I cannot believe that it’s come to the time where I’m writing about the end of summer and the start of another school year! This summer has flown by, even though at Cypress I’ve experienced about three seasons in the span of four months (beginning with a May blizzard followed by a spring flood and finally some sun!). I’ve had the same summer job every year in between my years of undergraduate study and I’ve definitely noticed some differences between the years. I know that from year to year I have gained confidence in my communication skills. Being in university is certainly about more than just written communication skills (AKA essays and assignments). There is also the huge component of oral communication; the ability to express your ideas clearly is an incredibly important skill that can only be improved by classes that involve class discussions. Even skills I wouldn’t have expected to have developed over university, like how to properly compose an email, became apparent as responding to emails became a major component of my job this year.
Although I can’t believe it’s time to get back to school, I am also incredibly excited! I love going back to school shopping. Seriously, me in a office supply store is a sight to behold. A new package of highlighters can be almost as satisfying as a new pair of shoes. Almost. One of the many questions before starting university is “what am I even suppose to bring to class...?” Heading to university classes is pretty simple, all you really need on the first day is your class schedule (found in PAWS under the Academics tab-Registration–Student Schedule by Day and Time), a bit of looseleaf, and a pen. A clipboard is always handy to have to keep everything organized and helps a lot in lecture theatres or classrooms without full desks. Signing up for Orientation is a great way to see your classrooms before school starts, but if you can’t make orientation I would strongly recommend making time to check out your class locations before the first day of classes. On the first day, a syllabus is handed out in every class which has book lists, required assignments, marking breakdown and scheduled midterms or tests. Another extremely handy thing to have is an agenda or a huge desk/wall calendar, because after going through a couple days of having syllabi handed to you, you definitely will need some sort way to see clearly the dates of where all of your assignments fall. It can take a couple days of getting organized but after that you will be able to fall into a routine that works best for you.
Best of luck this year! Enjoy Saskatoon and the University of Saskatchewan!
A couple pictures of the great scenery I had during my summer job:
As I’ve said before on this blog, when I entered into university I had no idea what I wanted to study. When I decided to declare English as my major I knew that I wanted to continue after my undergraduate degree into another program. What I was not prepared for was the frequent follow-up questions from anyone who asked me what I was taking in university. If you are thinking about declaring English as your major, you can be guaranteed you will be asked the following question:
“Are you going to be an English teacher?”
If you decide to enter Arts and Science you can be guaranteed to be asked the following question:
“What do you do with a degree from Arts and Science anyway?”
During my undergrad, I briefly considered applying to education but I eventually decided that I was not interested in becoming an English teacher. So that question is pretty easy to sidestep. The harder of the two is what to do with an Arts and Science Degree. I think it’s such a hard question because really, there are so many things you can do with a degree from the College of Arts and Science. It’s been my experience that most people who are in Arts and Science are also working towards applying to a professional college (programs that require a few years of study before you can apply, like Medicine or Law) or are interested in Graduate Studies and Research (either a Master’s program in the same discipline they are majoring in, or sometimes something a little different). A lot of people study in Arts and Science in order to have an advantage of a university degree when they later apply for jobs.
I’ve always been a huge fan of Arts and Science because of how many options there are to study. The College of Arts and Science offers the opportunity to grow into a major declaration, rather than jumping right in to a decision. If you decide to enter Arts and Science, check out their website to learn about some options for degree study for when you are inevitably asked what you can do with your degree!
Because of its size, the U of S is great for making new friends and having the opportunity to run into old friends from your hometown. In some situations, I have become better friends with people from my hometown while going to university than I was when we were both in high school. My friend Mack is a good example of this. Although we sort of knew of each other while we were living in Swift Current through mutual friends, it wasn’t until we were both attending university that we become good friends. Recently, Mack invited me to attend a retirement supper for three members of the Canadian forces at the Moose Jaw armory. Mack has been a part of the army for the past eight years and every so often he will ask me if I want to tag along with him to different army functions. Although he is now a full-time student, Mack still drives to Moose Jaw every Wednesday to work for the army. Before starting at the University of Saskatchewan, he served in Afghanistan for eight months. Due to his service in Afghanistan and then his enrollment in post-secondary education, Mack was awarded a Scholarship of Honour from the Provincial Government in the spring of this year.
University classes are pretty cool because although you would think people would be somewhat similar if they are all interested in the same class topic, classes are comprised of a surprisingly different mix of people. Every person brings a unique perspective, of where they are from or what life experiences they have had, to how they view the course material. It’s good to try to get to know lots of people in your classes because until you ask, you might never know what cool experiences the person sitting next to you has had before!
