hydrchloric tellonym faqs
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study related questions
study methods i came across and have utilised before!
spaced repetition
pomodoro
feynman technique
active recall
leitner system
1. i did not do so well for h2 econs. i’m wondering if i should drop it to h1?answering this from my pov!i dropped it in term 2 of j2. by this time i was already taking h3 chemistry so the workload was real crazy. i dropped to h1 econs mostly due to the fact that i was taking h3 chem and there was no way id drop h3 chem.i barely put in effort for econs cos it was a subject i didnt give much thought to. i am a rly science-y & math-y person so 😅😅😅 i did pretty shit for j2 January block tests but i figured since i didnt like the subject i might as well drop it. but this thought didnt come along until term 2 cos i did study for one of the mini econs tests and i did really well, but i realised i didnt even enjoy studying it, so whats the point? so off i went to the general office, picked up a form and dropped h1 econs there and thenthe thought of scholarships did pop into my head cos as people say, those who took 4h2s rather than 3 stood a higher chance of attaining a scholarship. but i was taking h3 chem so h2 econs didnt rly matter to me since taking a h3 wld also be considered when people consider u for a scholarship. i guess the addition h2 didnt pose much of a benefit to me as compared to the extra workload i had to take onalso. i was absolutely dogshit at firms and essay writing. i hated firms with passion, didnt rly understand the lectures for firms, and i couldnt, for the life of me, understand how to properly write or even start an essay. my csq was definitely much higher. basically i was really good at the art of Winging It. so h1 econs became much more enticing to meall in all here are a few impt factors u shd consider when u want to drop the subject
- ur interest in it
- the (proportional) amount of effort u put in it compared to the results u attain
- whether u r better at csq or essay (pls go figure it out, js compare ur marks for both)
- scholarships2. can u scold me into studying harder plswhen ure slacking think about everyone else studying hard and surpassing u and bringing the bellcurve up3. how do you deal with exam stress and feeling unprepared for exams / how to cope with exam stress? were you always prepared for an exam?honestly whenever i feel unprepared for the exam, i js f it and js do it leh. hmm…this is a vv personal kind of thing cos everyone has diff exam styles. for me, when i feel prepared, i alw have a empty and peaceful mind when im sitting at my desk before the paper starts. when it starts and i read a qns, then everyth flows back to me. so the opposite happens when i feel unprepared — i panic at my desk, have info overload in my head and when i encounter a question i cant seem to retrieve any info in my brain.i suggest before an exam eg on the train on the bus while u r walking to sch, u tell urself, today is the day, theres no point panicking anymore. assure urself u have sufficient information (i assume u did study, if u didnt then honestly thats on u HAHAH). and js keep deep breaths. before gg into the exam hall, js read thru ur notes and cheatsheets one last time, then when ure at the desk, waiting to start, to me i usually js stone HAHAHAHi feel like people feel unprepared cos they are afraid they encounter questions they have bits and pieces of information on, but somehow forget some keywords and phrases OR they are afraid they encounter a question they have no idea how to answer. unfortunately for this its rly js practice lor. but imo once u finish the a level tys and did up ur notes and everyth u cld possibly do, u should be rest assured alr.dont walk into the exam thinking abt ur grade for it. no no no no no. walk into the exam expecting the worst possible question that cld come out based on what practice u have done so far, recap the answer for it and done. dk the ans? check.to ans ur question: am i always prepared? of course not HAHAAHAH in the end, im still a human at core. i have done exams unprepared and kept my expectations low. but for As, i generally felt pretty prepared (except gp and h3 chem LOL..) so i didnt panic that much. i trusted myself with the process, trusted future clarissa to be able to answer all questions smoothly.
feeling like shit because of school. how do i deal with it?
