Wherever you're coming to Cambridge from, you'll probably find that studying at graduate level is different to your previous experiences of learning, whether in higher education or in a professional capacity.

In Cambridge you'll be entering a new community based around your discipline and your research interests. Being a graduate student means you'll be more independent, making decisions about your own learning. You might have a heavy teaching schedule, and you might also find yourself with lots of unscheduled time. 

If you find that you will be working remotely then the pages below provides top tips on time management and technology to guide you through this process. 

In this section of CamGuides we'll cover some of the key transferable academic practices and skills that are commonly required at graduate level. Use the links at the bottom of each page to move through the different topics, or skip ahead to those you think are most relevant to you by using the menu on the left hand side (or at the top if you're using a mobile device).

The goal of this section is to highlight some of these practices and skills, to encourage you to reflect on your existing knowledge and expertise and how you might realistically progress further. At points, there will be an icon (like the one below), which identifies a task: something that you can usefully do now, before your course begins, to increase your understanding of them. Needless to say, this should always be contextualised by your discipline, area of interest, and previous experiences of learning at university, in the workplace, or elsewhere.