester Wrap-up

So… it’s been a few weeks. My first semester of grad school ended five days ago and since then I’ve been processing, and recovering, and “making it up” to my family. Those last two weeks of class were kind of a whirlwind. And even though I had jotted down ample notes for a blog post, I just couldn’t take the time to sit down and type one out. I poured all the time I could into my final projects and trimmed everything “non-essential,” or at least able to be put off for two weeks. I scrambled around doing the bare minimum to take care of the kids and the house and let me tell you: bare minimum is not pretty. The kids (aged 4 and 2) were super great considering my parenting could be described as something resembling benign neglect. Or in other words, “Have some goldfish for dinner and watch all the TV you want and sleep in your clothes tonight.” I still shudder now to think of it and it was all I…


The Week Before Finals

‘Tis the week before finals, and all through the landSLIS students are scurrying to finish up plans.Slides, lesson plans, websites galore!We finish up presentations that we hope the teach will adore. We tidy up projects and put citations in papersAs the weather turns ready for frost and scrapers. So forgive the silent blog, dear fans, as we put on our thinking caps;When really our brains are ready for long winter’s naps. You’ll hear from us again soon, with good tidings and cheer. For after 12/10 will be finished with half of this school year! We’ll take long breaks or graduate, and play and work, work, workTo make use of the break. You’ll see us in society again, and we won’t just lurk.We’ll have lives again – at least for a month. So bear with us, dear fans, as we finish up this crunch!


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