Missing Deadlines ?

What happens when you miss a deadline? I’ve always prided myself in being one of those people who isn’t often late, who doesn’t miss assignments and always has the ability to manage their time effectively. Well, guess what? I missed a deadline! We are human and life can get extremely overwhelming, particularly at this time of the year when everything pools into a giant ball of stress. I normally post my blog on Mondays. This weekend, I allotted myself what I thought would be enough time to finish three massive projects I have due on Tuesday. I had started all of them and nearly finished one but the one I thought I would have finished took me until last night at 2:00 a.m. to finish. When it comes to pumping out papers or doing readings, I know exactly how much time I need in order to finish an assignment. Creative projects take quite a bit longer; an important lesson I found out this weekend. Words of wisdom are that you may underestimate how long it takes to finish an assignment and rather than miss the deadline, it’s best to ask for an extension. Ensure that you read your syllabus regarding assignment policies and how best to contact the professor; the earlier, the better. It’s better to submit your best work, even if it has a bit of a late grade, then to submit something that you have to rush to finish. If you are a person who chronically hands in assignments late, it may be up to your professor or TA if they want to grant the extension but they’re more understanding than you might expect. After all, they went through it, too! For certain assignments, you may have to contact your registrar's office to request a form explaining your circumstances for why a project is late. Obviously, when it comes to major assignments or exams, U of T has official policies regarding that, which I hopefully never have to go through. But in the instance that you do, I’m certain there are resources to help if you have a good reason for missing an exam.

In other news, last week I had the opportunity to attend the 25th Anniversary Party of First Nations House at the U of T President’s Estate. The food was amazing (and Indigenous-inspired!), and speeches from former students, Directors at First Nations House and hand-drum performances by Jenny Blackbird and a quartet was a great way to celebrate the success of First Nations House and Indigenous communities fostered through U of T. If you haven’t had a chance to stop by First Nations House, please do! Follow First Nations House on Twitter and Facebook for upcoming events. Goodbye for now!   I