If you are a lost and confused fresher, and are looking for tips on how to approach seniors for help during exams, read further!
With end semester exams on the head all students look for different ways so as to crack these exams. Some collect notes from the class topper, some prepare chits to hide in their socks, some stay up late for hours mugging up their texts, while some just stare into the abyss, and pray for things to work out. Among all these different students from different schools of thought, there is a group of the students who leech off seniors during exams.
As a fresher writing the exams for the first time, we’re all lost and confused. The towers of countless readings become our Everest, and actually reading them seems impossible. It is all so overwhelming and exhausting, and you have no idea where to begin or how to go about it. In situations like these, what can be better than a senior who gives you all the exam hacks and pointers?
Now, it isn’t that easy to find seniors who are genuinely willing to share their precious knowledge over these years. And even if they are, they are mostly too busy trying to figure their own mess out, forget helping a mindless, half-baked junior. But that’s where you need to know how exactly must one approach a senior.
For starters, take a cup of chai or a glass of iced-tea with you while approaching the seniors. This is an essential step so as to show them that you care and aren’t entirely heedless. Then, initiate a light conversation; ask them how they are or what their day was like. Try and ensure they aren’t already stressed. If they are (which they will be in most probability since they are way busier than you, for obvious reasons), try cracking a few jokes to mellow down the tension and lighten up the mood.
Once you see them smiling and giggling, and maybe suggesting going to grab a bite (which would be amazing for your situation), that’s your queue! But remember, you still don’t directly ask for help. You start by talking about your own preparations, and different things that are troubling you. Hopefully, the senior himself or herself will suggest tips or pointers that you were looking for in the first place. If not, you ask them if they faced similar issues in their time. Consequently, the senior will end up blabbering pointers that helped him or her. Once they start, they probably won’t stop until they have given you everything they have to offer. But then again, this varies from individual to individual.
Now, another important point to be noted is choosing the right senior to approach. Apart from the fact that the senior should belong to your department (obviously), (s)he should also, preferably, have a personality similar to yours. For instance, if you are a diligent student, an advice coming from a comparatively casual senior would not be of much help. Similarly, if you aren’t too concerned with getting the highest scores, an industrious senior would only make things worse.
The end semesters are definitely a tough period, especially when you are new and confused. Leeching off seniors is of course an option; a very practical approach, indeed. However, I would still suggest you to cut them some slack and invent your own methods. Afterall, you know yourself the best- your strengths and weaknesses. All the best for your exams!
Feature Image Credits: DU Beat Archives
Aditi Gutgutia
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