Finally, you’ve got there! You’re in Matric! Your last year of schooling is happening! It’s the year that’s ahead of a whole new chapter in life and it’ll be filled with opportunities and last-chances. So how do you end the year feeling like you’ve had the best matric? To have the best possible matric requires some planning. Admittedly, not something everyone jumps at doing. However, planning to make your final year of schooling the best is well worth it.
6 Steps to Having the Best Matric
- Work Smart: Build a Study Timetable that Works.
- Keep Your Goals in Mind and Stay Motivated.
- Spend Time with Family and Friends.
- Plan Leisure Time and Exercise
- Prioritise Wellbeing and Wellness.
- Volunteer and Help Others.
“Having the best matric possible is in your hands.”
What to do to get the Best Matric
Having the best possible matric year means putting in effective study habits, having a good support network and ensuring you have down-time. It’s about creating balance and then maintaining it. Which, when planned, is a goal that’s absolutely attainable during your matric year. Here are six steps you can take to better ensure you’ve had the best matric by the end of the year.
1. Work Smart: Build a Study Timetable that Works.
Matric places a lot of emphasis on studying and doing well in exams. To prevent yourself from feeling overwhelmed or running out of study time set both short-term and longer-term goals. The first step to doing this is to get a year calendar with enough space to write on each day. To start with you might not know the finer details, like when a specific subject’s test or exam will take place. But you can still pencil in the expected timing of milestones, like trial exams (pre-lims) and finals. As well as special events like matric balls.
This first step will give you a basic framework to work around. Make a list of how long it takes you to study for each subject and keep it nearby. Then, as you know when each subject’s test and exams are, you’ll know how to organise your time and can add details. For example, once you know your exam timetable, schedule time to do past papers and timed practice sessions.
Tip for Working Smarter
As you go along, remember to keep all your study notes from tests and assignments. This will mean that once you get to your final exams you already have notes to review. It’ll save you time and you can focus on working through old exams rather than rewriting study notes.
“The Best Matric can be boosted by not having to redo notes.”
2. Keep Your Goals in Mind and Stay Motivated
Starting to formulate a plan for the year after you finish matric will define your future goals. Thereby helping to keep you motivated and focused. Essentially, you have three options for the next year. Your marks, finances and opportunities will determine which path is realistic.
3 Options After Matric
It’s okay to not know what you want to do or if you have an idea the finer details. Which means it’s also okay to tell someone that you’re still thinking when you’re asked questions like what you going to do after school?
The best approach to your future is to take time to properly thinking through your options. Seek out people whose advice you trust and chat to them. During holidays, you can also shadow someone who’s working in the career area you are thinking of. You don’t want to bow to pressure or commit to something because you want an answer as soon as possible. And remember that you are allowed to change your mind even when you’ve shared potential plans and everyone’s excited for you.
“Being organised better ensures you can accomplish what you’d like to do during your Matric year.”
As you formulate options add things to your calendar, such as any open days you’d like to attend. Additionally, make a note on your calendar of due dates for applications and keep a side note of their individual requirements.
3. Spend Time with Family and Friends
In order to continually do your best while studying and writing exams it’s vital to create balance within your life. Therefore, as much as you need to plan to study you also need to plan to socialise. This will help you relax as well as keep perspective within your life.
5 Reasons You need to Socialise
- Buffer against feeling overwhelmed.
- Lower your risk of depression and anxiety.
- Boost your self-confidence.
- Sharpen your cognitive function, improve your memory and attention span.
- Plug into a support network.
Add people’s birthdays to your calendar. That will give you an idea of when you can expect to want to take time to celebrate someone else. Plan to do things with your friends and add them to your schedule. Next year, spending time with school friends might not be as easy as it is now. So, enjoy it while you can and while it’s easier to coordinate with them.
4. Plan Leisure Time and Exercise
Leisure time means doing something we enjoy, relaxes us and takes our minds off everyday stresses or work. Practically, it means that deciding what to do is up to you. You may enjoy making something, crafting or exploring your artistic side. Perhaps even cooking and for some people, they find cleaning relaxing!
Exercise, of some sort, is key to relaxing and keeping yourself healthy. It can be a team sport, running or going for a walk in a garden or place that relaxes you. Be creative in how you think about exercise. It can happen in unexpected ways. Remember, fitness is not about being better than someone else, it’s about get moving and getting your blood pumping. So, aim for consistency rather than intensity and find enjoyable activities that fit into your lifestyle.
