Student workshops
Join a workshop to explore practical strategies and academic skills that are crucial for university success.
Academic reading, writing and referencing
Learn a range of practical skills for managing your reading, producing written work and using academic literature in your assignments.
Register for upcoming workshops in this series below the table.
| Workshop | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Academic writing for graduate coursework students | As a new graduate coursework student, you might be encountering some of the increased expectations of writing at this level of study. This workshop explores the expectations of academic writing at UniMelb as well as introducing practical techniques for advanced-level writing that satisfies demanding readers. |
19 Feb Repeated on: 9 Apr |
| Critical thinking | The skill of critical thinking is central to academic success. All of us think critically every day, but university academic expectations may be different from those you may be used to. We will explore how to apply critical thinking skills to your studies, especially when reading and writing. |
27 Feb Repeated on: 18 Mar 26 Mar |
| Demystifying the passive voice | The use of active voice and passive voice can be confusing for many academic writers. You may wonder, ‘What is active voice? What is passive voice? Is passive voice incorrect? Which should I use in my writing?’ In this interactive workshop, we will answer these questions and give you the tools you need to use active and passive voice with confidence. | 11 Apr |
| Essay writing 101 | The essay is perhaps the most common form of academic writing at the university. Learn about essay structure, paragraphing and features of essays with sample texts for analysis to help you better understand this task type. |
19 Feb Repeated on: 22 Feb 19 Mar 27 Mar |
| Mastering punctuation | - ’ : ; ” . ? ( ! : Knowing how to use these punctuation marks can not only make your writing more accurate, but also enhance the impact and clarity of your writing. Attend this interactive workshop to learn how you can use punctuation to take your academic writing to the next level. You will have opportunities to ask questions and practise a range of punctuation rules. | 17 Apr |
| Take charge of your reading and note-taking | Managing your reading at university is one of the most important things to get on top of early. This session examines making strategic reading choices, organising your reading, optimising reading times, taking notes and strategies for dealing with difficult reading. | 20 Feb Repeated on: 21 Feb 22 Feb 1 Mar 8 Mar 22 Mar |
| Understanding referencing | This session explores referencing at university. It looks at how to take information from different sources and incorporate it into your work and how to best use Library resources. | 22 Mar Repeated on: 17 Apr |
| Writing your first assignment | You may be asked to complete a variety of written assessment tasks at university. You will consider strategies to approaching written tasks with a process, finding resources and responding to tasks. | 27 Feb Repeated on: 7 Mar |
| Writing your final assignment | This session examines what is expected for your final first-year assignment – probably the longest and most important writing task of the semester. We will explore strategies and resources for approaching this task efficiently. | 7 May Repeated on: 14 May |
| Writing your first literature review | Reviewing literature is a key academic skill used in many disciplines. This workshop introduces you to the basics of writing a lit review, focusing on the elements of a lit review, the language needed and the key aspects of criticality and interpretation. | 4 Mar Repeated on: 20 Mar |
Upcoming events in academic reading, writing and referencing
Speaking, presenting and engaging in class
Learn a range of practical ways to participate more effectively and confidently in classes, assessments and social situations.
Register for upcoming workshops in this series below the table.
| Workshop | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Getting the most out of lectures | The main delivery mode of learning at university is through lectures. This session focuses on preparing for lectures in both face-to-face and online contexts, effective note-taking, plus organising and reviewing your notes. | 23 Feb Repeated on: 26 Feb |
| Intercultural learning through Story Circles | Join this Story Circles session to develop your communication skills and build connections by sharing and reflecting on lived experiences in a safe and nurturing environment. | 29 Feb Repeated on: 28 Mar |
| Participating in class discussions | Learn how to participate effectively in a range of speaking contexts at university by practising strategies for asking questions, engaging in discussions and supporting your views. Featuring authentic academic discussion activities, this class will help you develop confidence and skills for getting involved actively at university. | 20 Feb Repeated on: 23 Feb 5 Mar |
| Presenting Effectively | This interactive session looks at the skills of effective presenters focusing on voice, body language and visuals. | 25 Mar Repeated on: 11 Apr 8 May |
Upcoming events in speaking, presenting and engaging in class
Study skills
Learn a range of practical strategies and tools to engage with the University and your studies most effectively.
Register for upcoming workshops in this series below the table.
| Workshop | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Exam preparation and active revision | This workshop will provide you with techniques and resources for effective exam taking. Through interactive activities, you will reflect on your study approaches and discover a range of study strategies. | 5 Mar Repeated on: 30 Apr 21 May |
| Managing your time and tasks | To succeed at university, you need to be able to balance various commitments and priorities and complete tasks in a timely fashion. This session encourages you to reflect on your personal approach to time and task management and consider which skills and strategies might help you to work more efficiently. | 21 Feb Repeated on: 23 Feb |
Upcoming events in study skills
English language
Learn a range of strategies and practise techniques to build your confidence communicating in English at university and beyond. These workshops are for students who speak English as an additional language.
