Top tips and hints to good assignment writing

It is the time when assignments are due and a lot of students fail assignments simply because they don't plan ahead.

1) Answer the question
This is where a lot of International students tend to go wrong and lose points easily- they don't answer the question/brief.

Image courtesy of blog.internationalstudent.com.

2)Plan ahead
Work out what you will write and when. A diary is always handy. The well planned assignments get much better marks than those that are late.
Also plan your time. There are some free study planners and timetables at the Study and Learning centre on campus. Each semester this service runs some sessions on how to manage your time wisely so I suggest going along to these. After all you did pay for these with your SSAF fees.

2) Write a few drafts
Doing a few drafts is really important, especially in design where you need to play with a few ideas. Its easy to make mistakes on the first go, but you learn along the way. You can show your tutor and your peers (friends) your work.

3) Have a study group- but don't do everything together
You could even do it online thanks to Google Docs where you can share stuff. People can also write comments on it. This is one way to get some feedback and pointers on things you may have missed.

Researching the assignment is important

4) DO YOUR RESEARCH- but have a clear plan as to what you want to research before you get into it. Work out which libraries you want to go to first and how much time.

5)Get feedback from your tutor as you go.
Don't be afraid to ask them if you need help. They are there to guide you after all.

Good luck in passing those assesments. But remember if you don't pass the first time, that's ok. You just need to learn from your mistakes.

Current students, do you have any other tips for new international students? Do feel free to share below.

Problem gambling in Melbourne

A lot of students when they come to Melbourne worry about finances and how they will support themselves.
In a recent report by City of Melbourne it is quoted that 60% of students worry about finances.

Hence that is why many students turn to gambling as a way out. Also a lot of students are depressed and are feeling lonely.

A lot of them go to Crown for the gambling and not the eating. Most of the cheap eateries are in the casino.

Mai, 21, says that the living costs are waay too high and she is lonely in Melbourne. She didn't know who to turn to, so she turned to gambling as a way out. She didn't want to tell her parents that she was unhappy and lonely. For her making friends with the locals was difficult.

Another Asian student at RMIT also said that gambling was a way to deal with all of his financial problems. But little did he know that he would be in more trouble. He still has his school fees of $21,000 to pay as well as his rent. Right now he does not have a job, but his parents support him. They don't earn much.

Meanwhile the team at RMIT Newintstudents are happy to visit Crown but we promise we will not visit the casino area.

If you or someone needs help don't hesitate to give Gamblers Help a call. They are a confidential and free service for everyone. They are also available 24/7

Have you put on weight since the start of semester? You are not the only one

A lot of International students put on weight since the start of semester. They may be happy with their new found freedom which means eating out and drinking a lot. Or it may be due to stress. We share some hints on staying healthy.

Some hints:
1) Don't drink too much, Alcohol contains kj and so does soft drinks. My type of drinks would be Kombucha by the Good Brew co ($4.40- sold in many Health food shops). They may look like beer but its not.

2) Share a meal with a friend- not only will you wallet be happier but you'll be healthier. Most main meals and some desserts are huge.

Fruits

3) Eat some fruits and vegetables every day.
They are so cheap so no excuse not to buy. In fact most unis have some sort of health food store on campus so if you forget your fruits for one day, go and visit them. All the city universities and Melbourne Uni is close the Queen Vic Market, so no excuses.

Dancing is one way to do exercise

4) Exercise and have some fun- there are a lot of free parks and beaches in Melbourne, why not? If you live close to uni you could ride your bike. Most trains accept bikes, so riding to the train station is better than taking the bus everyday.

5) Control your eating habits and don't eat too much before you go to bed- Your food will not settle and digest properly making you more likely to gain weight.

6) Motivate yourself- a little bit of motivation goes a long way. I love the loose clothes syndrome. If your clothes are a little looser then you have lost weight. You don't beat yourself up about your occasional binges. Don't weigh yourself on the scales frequently.

7) Be happy- Being happy also helps you be healthy. Don't stress about the little things. Do the big things.

Do you have any more good eating tips? Do share them below.

The Asian cup set to be in Australia

“This will be a festival of football never seen before in Australia, featuring our own Socceroos battling the best 16 teams in Asia, including Asia’s three other World Cup finalists in Japan, South Korea and Iran."  Quote from the Asian cup site.

In 2015 the Asian cup is set to be in Australia. The Asian cup is a three week long sporting festival in the heart of in the major capital cities. It is predominantly soccer, but there also other sports like basketball.

