Tag Archives: study

“Checking Out” What’s On Offer at the Tufts Libraries

Leave a reply

Written by Ruaidhri Crofton, History & Museum Studies M.A. 2020

As a graduate student at Tufts, it is a given that a lot of your time will be spent studying, writing papers, and preparing for classes throughout the semester. Although you will find that there are an ample number of resources to help you adequately prepare for everything you will be up against during your time as a graduate student, I have found that there’s no place quite like the Tufts Libraries. In all there are four libraries on the Medford/Somerville and SMFA campuses available for student use: W. Van Alan Clark, Jr. Library at SMFA, Ginn Library at the Fletcher School, the Lilly Music Library in the Granoff Music Center, and of course Tisch Library. That being said, these spaces offer a lot more than just a quiet place to study or find books for your next assignment. Below are a few of my favorite resources available to students through the Tufts Library system. There is so much to offer at all of these libraries, making them well worth a visit! 

Study Space

Of course, what would a library be without space for studying, reading, and generally getting some work done? All four libraries provide ample space to allow you to study in almost any way at almost any time. Need to get a project done with friends? No problem! Reserve a group study room so you’re not worried about distracting others. Looking for a relaxed work environment that also has snacks? Try the Tower Cafe in Tisch Library! Need to cram for a last-minute deadline? Late night study from 1:00 AM to 3:00 AM has you covered! Personally, I find the quiet study areas among the book stacks to be where I’m able to focus and work most productively. Regardless of how or when you like to get your work done, at least one of the libraries will be a good place to turn to when many other places on campus may be closed or just not the right fit for you.

Digital Collections and Archives

Located in the Tisch Library, the Digital Collections and Archives (DCA) are home to the university’s extensive holdings of archival materials. These collections contain objects related to the history of the university, as well as a wide variety of other topics including the history of medicine, broadcast journalism, and more! Among the more unique items held in the collections are Tufts student protest posters from the 1970s, ancient scarabs, and even the tail of the university’s mascot: Jumbo the elephant. DCA is open Monday to Friday for use by students and other researchers to uncover a little bit more about the history of Tufts and beyond! Visit the Digital Collections & Archives website for more information.

Digital Design Studio

Tucked away on the third floor of the Tisch Library, the Digital Design Studio (DDS) is your go to resource for all things digital media. Whether you need to produce a video, create a website, design and print a poster, record an audio narration, or even do some 3D printing, the DDS has you covered. The studio is equipped with multimedia workstations, a recording room, and even a green screen, making work on any sort of digital project a breeze. If all of this sounds great but you don’t quite know how you would ever go about utilizing this great resource, not to worry! The DDS offers online tutorials for everything from using equipment to creating credits for your work. They even have their own in-house “Digital Design Expert” to help you out. Check out the Tisch Library website for more information. 

Boston Library Consortium and Interlibrary Loan

Although the combined collections of the four libraries may seem to have every title and piece of information you could ever need or imagine, there are still plenty of books and documents that fall outside the scope of the university’s holdings. That’s where the Boston Library Consortium (BLC) and interlibrary loans come in handy. By submitting a request for a book or article using interlibrary loan, you can have almost any item you may need from other institutions around the world delivered directly to you at Tufts! Tufts is also part of the BLC with 18 other area institutions, which allows you to check out books at other school libraries with a BLC card. Between all of these resources, you won’t ever have to worry about not being able to get your hands on that specific source you need to make your research project perfect! Find out more about interlibrary loan.

Workshops and Support Services

If all of this information sounds exciting but also daunting, not to worry! The libraries also offer a variety of workshops and other support services to help students put these great library resources to use. Workshops cover everything from research methods, citations, and writing skills to database usage, media design, and more! A wonderful team of librarians and other support staff are also on hand to provide one-on-one assistance on any of these topics. In fact, each department is assigned its own librarian who can provide assistance tailored to the individual needs and challenges of research in that field. I can personally attest to the fact that the Tufts librarians are a fantastic help and a lot of fun to work with so don’t hesitate to reach out with questions! 