1. imposter syndrome, and how did you cope with it?this rly came at the right time cos i NEVER understood imposter syndrome until i came to nus cs.i never really felt that way in jc for some reason, i feel like its due to the fact that i came from cedar which was a pretty elite school so i didnt feel very out of place in ny. but now that im in nus cs WOW the imposter syndrome is real.i look around me and realise everyone is so damn smart. imagine being surrounded by 85rp and above people. not just a level grades wise, its just, how people found their way to nus cs. i was studying in my friends’ dorm’s lounge the other day and wow… i met quite a few people with computing background, and i came to know of people with EXTENSIVE programming background and an immense passion for computer science (im talking tons of hackathons, solving weeks of leetcode and taking h2 computing in jc). and i just sat there like, i got in here by accident. the imposter syndrome rly js hit me hard that day cos its insane how i, a girl, who had NO programming knowledge, who did not know what the hell silicon valley was, who did 2 weeks worth of cs50, is in nus cs. the course with the highest median starting pay in sg. like, thats crazy. and i really thought to myself “why am i even here” and “i dont think im meant for this”but i feel like God works in mysterious ways, and things work out the way they do for a particular reason. sound incredibly cheesy and lame but i truly believe that its just the plot of ur life! im still trying to cope with imposter syndrome in uni, and its difficult. i think u just have to step back and look at urself and determine if ure meant for this. when the thought of “im not meant for computer science” starts overwhelming me, i start thinking of all the times i got something faster than someone else could. bc thats the essence of nus cs — learning something quick, being intuitive, using logic and pattern recognition. the ebbs and flows of my life have brought me to this day, my character and learning style built me for this. i mean, its not like ive fully convinced myself im for computer science, im still trying to do that and im not even halfway there yet. but looking back, its been like 10? weeks since the start of uni and i feel like ive already grown so much here. no matter how many times i say “im gonna drop out of nus cs”, theres a huge part of me that still thinks i can survive itsorry for this long response, i hope my view on imposter syndrome helped u in unpacking why u feel this way and how to overcome it. its a journey, but u are where u r currently for a reason! and u certainly do have the capacity to do well.2. (im a y1) i think i’m gonna retain i flunked mye and i dont think there’s enough time before promos to buck uphow bad can flunked be bro! can one bro. can promote one. trust me! theres also moderation for eoys, if that provides u with any comfort.if u think theres no time THEN SHUT UP AND GO STUDY URE WASTING TIME RN!!!!! just kidding, but seriously tho!!! U DO HAVE TIME but u need to use it wisely - that being said, study smart not hardin ny, the depts rly try to help u pass. last yr for example, the math dept sent us practice qns to do, and all the same qns came out for eoy (except they changed the numbers slightly)my advice: do all the work the sch tells u to do. theres so many hints they alw give 😭😭😭 and omg..finish the REVISION PACKAGE PLEASE. FINISH THE ENTIRE THING. if u havent start THEN START NOW!! its rly not too late. i started the revision packages in week 8 of term 3. WEEK EIGHT!!! its currently week 7 SO YES U DO HAVE TIME! i started in week 8 and my rp for eoy was > 70!trust me, if u rly want to promote u can one. but u need to start now or as early as possible!!! most of my friends who messed up myes like crazy (like, rp < 25) promoted!!!! if ure looking for a sign, this is ur sign. if ure looking for a miracle, u can make it happen!!!!! jiayous anon U CAN DO THIS ONE TRUST ME3. how do i stop from giving myself high expectations?u will def burn out from the expectations u have of urself. and that was exactly what i did LMAOOO i js got so burnt out when i came to jc.i cant tell u how to deal w it bc i never did,, bc the way i overcame it was i got so sick of myself i stopped blaming myself for not doing that well cos it got so mentally tiring. so tbvh, ull get there. ull get to a point where u realise u’re right where u are and u’re actually doing pretty decent. i have to say tho - having high expectations isn’t necessarily a bad thing. i used to think having high expectations was rly bad for myself and bc i knew it was bad, i felt so bad. i felt so bad when i didnt do well, when i failed myself; bc then i wld think that im not good, like i tried and im not good; but like, when i came to j2, honestly so much of it went away bc i saw these high expectations more positively , like its good