ACADEMIC SKILLS

1.What are your impressions the first time you meet your academic advisor?

- Friendly

- Talkative

- Knowledgeable

- Mentor

- Kind

2.Expectation and Roles Of Academic Advisor

- Academic advisor is an influential role in the life of a student

- Help students connect to University

- Bridge between university and students

- Sense of belonging ( building rapport via gatherings )

- Familiar with Student Support Services

3.Responsibilities Of an Academic Advisor

- To give guidance and advice to students regarding academic and non-academic matters (in general)

- To give additional attention to students with special needs

- To refer the students to the appropriate academic staff ie. Programme Coordinator, Head of Departments, if there are issue beyond he capabilities of the Academic Advisor

- To encourage student to excel in their studies and to lead a balanced and flexible academic life in the university

- To guide the students in research and career perspective.

- To instil the love the Faculty and University where the spirit of alumni can be developed.

- To inculcate the noble values of UNIMAS (Perseverance, Integrity, Sincerity, Innovative, Collegiality)

- To refer the students facing personal problems to University’s Counselling and Psychology Services ( FMHS Rehabilitation Centre Room 6 ).

- To refer students with medical or health issues to the University’s medical centre/ clinic.

4.Reflecting The First Arrive In September

a)MAP

b)MIP

c)MKM

d)MRB

e)Faculty Orientation

f)Course Registration

- Generic and Elective

- Must register every semester

- Student be responsible for their choosing their own course

- Not just following friends

- Try something that interest them

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5.First Year Experiences?

I don’t even know where to start because thinking of writing this post is making me sad, happy, and confused. Sad, because I have to leave my family to be in my first year, happy, because I being allowed to enter university to pursue my degree and also meet my friends and confused because really, where did the time go? and why I’m here?

If I were to describe university in one word it would be Refreshing. It’s like taking a breath of fresh air in earth’s pure nature, away from the city. As we all know that Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ( UNIMAS ) is refreshing because it is located away from the bustling city of Kuching and entering university it feels like you finally have taken a step away from high school and a step towards maturity, growing and finding yourself. You begin to learn things about yourself. Some of the major things I learned had to do with my classes, the people I met, and the freedom I gained all within this first year.

The Classes

The amount of work you put in to first block is outstanding. It’s not like high school where you can pull something together in the last minute, especially when it comes to exams. It’s close to impossible to learn an entire block worth of content in one day, let alone one all-nighter. This was something I had to learn to adjust to.

In terms of organizing my first block, What I found most helpful was using my eLEAPS calendar it's recording all the due dates throughout the block from the beginning. This was so helpful because I had everything in one place and could refer back to it at the end of each week to ensure that I wasn’t missing anything especially the assignment and any important announcement.

The Freedom

It’s true, freedom is real in university. I no longer feel like my life is decided by others and I get to explore other things by myself. In my first block, I had a day off and even on those days, I even go Kuching Waterfront just to explore the city. By having a flexible schedule, I could also do more with my time like go to events on campus.

Speaking of schedules, I specifically enjoy having a schedule that is not fixed, meaning it’s not the same hours each day. Some days I would start later, so I could make use of my mornings — like getting school work done or, let’s be honest, sleeping in. 

The People

Orientation week was where I met tons of people in my program, some whom I haven’t seen afterward and others whom I still keep in contact with today. During the first block, you continue to meet people as well, whether it be through a class or just sitting in the library building asking someone to watch over your stuff. You just need to break out of your shell and approach a new friendship.

I genuinely love and enjoy university, so far. People are accepting, there is so much to do and the freedom is refreshing. I still am looking forward to the rest of my life at university.