Come and say hello to our Student Digital Champions tomorrow, Friday 17 February, at their “How are your digital skills?” stand on Level D of the Hugh Owen Library from 10:00-13:00!
The stand is part of an exciting programme of CareerFest ’23 activities, including skills workshops, employer events, webinars, networking opportunities and in-department sessions.
Blogpost by Jeffrey Clark (Student Digital Champion)
Making things easier
Microsoft Word is perhaps the most used and widely recognized computer program in all of academia. Virtually every course you can take at Aberystwyth University uses Microsoft Word to some degree, with some courses requiring you to do more with it than just type out an essay. In this blog post, I’ll tell you about some shortcuts in Microsoft Word that have helped me during my studies.
Tip 1: Keyboard shortcuts
Keyboard shortcuts are a combination of keys that you press to perform a function. For example, press control (ctrl) and C at the same time while highlighting text copies that text onto your clipboard. Instead of right-clicking and scrolling down the drop-down menu to ‘Paste’, you can press ctrl + V to paste the text instead.
The ALT key can also be used for shortcuts. Specifically, the ALT key is used for shortcuts as they relate to the top task bar. By holding down the ALT key for a few seconds, the keys for each shortcut will pop up. For instance, on my keyboard, pressing ALT and 2 will save my document.
But if we press ALT + S to go to the References tab…
We get an entirely new set of ALT keyboard commands to use!
By holding down the ALT with a different tab open we can see what shortcuts are available for each tab on the taskbar. If you forget what ALT key shortcuts do, holding the ALT key down will give you a helpful reminder of your keyboard shortcuts!
Blogpost by Jeffrey Clark (Student Digital Champion)
Are you interested in learning more about digital skills and how developing them can support your learning, your employability, and your general confidence with technology? Then swing by our Digital Skills stand, which will be running as part of the University’s CareerFest on Friday 17 February. You’ll be able to find us on Level D of the Hugh Owen Library from 10:00-13:00.
The stand will be your one-stop-shop for finding information on digital skills and what resources are available to help you develop them. A Student Digital Champion will be there to greet you and answer any questions you may have about digital skills.
There is also an exciting program of skills workshops, employer events, webinars, networking opportunities and in-department sessions being delivered at CareerFest from 13-17 February.
This blogpost has been written by Jeffrey Clark, Student Digital Champion
That sinking feeling…
With exams around the corner, there’s no doubt that you’re all feeling the pressure. Sometimes that pressure can be overwhelming and lead to periods of high stress and anxiety. No student should have to feel like that! In this blogpost, I’ll go over some tips and useful apps that can help you and other students tackle stress during this difficult period.
Striking a balance âš–
It is perfectly normal to feel mild to moderate levels of stress during your time at university. There is a lot going on! From reading and writing essays to hanging out with friends, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed at times. Even if you really enjoy your degree, it can still be stressful trying to find the time to manage all your modules. That is why I recommend managing your time and controlling your routine rather than letting it control you. Apps like Microsoft To-Do have been incredibly helpful to me since I’m always on-the-go. Microsoft-To-Do is a free cloud-based task management app available for desktops, Androids and Apple devices. The app contains some useful features for keeping you on track such as a customizable calendar and reminders that can be arranged in any order you desire.
Microsoft Teams also features an incredibly customizable calendar that is useful for scheduling meetings as well as keeping you up to date with your university task. Managing your time reduces stress by minimizing unpredictability and giving you the ability to work WITH deadlines as opposed to AGAINST them. Another good tip to reduce exam stress is to focus on one thing at a time. Whilst revising, focus your attention on just one of your modules a day, if you can. This makes it easier to retain information on the module that you’re studying which will make taking an exam all that easier. If you must study multiple modules, make sure you give yourself a meaningful break during your studies. Taking a break is important while studying for any amount of time. Incorporating breaks into your schedule is key to reducing stress and avoiding ‘burnout’, which we will discuss in greater detail later in this post.
As exam season approaches we have put together a couple of collections on LinkedIn Learning to help you banish the stress of exams and to help you revise more effectively.
Starting university can be a daunting and navigating the IT side of things can be confusing. We’ve therefore put together a collecting of helpful links and videos to cover any questions you may have about our IT and library services at Aberystwyth University.
Tip1: Where is everything in the Hugh Owen Library? Watch this virtual library tour:
Tip 2: Which buildings on campus have student printers? Here is the location of all printers on campus.
Tip 3: How do I print from a university printer? Watch this short demo video:
Tip 4: How do I top up my AberCard? Log into your account here to top up your AberCard.
Don’t be a copycat! Welcome to part 2 of our series on fake news and plagiarism. In part one we looked at the world of smoke and mirrors that is fake news. In this part, we will go over the many forms of plagiarism, how to avoid accidental plagiarism, and ways you can combat deliberate acts of plagiarism.
What is plagiarism? Plagiarism is the act of presenting someone else’s work as if it were your own without giving credit to the original author(s) of the work. In other words, plagiarism is a form of theft but instead of physical property it is the idea of someone else, or intellectual property. There are several ways of committing plagiarism, many accidental and others intentional. Fortunately, virtually every course at Aberystwyth University goes over the basics of academic integrity as well as the proper referencing scheme to use for your course. More information on plagiarism can be found through the LibGuides page on plagiarism.
Cloud computing is often rated as one of the most sought-after tech skills, and with the recent shift towards remote working and learning, there’s no surprise that employers are searching for graduates with these skills.
Students, don’t miss out on an exciting opportunity by Microsoft to access their live training webinars, exam practice tests and Microsoft Fundamentals certification exams for FREE!
The three courses available for free are:
5th April 2022 – AI Fundamentals
7th April 2022 – Azure Fundamentals
8th April 2022 – Security Fundamentals
For more information about these free courses, download this information flyer by Microsoft:
The examination period can be a stressful time for most students. Here are some short videos and courses that we’ve pulled together from LinkedIn Learning to help you develop skills to prepare and revise more efficiently for your exams. A number of these skills will also be beneficial for your studies in general, in addition to helping you to improve your digital wellbeing.