im having high expectations cos then i push myself to meet them, but i alw tell myself “aim for 100 and anticipate much lower” like what my friend told me: effort isnt proportional to results. there r rly SO many other factors! so i stopped blaming myself. mayb i put in the work but i js wasnt in good condition that day. mayb the aircon was too cold. mayb the paper was just difficult. mayb i listened to this song and it got stuck in my head so i couldnt remember the formula to the sum of a geometric progression. so many factors.of course u cant always blame these factors but i would like to think i put in adequate effort. i never tell myself i put in my best bc if i did, i would definitely feel shit. i wld be like damn i tried my very best yet im still stupid. SO DONT TELL URSELF U DID UR BEST!!!!! tell urself i did like, 70% of my total capacity.like i said, when i came to j2, a lot of things changed. i laugh at my results instead of crying nowadays. i think thats character development.continue the high expectations anon! but turn it into something positive. and stop blaming urself when u dont do as well as u thought. u’ll always be better when u put in effort, even if it isn’t ur 100%4. how do u cope with stress of receiving bad grades?honestly… if i did my best then ill js cry and rant and cry and sleep and then move on cos i guess its just not meant for me! i believe everyone is gifted in some sense, and ill be gifted at some other subject instead so it all balances out in the grand scheme of things
if i didnt do my best then i wont feel shitty la cos i know i have the capacity to do betteri think ultimately it depends on what you are trying to prove to urself. for me, i compete with myself to be better. as long as i did my best, im satisfied. i learnt this the hard way and it took me so long to realise grades rly dont matter that much (especially in uni) of course u shdnt do horrendous but if i did my best then whats the point in dwelling right? just go next.basically what im trying to say is, u should use urself as a benchmark and not anyone else. sometimes u have to accept that there will be people smarter than u. and sometimes u wont be good at everything. “ration” urself well. invest time in subjects u know u will excel in. and if u do badly in certain subjects then u know this is rock bottom and the only way is 🆙🆙🆙 set ur expectations to a reasonable level, and u will never feel such disappointment
misc questions i thought were interesting HAHAHHA
1. what's ur opinion on love and dating?i think love is very weird. sometimes i rly cant tell the difference between love and attachment, but i do know that love is a choice. i strongly believe in love being a choice bc sparks definitely go away aft a few months into the rs, it is a choice to continue putting in effort in the rs. choosing to put in effort shows that u love the person and putting in effort makes u love them more (imo.) idk ah i also feel like it is extremely important to know the person VERY WELL before u go into anything. i believe its strangers -> friends (for very long first) -> dating -> relationshipi also think its SO IMPORTANT to have high standards for both ur partner and urself. yall shd both strive to be the best version of urselves for each other. dont make excuses for shitty behaviour, acknowledge it and learn to be better. get out of the rs if ur partner refuses to put in effort FOR YOU AND THE RELATIONSHIP. i will always stand strongly by this. please have enough self respect to know what u deserve.umm i guess thats all la. i think u shdnt think of romantic relationships as something that is necessary. i watched this video from bestdressed and i rmb she said that u shdnt think of being single as like some buffer before ur next rs. pls take joy in single life. enjoy it. embrace it. be happy being single. dont actively seek out a relationship. if its meant to be it will be2. why do u study so hard? like other than good uni course and job etc, don’t u feel this pursuit is like an endless rat race?ya ive thought abt this like a thousand times, i shd js give up. stop studying, cos whats the point right?but then when idh anyth to study i feel so purposeless and useless, so i realised that like, studying is my current purpose in life and its my only purpose other than to be happy. and studying makes me happy so…2 birds with one stone? i genuinely enjoy learning and studying and getting all these As make me rly rly happy, and i dont see a downside to studying so hard. it occupies my time, its meaningful and i love it. so why not?i think the key to studying hard and being successful in it is to genuinely enjoy it. without the passion, u’ll feel miserable studying
uni
