by Catherine (Student Blogger: BSc Hons Computer Science)

I suffer from anxiety which means I worry about most parts of everyday life, from taking a bus to going to the shops; the example I frequently use is that anxiety is when you’re more nervous about travelling to an exam and being in a crowded room than the actual content of the exam, to the point where you feel knots in your stomach and may suffer a panic attack.

During my first year, I was studying a module which had workshops, which are essentially classroom environments structured around working through example questions provided by lecturers. These workshops were based on each week’s lecture material, with the lecturer or teaching assistant running the workshop providing appropriate answers at the end of the class. Despite the workshops being held at 1pm on a Friday just a 2-minute walk from my accommodation, I often felt too anxious to attend; this led to me working through the questions alone from home.

Overall this method was beneficial to me as it provided me the resources to study in a structured manner. I attended all my lectures and studied in my spare time so felt relatively confident however, as the answers to workshop questions were not posted to Moodle, I had no way to ensure I was understanding lecture content. My friends did not attend the workshops either, meaning I had no way of accessing the answers.

I decided to email my lecturer describing my situation, explaining honestly why I do not attend their workshops; they arranged a time for me to meet with them. When I arrived, I was nervous, as I felt awkward and embarrassed that I had to admit how poor my attendance was, however my lecturer was very understanding and supportive. She had prepared some materials for me to outline the answers that were provided in the workshops as well as some other important information to remember around the question topics. She also discussed my anxiety with me and reassured me that if I ever need to talk about anything or I need any additional help with the module to let her know. I thanked her for her help, and left feeling as if a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

I spent the rest of the day reading through the materials she had offered me, comparing my answers to hers. This allowed me to not only review the content of my answers and highlight differences, but to also reflect on my sentence structure and writing style. I began to take more pleasure in the module and gained a much clearer understanding. This was represented in my end of year grades, as I finished the Module with 71.9%, which equates to a first.

I am glad that when I needed help I contacted my lecturer as I had a very positive experience. Even if you only need the answer to a couple of simple questions, I suggest meeting your lecturer rather than simply asking in an email, as they are likely to offer in-depth solutions which will solidify your understanding, and building good rapport is important.

It is also important to attend lectures and other classes wherever you can, catching up on any missed work in your spare time. Lecturers can offer support and clarification to those who need it, but you need to have spent time trying to understand the material beforehand. It is also best to contact your college’s welfare team if you need support outside of your course.