Just some tips as I'm finishing up my last two weeks of my first year ––
- get a white board & expo markers –– repetition is super helpful for learning & it's easy to rewrite without being wasteful on a white board
- save ALL your powerpoints, word documents, etc on OneDrive or whatever cloud software you use. Laptops crash, get stolen, etc. & you can easily access your notes wherever as long as you have internet. it's also nice to be able to reference your older lectures when needed.
- i always study by myself first to ensure that i'm familiar with the material & then I study with others
- reach out to your professors/ classmates if you don't understand something/ struggling
- don't buy/ rent textbooks unless you absolutely benefit/ learn from reading them. professors typically have majority, if not all, the information you'll need within powerpoints they provide.
All of these points are fantastic - and ones that I'd suggest too. Additionally:
Never feel bad about asking questions. If there is one thing I've found in school, it's that other people have your exact question, or didn't even know they had your question as a question. Always ask, and don't feel like you're stupid (because you aren't), and you definitely won't be alone. I started a slack channel with my cohort where we have separate channels for all the classes, and people post questions they have, and it's been so so helpful!!
I would definitely have a computer or tablet that works well for you - for ease of note taking. I switched to a tablet/computer combo for typing and hand writing and that's been nice to have. (I have separate pages in One Note where I just do handwritten repetition on notes).
I'd get organization down as well as you can, too. Things move fast, so trying to stay on top of everything, as well as getting study time in is best. Sometimes it feels like you're just being hit with a fire hose the whole time, and organization for sure helps!!!!
On top of everything, I'd have plans for self-care. It's so easy to fall into the hole of PT school and only focus on that. Having a regimen for meal prep, exercise, time for yourself, etc. is a necessity (and it's HARD when you're in school - I'm still working on getting better at this)
Good luck and congrats on starting soon!!