Register for upcoming workshops in this series below the table.
| Workshop | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Aussie English | Learn and practise useful pre-listening strategies that can help you listen to, and understand, your classes more effectively. | 21 Feb Repeated on: 23 Feb |
| Conversation group: What’s everyone talking about? | What are people in Melbourne talking about this week? How can you join the conversation? In this weekly conversation group, you will learn about current news topics and practise having casual conversations with your peers. | 8 Apr Repeated on: 15 Apr 22 Apr |
| Grammar and expressions for concise and cohesive writing | Strong academic writing is concise (short and sharp) and cohesive (connected). To help us write in this way, we often use a grammatical structure called ‘nominalisation’. In this interactive workshop, we will practise using nominalisation to improve our academic writing. | 28 Mar |
| Grammar & expressions for giving opinions in class | University classes often require students to share their opinions. In this interactive workshop, you will learn and practise expressions and grammar that can help you effectively and confidently share your opinion. | 14 Mar |
| Grammar and expressions for talking to your teachers | In this interactive workshop, you will learn and practise grammar and expressions that you can use when communicating with your teachers. | 7 Mar |
| Improve your English in 10 Minutes a day – Listening & Speaking | In this session you will practise listening and speaking activities that you can complete in around 10 minutes per day to improve your English over an extended period. | 1 Mar |
| Improve your English in 10 minutes a day – Reading & Writing | In this workshop you will practise reading and writing activities that you can complete in around 10 minutes per day to improve your English over an extended period. | 28 Feb |
| Listening Club 1: 5 quick steps for listening success | Learn and practise useful pre-listening strategies that can help you listen to, and understand, your classes more effectively. | 6 Mar |
| Listening Club 2: Listening for main ideas and details | In this interactive workshop, you will learn and practise listening strategies that can help you identify main ideas and details. | 13 Mar |
| Listening Club 3: Taking effective notes while listening | In this interactive workshop, you will practise using a range of listening and note taking strategies that you can apply. | 20 Mar |
| Listening Club 4: It’s not just what they say, it’s how they say it | In this interactive workshop, you will learn about the way pronunciation, body language and expressions can help us understand the speaker’s message. | 27 Mar |
| Messaging and emailing in English | A lot of university communication occurs over email and messenger, but the two ways of communicating require very different writing skills. Attend this practical workshop to learn and practise ways of emailing your teachers and other students, as well as strategies and expressions that you can use when messaging your peers in group chat. | 12 Apr |
| Reading Club 1: 3 steps to success before you read a new text | Set yourself up for success by using our three steps for approaching a new reading text. In this interactive workshop, you will use one of your reading texts to practise useful pre-reading strategies. | 4 Mar |
| Reading Club 2: How to read quickly and find information | University study often requires a lot of reading. Attend this interactive workshop to practise reading strategies that can help you read more quickly and find the details you are looking for. | 11 Mar |
| Reading Club 3: Note taking skills that can take you further | Taking notes while reading is a key skill at university. But how should we actually do it? And what should we write? In this workshop, you will practise using a range of note taking strategies and techniques that can help you make more effective notes while reading. | 18 Mar |
| Speaking Clearly 1: Stress patterns in speech | Learn how to recognise and produce correct stress patterns in words and sentences in spoken English, then practise your skills with other learners. | 12 Mar |
| Speaking Clearly 2: Rhythm and intonation | Discover how the rhythm and melody of your sentences conveys what is important and what you want to emphasise, and practise with other learners. | 19 Mar |
| Speaking Clearly 3: word endings and pronunciation | Listeners can misunderstand if the sounds at the ends of words are unclear. Learn how to hear and say word endings correctly and practise with other learners. | 26 Mar |
| Speaking Clearly 4: Difficult consonants | Different languages have different consonant sounds. Come along to practise the consonant sounds in English that are difficult for you and practise with other learners. | 9 Apr |
| Speaking Clearly 5: vowels | Learn how to hear vowel sounds, discover rules for vowel spelling, and practise producing accurate vowels in speaking activities with other learners. | 16 Apr |
| Using and understanding language tools and apps | There are many tools and apps available online to assist people who speak English as an additional language, but which ones are actually useful? Attend this interactive workshop to learn and share ideas about which tools are worth your time. | 26 Apr |
| Vocabulary building strategies | Learn strategies for recognising, understanding and remembering useful words and expressions so you can apply them to your academic speaking and writing. | 10 Apr |