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First Weeks of Class Recap

Published on by angelinapacosaLeave a comment

I have officially gotten through two weeks of class. I wanted to wait to wait until the end of this week to discuss my first impressions because only 3/5 of my classes started up last week. As of now, I’m attending 4 classes, since the 5th doesn’t start until the middle of the semester (something I’m not at all used to). But now that I’ve gotten into some kind of routine, I feel comfortable sharing my thoughts.

I can confidently say that I’ve experienced my first few culture shocks after starting classes last week. University College Cork (UCC) is an extremely large campus, with extremely confusing buildings, and an unbelievably large student body. There are so many students on campus at any given time of the day that it’s sometimes difficult to get to class because it’s so crowded. The classes themselves don’t start until 5 after the hour- which I didn’t realize until after my first day.

Even more surprising, however, is the lack of assignments throughout the course. Outside of class we are only given readings. This lack of assignments means that my final average for each class will be determined solely by one or two exam grades… which sounds pretty daunting before you realize that the pass/fail mark is 40% in Ireland. So, if I finish with a 60, or a 55, or even a 42, I’ll. Pass. The. Course. The benchmark for an A is 70%. It’s so incredibly different to the U.S that I’m still having trouble wrapping my head around it. And it’s made me reflect a lot on the emphasis we place on grades at every level of education back home.

So much of our identities are wrapped up in our GPAs falling .04 points, or the one failed exam out of the dozens of others we’ve already passed. At least, that’s how it usually goes for me. I never considered myself a perfectionist, but stepping away from the ruthless and competitive academic environment that the U.S has established has made me realize that maybe I do agonize too much over the little things. It’s unfortunate that so much of our future is determined by numbers and letters on an academic transcript. While I’m enjoying seeing and experiencing a more positive outlook of higher education right now, I know it is going to be an adjustment when I get back to the U.S.

So far, I am enjoying my classes. I love getting the opportunity to interact with Irish students and international students alike, as it brings a lot of different perspectives to each course. I’m looking forward to getting into a concrete routine as I continue to settle in and adjust to my schedule.

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Notes on Abroad Preparation and First Week

Published on by Elsie BuczkowskiLeave a comment
  1. Preparing for abroad so far has yet to be a walk in the park. It has felt like applying to colleges all over again, but this time you feel even more stupid and clueless because if I’ve done this before, shouldn’t I be better equipped the second time?
  2. My war with my student visa. The stress of this experience feels like it took years off my life and it was no one’s fault but my own.
    1.  I have a bad habit of either procrastinating or panicking and completing tasks much before I actually need to have them done. Somehow I did both in the process of applying for my student visa. 
    2. I scheduled my biometrics appointment — where you send your fingerprints and photo to the visa processing center — very early in advance. All you need to do is upload your supporting documents proving that you are a student, that you have the necessary finances to support yourself abroad, insurance, and things like that 24 hours before your appointment. Surely this can’t be a hard deadline, right? Wrong. I spent 2 hours, 3 robocalls, and $80 worth of assistance fees solving that problem late at night the day before my appointment. 
    3. On the day of my appointment, I finally felt at peace after the harrowing night I had prior. I only had two tasks. 1) Bring my passport and the paper with my reference number. 2) Arrive 15 minutes early to my appointment. I was driving down the freeway on my way to the Portland USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) building without a care in the world, singing my music, on track to be an additional 10 minutes early on top of the 15 minutes before my appointment. I looked over to my passenger seat, and all I saw was my purse. No passport or papers. It was too late to turn around, I was already almost there. I immediately exited the freeway and called my mom to make sure they were where I left them. My beautiful mother, I cannot thank you enough for saving me and bringing the papers to where I was parked and panicking. 
    4. After I secured the papers, I was on track to be 10 minutes late for my scheduled appointment. I was absolutely panicking. I walked into the government building with tears in my eyes and spoke to the first person I saw. I didn’t even recognize recognise my voice when it left my body, it was so high-pitched. I asked if it was okay that I was 15 minutes late for my appointment. The literal ICE officer looked at me, looked at my paper, and said, “Oh you’re totally fine, they don’t care that much about these.” In my state of panic, I did not realize realise that he had begun putting my stuff in a TSA-style bin and I was being ushered through what looked exactly like airport security. The immigration officer was right, once I got to the right room the woman working the desk immediately stamped my papers and gave me a number to wait for my turn to get my fingerprints and photo taken. I cried tears of relief in the USCIS waiting room. 
    5. I hope sharing this story will help at least one future study abroader. Please be more responsible than me. But if you’re not, it will likely turn out okay anyway. 
  3. I want to prepare for the gloomy weather and I am confident in my ability to do so, as I have survived 18 Oregon autumns. Still, I think it will be hard to forget the Colorado sunshine. Yesterday was also the first rain of the summer here in Portland and I canceled cancelled my plans and stayed inside all day. I don’t want to fall into that habit this fall. 
  4.  I’m wondering for this blog if I should use American English spelling or British English spelling. I’m leaning towards the latter, you know, to really immerse myself. 
  5. More tears today. I got an email last night containing the details of my internship assignment through the University of Westminster and it was the exact magazine that I wanted. I’ve been grinning like a fool ever since I read the email. I will be a part of the editorial team at Cent Magazine — a London-based publication that covers fashion, culture, art, design, literature, and much more. I am so beyond excited to learn from the staff there. 
  6. I spent my last few days in America not at home but in Denver, moving out of my storage unit I had over the summer and into my house I will share with my friends come January when I’m back on DU’s main campus. I spent time catching up with my roommates who aren’t going abroad this quarter and reflecting on how we are halfway through our college experiences at DU. Things feel much more grown up in a house compared to the dorms we have been in together the past two school years. 
  7. On the way to the airport, I was feeling petrified.  The unknown is oftentimes terrifying, and this is the biggest leap into the unknown I have ever taken in my life. It is really difficult to imagine what the next three months are going to look like for me.
  8. My mood shifted dramatically when I was through security with a Diet Coke in hand. My nervousness completely transformed into excitement.  
  9. My first moments in London were surprisingly calm. Customs was a breeze and getting a taxi to my dorm was super easy. I immediately met up with my friends, Sydney and Ava, and we set out to shop for essential items for our rooms like pillows and sheets.
  10. Walking on busy streets here is extremely difficult. My initial reaction was, “Wow, people really do not know how to walk here.” And then I realized that I’m the people that don’t know how to walk here. Working on it!
  11. London has been super interesting to me because it seems that everyone here is from somewhere else. In my research and preparation before coming here, I learned that over 300 languages are spoken in London but I had no idea how apparent that would be in my day-to-day life. 
  12. Orientation week has been very laid back with lots of free time. After a few short information sessions/lectures, I’ve found the time to explore Portabello Market, Notting Hill, Brick Lane and more. My favorite favourite was shopping around the vintage market that is under Brick Lane. 
  1. I saw someone online say that there is no such thing as a good deal in London. Unfortunately, I have found this to be very true in my six days here. Another thing that makes budgeting difficult is the exchange rate from UK pounds to US dollars. 20 pounds doesn’t seem like a significant amount of money when out and about, but in reality, it is $26.40. It might not seem like a big difference, but the costs have been adding up. For the rest of my time here I want to work on finding more affordable places to eat and shop.
  2. Tomorrow, I am off to Munich to celebrate Oktoberfest. I am very thankful to have this time to travel before my classes and internship begin. Stay tuned for my next post with updates on my experience in Germany and my first week with actual responsibilities!