Now, all of this only begins to scratch the surface of the exciting stuff going on within the Tufts Libraries. For more information, visit the library website or visit a library and start “checking things out” for yourself. Happy exploring!

ARC Spotlight Part 1: Time Management and Study Strategies Program

Leave a reply

The Academic Resource Center, or ARC, as it is more commonly referred to, offers multiple dynamic programs which aim to support Tufts students. You may not realize that the ARC also caters to graduate students and offers three programs to choose from! The Time Management and Study Strategies program, Writing Program, and English for Academic Purposes program were all created to help students through the challenges they commonly face. In the first of a multi-part blog series shining a spotlight on the ARC’s programs, we’re going to talk about the Time Management and Study Strategies program.

Written by Manisha Raghavan, Bioengineering M.S. 2019

The Time Management and Study Strategies Program (TM&SS for short) traces its roots back to 2004 when Lara Birk, the head of Subject Tutoring, noticed undergraduate students struggling with their time management skills. Lara hired doctoral student Laura Vanderberg as an intern to design a structured program to support students in honing their time management, which became officially known as the Time Management & Study Strategies Consulting program in 2008.

TM&SS is a very unique program which focuses on developing a personalized, collaborative relationship between the student and the consultant, who then work together on the changes the student wants to make. Claire Weigand, Assistant Director of the ARC, strongly believes that the program has something to offer to everyone. Each year during staff training, the consultants (who are also grad students) report learning strategies and concepts that they find personally useful in grad school.  The TM&SS program receives requests from a wide variety of students who often find themselves experiencing burnout, procrastination, anxiety, struggles with sleep and so on. The program operates on the philosophy that change is possible, while recognizing that change involves a mixture of setbacks and growth. 

What can I work on with my consultant?

If you find yourself working on your planning, motivation, study strategies, test anxiety, perfectionism, self-care or work-life balance, it is worth giving TM&SS consulting a try. TM&SS consulting focuses on three areas: planning (routines, busy weeks, goals, etc.), academic skills (reading large amounts, note taking, studying, test taking, etc.), and well-being (life balance, motivation/procrastination, self-care, etc.). You can sign up, get matched with a consultant within two days, and then meet for the first time to see if this is something that helps you make the changes you are working on.

How does the program work?

To request TM&SS consulting, fill out a sign-up form at go.tufts.edu/tmsssession. The program director matches students with consultants based on the information in their answers. Students are asked about what they would like to work on and what they look for in a consultant. It is important that each student feels accepted and understood by their consultant, so matching is based on schedule overlaps and each student’s preferences around shared life experience (gender, race, sexuality, personality traits, field of studies, etc.). The process also offers the flexibility to swap consultants if a student feels like they are not working well with a consultant.

TM&SS is available for both undergraduate and graduate students in the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineering and the SMFA. For graduate students, depending on the consultant’s availability, sessions can be conducted over both winter and summer breaks. 

Want to work as a TM&SS consultant?

Look out for the job posting starting in mid-April on Handshake and keep your cover letter and CV/resume handy! Candidates must be able to attend the entire 40-hour paid training week, the week before orientation in August (August 19-23, 2019).

Want some advice without scheduling an appointment yet? Here are some mantras from the program to help you cope with the pressures of grad school:

  1. Take effective breaks! One ends up being more productive when one takes timely breaks.
  2. Gratitude journaling is a wonderful way to start appreciating the good things in life we often do not notice, which can boost motivation and our mood.
  3. Sleep improves learning! Cutting back on sleep to get more done quickly stops working as everything takes longer to get done when we are tired.

My consultant was absolutely wonderful… She helped me develop skills that will be valuable in my post-Tufts life. She was a fantastic part of my network of support this semester.

-Anonymous Tufts Grad Student