At the beginning of June, I attended the convocation ceremony acknowledging the completion of my bachelor’s degree. I admit that I was a bit on the fence as to whether or not I would attend my convocation ceremony. I am entering into a graduate studies program in the fall and wasn’t sure if I wanted to do the whole big ceremony twice or just after I completed the graduate program I am going to start working on. Ultimately, I decided that I would attend convocation to give my parents the opportunity to see me on stage accepting my parchment. In the end, I was super glad that I made the decision to attend convocation. It is a long day but definitely worth it.
I didn’t know what to expect of convocation because it is not really like a high school graduation ceremony. In high school, there was a very clear definition between those who were graduating and those who still had more schooling left to complete. In university, everyone is at such different stages in their programs that it can be hard to tell who will be graduating at what point. Once you have taken enough classes and are granted enough credits, you have to apply to graduate with a degree. The university then considers those applications and once you have been approved will send emails reminding you of important dates regarding convocation. There is a few things to do before the actual convocation ceremony, like ordering tickets and renting gowns.
The actual ceremony was interesting; I had never been to a convocation ceremony before so I wasn’t sure of how it would go. My ceremony was a mix of Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science graduands. Degrees were given to third year bachelor of arts students followed by four year bachelor of arts and then honours students. This order was then repeated for the Bachelor of Science students. There was also an honorary Doctor of Letters degree awarded to Mary Weir who was a University of Saskatchewan alumna who went on to be an accomplished journalist in Toronto. Even though there were lots of students who graduated during the ceremony, I was almost surprised at how fast everything went. It was pretty cool to have a moment to mark the work I had put into getting my degree, shake the hands of the Chancellor and President of the University and help acknowledge everyone's accomplishments.
Well I've only been back at work in Cypress Hills for about two weeks and in that time I've experienced a few rainstorms, two feet of snow and most recently 26 degree weather. The two feet of snow was definitely unexpected and caused a bit of extra work getting the provincial park ready in time for this weekend. Every summer it is always an adjustment to get back into the routine of working 40 hours a week. Working full-time is much different from being a student full-time, mainly due to the schedule. One of the best things about being a university student is the ability to create the perfect schedule to suit your lifestyle and personal preferences. I have always scheduled my classes to start in the morning because I like to get up and going early in the morning. I always found that if I had a 9:30 class, I would be able easily transition from class to studying during the day.
Registration for classes occurs in June. Unlike some universities, the University of Saskatchewan allows you to register for both fall and winter semesters all at once. When I was getting ready to register for classes, I would always write out my ideal schedule and would have a few alternates just in case a class was full. The best trick when looking up classes to add to your schedule is to make note of the CRN (Class Registration Number). Then, when it comes time to register for classes, all you need is the 5 CRNs for first semester 5 CRNs for second semester instead of having to search for each class to add individually on registration day. There are class registration tutorials on PAWS that are very helpful when it comes to checking out classes to add and how to go about the registration process. Doing a little bit of homework before registration day makes the whole process smooth and easy!
On Saturday I completed my LAST ever undergraduate final exam! It seems cliche to say, but I cannot believe how fast the past four years have gone! Even though my time spent in undergraduate spans the same amount of years as high school, time went so much faster! It helps that in university semesters are only four months with a pretty nice four month break for summer. If you are staying in Saskatoon for the summer and are able to have a flexible job that allows time for spring or summer classes, taking a few extra classes during this time can be a great way to lighten your course load during regular semesters. Spring and Summer classes are also a great way to fill elective requirements since a lot of the classes offered are 100-level. Since I have always taken a full load of courses during the fall and winter semesters (five classes each semester), I have been able to finish my degree within four years without taking summer classes. The reason I've done it this ways is because I spend my summers working in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park rather than staying in Saskatoon. In years previous, I have always moved right out to Cypress after finishing my last exam. However, this year I have decided to take a week off in between finishing finals and starting work. Hanging out in Saskatoon, I have a few things I want to get accomplished before heading home now that I have some free time! On my agenda this week:
-Catch up on some rest and relaxation
-Take a walk down to Broadway for an afternoon coffee (or two)
-Visit some of my favorite shops downtown
-Go over the the Mendel Art Gallery to check out the latest exhibition
And of course...interspersed in there somewhere I will be cleaning up my apartment, taking care of some last minute things at the university and getting ready to leave for four months!
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