The Asian cup is a festival of football which has about 16 countries participating.  The aim of the festival is celebrate cultural diversity. With 2.5 million Asians living in Australia, Australia is the perfect host country for these games.

It is the talk of the town. Recently I had a chance at the Lord Mayors student welcome to view the cup. Meld has also done a nice round up of the cup itself.

The tickets for these events (32 matches) are from $14-$150. There are also packages which go on sale from May 19th 2014 for a limited time. You can also join Asian cup membership where you can receive news about the cup and members only sales.

But if you don't want to buy the tickets you can also be a volunteer at the games.

Do register now for priority access and the latest news

Multicultural festival by CMY

Melbourne is known for its multiculturalism and the City of Melbourne loves to celebrate this.

It was in the Drill hall and there was heaps of Bollywood dancing going on. The ladies who were Aussie were great bollywood dancers.

Of course there was free food . But I wasn't there for that.  I did however eat the strawberry cake made lovingly by the AMES volunteers

Teaching the kids how to dance

Performing the dance to a small audience

 Many thanks to the City of Melbourne for putting this on for migrants and International students alike. This was a great initiative to showcase the City of Melbourne

The burger book launch

The burger book is now published and its $40 from most retailers. In it is recipes and the best burger places.

coffee

The burger truck

$45 for the book

I was invited to the launch by City of Melbourne and Meld, but I did not eat the chicken slider or participate in the burger competition. I was still full from lunch.

The burger competition looked like fun and the winner won a free burger and other giveaways. The burger competition was for the burger fans.

There was signings going on at 5:30pm-6:30pm for the book.

There was a huge line for the sliders.

Free meat slider which my friend enjoyed

Other sliders

 

 

 

 Many thanks to Meld for recommending the students to visit and I hope they do it all again next year

Nespresso opens soon at Emporium

This week Nespresso a coffee brand are having a promotion at Melbourne Central. This is to promote their new store which will be opening on the 28th of April in Emporium.

They were also promoting their machines which is really easy to use. They have reminders at the top of the machines about the milk and other things to prompt you along the way.

Here I tried their mild coffee as a latte and boy it looked very pretty.

Also their sugar is great- you can buy a carton of 16 for about $8.

You can try their coffees before you buy. Their ranges change all the time but they do have some strong flavoured ones and some decaffinated ones.

The sugars

The ground coffee

Using the machine

A machine costs about $200+ but right now they are having a cashback offer of $60-$80 cashback when you buy selected machines until the 18th of may. Their machines are stylish too which makes it a great buy for your home or your Mum for Mother's day.

Editors note: It now is opened in Emporium and it has the biggest range of coffees. We tried a Grand Cru the day that it opened and it was strong as.

The Emporium landed on the 16th of April

It is bigger than Melbourne central with about 30 food shops, 19 Australian stores, 23 other stores etc. It is about 7 levels and stretches all the way from Lonsdale to Bourke sts.

Love the welcome sign

Free water.

The DJ happily playing tunes at Superdry

Free champagne at Alannah Hill dress shop

A window display which reminded me of the country

Free drinks

Uniqlo's clothing display

She reminds me of someone I have heard of

Love the cool lighting at Superdry

Merchandise

Expensive but cute satchels

Flowers

Shoes @Merchant but very expensive

Muji

A desk display at Muji

How cheap are the teas?

Tea sampling at Loccitane

Love the perfume sign

One activity that is in store

offers

So cheap. I want

Free fruit

Can't believe Red Earth is here after so many years of being non existent

Love the fun of creating your case

Strawberries at Top Juice

My goodie bag which I took home

Marc Instagram photo competition where someone won a gift voucher from them

Photos of Marc store

It is well planned and a beautiful Melbourne building. This building was established in 1911 but then was refurbished late last year.

Uniqlo and Muji will be there as well as Victoria's secret. You will no longer have to travel to Sydney for this.

As for the food there will be the usual chains as well as Sydney favourites Din Tai Fung, Mero Mero ( a salad bar), New Shanghai Chinese restaurant and Moochi.  The Chadstone favourites such as Fafah and Miam Miam will also be there.

During the opening there was lots of fun to be had such as the fashion runaways and Instagram competition.

There was also some food samples, free burritos, apples and other giveaways.

I loved looking around and exploring the place. And I still do. I can't wait to see what else is in store.