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Online Study

Online study provides the opportunity for you to grow and obtain a qualification in a way that fits into your life.

Online study is a great way to reach your potential as it gives you flexibility to study at a time that suits you. But you need to be organised and have a realistic approach to juggle the demands of mahi, family and life commitments.  

What can you do to make the most of online study?

Prepare for study
  • Get in the mental zone. Set yourself a study area that is quiet, organised and a comfortable space to be in. Studying on the couch or propped up in bed working on an assessment is not ideal for successful study.  
  • Course pages go live in Akoraka | Learn  one week before the official course start date. Use this advance time to log in and have a long look around your course/s.
  • Make sure you are familiar with Akoraka | Learn and each course outline, expectations, assessments and due dates. Course outlines are important documents so read them carefully.
  • No one expects you to be an IT expert, but it would not hurt to make sure you are familiar with any tools such as MS Teams or Panopto which might be used in your online course to get you off to a productive start.  
  • Have a look around this website. If you are returning to study after a while you might want to brush up on your information searching and referencing skills. We also have pages with information around assessments and academic reading and writing skills.
Organise your time

It is easier to juggle mahi, family and social/community responsibilities if you have a realistic plan. Create a schedule which fits study into your life regularly, and then stick to it so study does not overwhelm you. Habit is your friend. 

Remember that online study requires the same number of hours of study as on campus courses. It is flexible around the time of day or days of the week you study but there is a fixed timeframe for your courses, regular scheduled online tutorials you can attend, office hours, during which you can discuss things with your lecturers, and due dates for assessment submission which must be adhered to.  

Ensure you have carefully read your course outlines and have all due dates for all assessments in your diary or on your calendar. It is important to give yourself the time to do your best work. This allows you to get more out of the material, work calmly with less pressure and achieve better grades.  

Find out more about managing your time.

Connect and keep your goal in mind
  • You will get more out of your study and higher grades if you actively participate in the course.  
  • If you can, try and be active in the discussion forums, attend the online tutorials or watch the recordings. Discussions make you think and that helps you learn. 
  • Be prepared to contribute to class discussions, engage with the course material and communicate respectfully with your lecturers and other students. 
  • Whether it is a career change, advancement at work or to make your family proud, harness that motivation to keep chipping away at your assessments, attempt this week’s quiz or get your head around a module reading. 
  • Getting your partner, children, whānau and colleagues on board as your support crew to encourage you when you are feeling flat is also a great way to keep you on track and accountable. 
Take care of yourself

Your health and well-being are most important. Recognise the progress you are making and reward yourself when you have achieved study milestones.

Communication is vital for online study. This is important both within your course with lecturers and classmates, and at home. Letting whānau and friends know you’ll be studying at certain times and won’t be available then keeps everyone in the loop and lessens interruptions.

Success and support

We understand the challenges study can bring and are here to support your success. Whether it's been a while since you last studied or not long at all and whether you're experienced at studying online or this is your first time in a fully online study environment, we've got some practical tips for everyone for successful online study. We also provide many support options for our online students. Watch this introduction video (1min:4s) from our online student success advisor and have a look at our tips below.

Get Individual Advice

Talk to a learning advisor or attend one of our workshops for help with your study.

Learning Advisor   Workshops