1. what's rag?rag stands for receiving and giving. its basically this whole performance where the entire rag team is split into 3 groups - dancers, costumes and floats. for lack of better terms, the “exco” of the rag team generates and storyline they want to execute for the performance. the dancers perform pieces according to the storyline, the costumes team sews and makes clothing for the dancers, and the floats team makes the props for the performance.2. could you share a bit about how you applied for uni? like the journey from early admission till after As and getting an offer?early admissions was released arnd late oct/early nov so i started writing my statements after all the main papers ended and there were only paper 1s left (and h3 chem). i filled up a document for my aspirations, why i chose the course i wanted, and my jc grades thru j1-j2. ok the funny thing here is i wrote all this based on what i wanted at that time, which was pharmaceutical science. so i submitted that document to my civics tutor (form teacher) (which was also my chem teacher) who wrote a referral for me to submit when i applied during early admissions. the thing about early admissions is that u apply for both the course and scholarship at the same time (for nus) so i just answered the questions in the nus/ntu admissions portal and sent a link to my CT so that he could submit his referral for me.a levels results day rolled around (mid feb) and i received my grades. at this time, ntu got back to me and offered me biological sciences with second major in medicinal chemistry and pharmacology but i was never really keen on ntu anyway so i ignored the offer HAHAHAHAH nus didnt get back to me by this time so i was like eh…anyway. one day during work i was really contemplating my potential future in pharm science and i realised. i really love money (which a pharm sci career does not really offer). HAHAHAH but also that if i did what i was passionate about, and i didnt attain the results (i.e salary/money) i wanted, i would likely lose interest in said passion. so in the heat of the moment, i switched my option from pharm sci to com sci (bc like i said, i love the colour green and starting my career with $7k/month). the thing about the nus admissions portal is that u can change ur course options anytime u want so i changed it to com sci. at this time it was maybe a week before the application deadline so i wasnt worried (if they would suddenly accept me) but i guess i jinxed it bc the day after i changed my course option to com sci, nus sent me a course offer to com sci. i FULL ON panicked but the door for appeals were still open so i took my time to consider if i should appeal. 2-3 days afterwards, nus offered me the nus merit scholarship and at this point i was pretty convinced it was God’s plan i got into cs so i just accepted my fate.so theres that. thats the story. hope this gave u some insight to uni apps! lmk if u have any more questions~3. I thought you’re always interested in medicine, what made you changed ur choice for ur application? why computer science?honestly i feel like i changed my decision on med rly long ago but there r several reasons as to why idw to go to med anymorewhy not med:
1. commitment (10 yrs incl bond js to become a GP, and need study muchhh longer to specialise)
2. chances of specialising is low, most med degree holders is become GPs
3. certainty (if i decide idw to study med anymore and wanna change course, hv to pay government a shit ton of money. im not rich, my parents cant afford that money)
4. i realised i may not be the right person to become a doctor - working at my current job rly tests my patience НАНАНАНАНАНА if idh the capacity to deal with customers at my current job i certainly do not hv the capacity to deal with patients in the future. its not that i cant, its more that i rather not cos mental health first bruhHAHAHAHAHAHAtbvh i drifted from the idea of wanting med q long ago like mayb 1.5yrs ago cos of these factors but my current job rly made me realise, i cant la i cant HAHAH no thanks. id rather others who r sooo sure of wanting to go med, go med.why cs:
1. high pay. enough said HAHAHHAAH
2. emerging industry, i wont be jobless and/or broke
3. my best subj is math, without even trying. i shd use what im naturally good at
4. im doing a programming/coding/computing course online rn and its been rly fun for me! even tho my bro told me he absolutely hates it LMAOOO
5. wna try something newik u didnt ask, but i wanted pharm sci for pretty long, and this is why i didnt choose ps
1. job prospects r close to nth
2. low starting pay, must do graduate studies to get higher pay
3. a lot of jobs r in the westHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
4. its in chs. and no way in hell im doing chs common curriculum
5. super super niche course. heard that ppl
who study chem can get jobs ps students get but the other way round is not possible
6. chem is my second best subj and im not the best at it la ngl. i mean im decent but i js think that my math is rly much stronger than my chem