Start of the New Academic Year... Finally

This week is called "Induction Week" for the new undergraduates at UCL. The new students are welcomed to their departments and taught the ropes of being at UCL. In the UK, students have to apply directly into their department, aka major. In the life of a CS student, they have 7 out of the 8 courses chosen for them. So they only get to pick one elective, relating to CS or any other department at UCL.

I don't know if this model of learning is better or worse than the US system of "finding yourself" and "choosing your major later." There are those students who end of changing their minds and transferring into new departments. This leaves them to spend another year at UCL.

Coming from Wellesley, I find that this way of learning intimidating. I worry about having all the required prerequisites to take second and third year courses. I actually haven't fulfilled the basic requirements needed for the CS major at Wellesley. So I am a bit worried and stressed, but I am just going with it.

I've decided to take the following courses and hopefully I get approved to be in all of them. Another difference from Wellesley is that I have to submit the courses I want to take, then get approval by the department to register for the course. There is no way of knowing if you're officially registered for the course.

• CS Courses:
• COMP1002 Theory I
• COMP2009 Software Engineering and HCI
• COMP3080 Computer Graphics
• Art History
• HART1602 19th- and 20th-Century Art in London Collections II

I've been wanting to take an art history course! So I hope to take this course. What's even better is that classes will be taught at major museums such as the National Portrait Gallery, Tate Modern, etc. Learning from the primary source is one of the best things about studying in Europe.

As for the CS courses, I'm taking Theory I in replacement of the CS231 Fundamental Algorithms course at Wellesley. Also for the CS major, there are one-200 level course and one-300 level course requirements. So I am taking the other two courses to fulfill those parts of the CS major. Of course, I am interested in the courses, aka "modules." I want to learn about how to be a software engineer and I want to learn how to make 3-D graphics on computers.

So right now, it is "induction week" and it's a waiting game for classes to start next week. I seriously can't wait for everything to get going... maybe I'll finally feel at peace and time will fly much faster.

xoxo,
Kristian


UK Tip for Studying Abroad #7: Don't travel through Ireland, Scotland, etc. when studying abroad in the UK.

• You won't get a student visitor visa from Britain and you will face problems in enrolling and registering yourself to officially become a student. 
• It will be a stressful process! 
• So travel straight to Heathrow or at least to a country that will make you go through customs when going to the UK. :)