5. Prioritise Wellbeing and Wellness
Wellbeing and wellness are both important for maintaining a balanced lifestyle but contrary to what many assume, they’re not the same thing. Wellbeing has a broader holistic focus which includes overall happiness, good social connections, life satisfaction and fulfilment. Whereas wellness is achieved through active choices one makes and refers more specifically to mental, emotional and physical health.
Avoid Comparisons and Stay Focused
Comparisons are odious and they can negatively affect both your mental and emotional health. They also can be very destructive and cause you to lose your focus. Your matric year is likely to be fraught with situations and questions that compare you to others. How are your marks in comparison to your friends? Is your plan for next year as good as theirs? Whose been offered the best spot in university….? Comparisons can’t always be avoided but you can buffer against them with positive self-talk and by evading comparative situations.
The danger of comparisons is that they’re never fair and mostly harmful.
One way to limit your exposure to comparisons is to be wise in your social media choices. Social media is all about comparing your life with others. It can cause depression and prevent you from establishing and maintaining real connections with people around you. Therefore, if you want to improve your wellness then have a digital wellness strategy. Digital wellness is about managing the way we interact with technology. Practically, it means limiting your screen time and, rather than virtually pottering around, meeting up to connect with people in-person.
How to Boost Wellbeing
An important step towards boosting wellbeing is practicing self-care. Self-care is about having a specific intent to maintain your mental, emotional and physical health. Two aspects of good self-care are asking for help when you need it and maintaining a positive attitude. A good way of helping to keep yourself positive is to practice an attitude of gratitude and actively being kind.
“Gratitude and kindness are approaches which boost our wellness.”
Ways to Improve Wellness
The basic components of good wellness are consistently maintaining healthy habits, managing stress and good social connections. Consequently, improving wellness is about actively seeking to improve your physical, mental and emotional health.
One good habit that is vital to wellness is balancing your diet by having regular meals and consciously deciding to eat healthily. What you eat impacts your mental capability, specifically your memory and concentration. While this doesn’t mean forgoing all treats, it may mean choosing the healthier snacks and being aware of comfort eating.
Another good habit to maintain is getting enough quality sleep. During your matric year you might find friends increasingly speak about how little sleep they need or how to stay awake. If you’re serious about having the best matric, then avoid these two things. Sleep isn’t just something that restores your energy levels, it’s a process that maintains our emotional health and optimal cognitive functionality. So, unless you’re aiming to be grumpy and remember less, it’s best not to skimp out on 7-9 hours of sleep experts recommend.
6. Volunteer and Help Others
Volunteering has many advantages, for example, while contributing to betterment of others, it builds your CV and extra-curricular activities. Both of which are advantageous when applying to study and being considered for future job opportunities. Additionally, and not to be overlooked, volunteering can also have a positive impact on your mental and emotional wellbeing.
Helping and giving to others causes you to be outwardly focused. Volunteering is about offering your time and efforts without expecting to be paid or compensated. This takes your mind off your own challenges and keeps you in touch with the real world around you. It also helps to quash anxiety and helping others has been shown to boost your own happiness. Furthermore, as you sow into someone else’s life, it’s a way to establishing and maintaining meaningful connections. This has been shown to boost both your wellbeing and wellness.
How to Decide What to do Next Year
One of the many decisions you need to make in your matric year is what to do after school. Start by answering these questions, do you enjoy helping people? Would you like a great baseline qualification that opens up fantastic opportunities for you? If so, explore possible options at SACAP. Our three faculties, Applied Psychology, Management and Leadership and Social Work and Community Development, offer an array of full-time and part-time qualifications. You can choose to study at one of the 4 campuses in Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg and Pretoria. Alternatively, you can study online. Contact an admissions officer to discuss your options or apply online today.
FAQ:
1. Why is it important to have a study timetable?
A study timetable helps someone to better manage their time thereby improving productivity and reducing stress. It’s also been shown to improve focus and memory retention as well as comprehension while studying.
2. Is it important to socialise during your matric year?
Socialising is an important part of maintaining a healthy work-life balance during your matric year. Having time away from your studies, with other people, helps you keep perspective and helps buffer feeling overwhelmed. It’s also been shown to lower the risk of depression and sharpen cognitive function.
3. Why should you volunteer in your matric year?
Helping and giving to others causes you to be outwardly focused which helps take your mind off matric stress. It’s been shown to boost happiness and diminish anxiety and depression. As a result, volunteering can improve your overall wellbeing and wellness levels.
Related Courses
Higher Certificate in Counselling and Communication Skills
Applied Psychology
Higher Certificate in Business Management
Management & Leadership
Higher Certificate in Human Resource Management
Management & Leadership
