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My trip to Washington DC started with me waking up in disbelief one morning noticing that my flight time was within 10 hours. The GapSummit conference was held in between the end of lectures and exam period. Therefore, the thought of being halfway around the world before having exams was very unreal and stressful. However, it turns out the lesson I got out of this trip was more valuable and memorable than the course content crammed just for my exams.

It’s that time of year again. You’ve got your semester one results back, have had time to cry in your room for a few days, and then a little more time to realise the error of your ways and promise yourself that this semester will be different. 

For most of us, university is a long, strenuous grind in which one toils to obtain a piece of paper with their name on it. The freedom one gains compared to high school feels liberating, yet it is marred by the daunting reality that you are now responsible for your own learning with no one to push you.

This is the most common phrase that you always hear but never fulfill in real life. According to my experience, studying harder and longer doesn’t always guarantee you to get A+ in all assignments and exams. Studying hard for long periods is very exhausting and 100% of the knowledge would not last forever in your brain. I used to fail many subjects back in high school but when I started to follow my intuition to study smarter, instead of harder, my entire life was changed dramatically.

While diamonds may be made under pressure- cue Kermit Procrastination memes- procrastination and the Bermuda Triangle of productivity isn’t a recommended method of tackling the upcoming exam period. However, neither is studying till you drop! Believe me, after 5 years surviving exams I’m now somewhat of an expert.

Let’s face it. Our lives are infested with memes. One would say it’s a new cultural phenomenon that has revolutionised the way we communicate. Facebook feeds festering with relatable captions accompanied by an obscure picture where the comments section merely functions as means to tag your mates and say “omg us” are all the craze these days. But memes are not new. They’re not revolutionary. They’re evolutionary. I recently attended a fascinating psychology lecture discussing the evolution of culture and how memes, as they accumulate changes over a period of time, adapt features to fit into their respective niches and compete to be the most propagated, can be explained easily with the analogy of being a rapidly evolving cultural parasite.

Sometimes life presents you with hidden opportunities. How was I to know while idly perusing the magazine rack at Christchurch airport that I would find something that has astounded most of my friends, has had me and my flatmates screaming in incredulity?

The Chiasma Connect Mentorship Programme Launch occurred on the evening of May the 4th, unfortunately only a coincidence that it aligned with Star Wars Day. It is a 20 week programme which pairs students with industry professionals from their field of interest. As the first opportunity for the students to meet with their mentors, it was important to give a good first impression. We could say it was much like a first date, but perhaps without any of the awkwardness since everyone seemed to get along with each other nicely; plenty of laughs here and there.

For the rest of the yet-to-graduate-and-dress-up-like-Harry-Potter students out there, you can achieve everything that the bright hooded death eaters have, that and more. And I don’t mean this in a cheesy ‘grandma believes in you’ kind of way.

What we achieve in our life is not only the result of our hard work and effort, but is also strongly supported by the motivation, guidance and support of our friends and family. But what would happen if we also got encouraged, moulded and supported by someone from our industry, someone that is working in the field that we want to approach and has the experience and connections that we need to get started? The results may surprise you.