Major: UG: Double Major: Environmental and Natural Resource Management/ Agricultural Science

PG: MPhil.Tropical Earth and Environmental Science

Research Interest: Bioenergy Production and Utilization

University of the West Indies, UWI St.Augustine Campus

 

How did you decide on where and which schools you wanted to apply for? 

Well for me this was not easy. When you about to leave to go to a different level of education, you have to consider everything; your professional goals, your academic prowess, your academic goals, the environment that you want to be in…you get the idea. Once I started scouting potential options, the difficulty in choosing where I wanted to go became evident. In the end choosing the university to which I am attending now was relatively easy. However choosing where to apply was difficult. Firstly, look for a school which offers the program that accurately describes the programs being offered and the one which you are most interested in. If they don’t tell you what is being offering in an accurate and logical and clear manner, that is a sign to stay away. Reputation is important as well, however, take advice with a pinch of salt. Know that each person would have their own ideas about why the university and the degree offered is or is not the best. Finally, finances play a big role. Do not look for the most expensive degree available unless you have no choice. Try to find the balance between quality of degree and cost of pursuing the degree. Once your university is accredited, you can get a great degree that allows you to be competitive anywhere in the world.

 

How would you advise someone to prepare for this big change? 

Can you really prepare? I’m not sure. There’s a gulf between high school and university. There’s not much that you can do. The most important I can suggest is to keep an open mind and cling to the things that you know are right.

Do you recommend working on campus?

To each his own. I didn’t work on campus because my double major provided me with assignments to submit almost every week. Working on campus can provide a student with timely income no matter their economic situation. I also believe that it can cause the student to develop skills of time management, cooperation, responsibility and accountability. If you can do it, then do it. If it takes away from your ability to perform well academically, stay away. If you need to work but you aren’t strong academically either, don’t panic. Find a trusted adult to guide and advise you. Use the support systems provided by the university. If you aren’t strong at writing, have a tutor look over your work. Using the support around you will help you to cope better and perform better while supporting yourself.

How do you manage your time?

This is a very important question. Time management determines how well a student does in college. It is also a great personal and professional skill to have. It is important to know that everyone is different and therefore time management is more critical to some than to others. I was not very great at time management and I suspect that it may have been because of my ability to do well under pressure. I always made up in my mind that whatever I do had consequences and so I shouldn’t complain. When I had an assignment due in two weeks and I decided to watch movies every night until the assignment was due, I knew that I’d still have to do. That mindset helped me to still keep up with what I had to do. I still do the same thing in graduate school but I picked up a few more tricks. One thing to always do is make a list. Making a list acts as a visual aid to you the student. With all the things that have to be done it can be easy to forget stuff until the last minute. That list keeps reminding  you of what you have to do and when you have to do it. Another rule to live by is “make hay while the sun shines” or do not put off what can be done today for tomorrow. Start your assignments and other duties early. Even if you don’t finish early, your subconscious works on it. That way even if you go back to it late, you would’ve started and you would know what you have to do.

 

What do you do when you are homesick?

Being homesick is a common for students in college and university, especially in the first two years away from home. I remember missing our lovely beaches at home, performing with the other members of the jazz band that I was a part of, and family members as well as those whom I would consider family. If you look carefully, most of the things for which you are homesick represent activities of fun and leisure and in the case of family and friends, a support system. To counteract this I made friends who at this point today are still a great support system. We studied together, celebrated together and shared our emotions with each other. Now this wasn’t done deliberately to counteract being homesick, but in hindsight it worked. Soon enough I was staying to spend the holidays with my friends instead of returning home at every chance. Another thing to do is ‘get involved’. If you are homesick because you miss doing things that you used to do, do them (as long as the activities are positive). If you were in a band, find one. If you ran track, find a team to become part of. I strongly believe that being homesick is also a result of being stressed that’s why you miss doing the fun activities with your friends and you miss your support system. Being involved reduces stress as well as reduces the amount of time that you have to dwell on the things that you miss. Sit and recognize why you are homesick, talk to someone about it and devise the best solution to deal with it.

 

What do you do when you are overwhelmed?

Rule number 1, have an extracurricular activity. Whether it be a sport, language club, math group or hiking group, just be involved. An extracurricular activity offers the opportunity to get away from the stresses of assignments, relationships and even your regular friends whose expectations can become a weight. It also offers you the opportunity to make new friends, pick up new skills and even keep in good physical shape. For me, these relaxers are church and cricket. I spend much of my time doing either of these two things. The fellowship of my youth group or playing an instrument in any of the weekly services relaxes my mind; so too does playing cricket in the national competition with my teammates and friends. Even if I don’t play, just being around it helps.

 

What do you wish you knew before moving for school?

They always say that you should go to a university abroad. They say it is more fun. What they don’t tell you is that when you return home, you can struggle to fit back in. A lot of the friends that you had are not your friends anymore. The new found responsibility makes you less dependent on your parents for advice and support and sometimes they may not understand that. If you’ve switched countries, home just doesn’t feel the same. I wouldn’t trade the opportunity that I had for any other, but a heads up would’ve been nice.

 

Any advice?

1) University is fun. It is where you make your life long friends, where you may meet your spouse. Let it be fun, learn, grow and develop. Keep God in mind. Let Him guide you. Be a light for those around you and learn from those who surround you.

2) Just be yourself. Don’t lose yourself to make friends or to fit in. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t grow and develop into young men and women. I am saying that you shouldn’t overlook the morals that you believed in, the beliefs that you have, the positive traits that you have in order to please others around you. You will find that you will forever be doing it. In doing so you lose yourself, you make more mistakes that you will have to fix or accept later on in life.