A quick update on something I said last time: GVSU fans will be happy to hear that the soccer girls won their first national championship down in Florida in the history of the team, and football is going back to Alabama. Exciting times for Laker athletics.
In weather related news, people keep saying that we’re supposed to get blizzard conditions over the next two days. I’m a bit of a skeptic; having lived in Michigan for all of my life has told me that you can’t accurately predict Wednesday’s weather until Thursday morning.
Of course, the big thing on my mind is finals week, which is next week. Every student’s favorite time of year, right? I’ve got four exams next week, and two classes with finals this week. In other words, the semester is winding down, I think I’ve already done three professor evaluations. I’ll be meeting with a couple friends in about 40 minutes for a study session, but between now and then I have to get back to a final project. Holiday Break’s right around th corner, though.
-Kyle
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Another Fall over
I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving Break, or at least not a stressful one. In weather related news, we had our first snowfall of the season last night. It didn’t stick, so I’m not sure that it counts, but it’s still definitely a sign that December’s started. Much as I love the snow, I can’t help but think of it from a commuter’s perspective. I guess that’s just one more reason I miss living on campus, and right about now I do really miss it. It’s pretty fun seeing Allendale in the snow.
Good news for any sports fans out there, both men’s varsity football and ladies’ varsity soccer are in the semifinals of the playoffs right now, which is exciting for both. In non-sports related content, we have our first scholarship competition of the year this Saturday, which I’m excited to be working at. They’re always funny to be at, because the students are a little quiet and nervous about the competition, and the parents have a tendency to ask more questions (since they’re there all morning). If you’re interested in attending one of these competitions, don’t forget to apply soon (the deadline is December 31, but I’m sure that I’ll be repeating that soon anyway).
The semester is starting to wind down at this point, my group and I turned in and presented our case report for my Monday night class before Thanksgiving, I have another final report due next week Wednesday, and most of my other classes are finishing up the course material. Finals are coming up, but I haven’t really started feeling the pressure of exams yet. That’s not to say that I haven’t been thinking about exams, I just haven’t started my reviews just yet. If I’m still saying, “hey, there’s plenty of time” next week, that’ll be a sign that I’m in trouble, but we’ll take it one step at a time.
Ask me if you have any questions,
-Kyle
Good news for any sports fans out there, both men’s varsity football and ladies’ varsity soccer are in the semifinals of the playoffs right now, which is exciting for both. In non-sports related content, we have our first scholarship competition of the year this Saturday, which I’m excited to be working at. They’re always funny to be at, because the students are a little quiet and nervous about the competition, and the parents have a tendency to ask more questions (since they’re there all morning). If you’re interested in attending one of these competitions, don’t forget to apply soon (the deadline is December 31, but I’m sure that I’ll be repeating that soon anyway).
The semester is starting to wind down at this point, my group and I turned in and presented our case report for my Monday night class before Thanksgiving, I have another final report due next week Wednesday, and most of my other classes are finishing up the course material. Finals are coming up, but I haven’t really started feeling the pressure of exams yet. That’s not to say that I haven’t been thinking about exams, I just haven’t started my reviews just yet. If I’m still saying, “hey, there’s plenty of time” next week, that’ll be a sign that I’m in trouble, but we’ll take it one step at a time.
Ask me if you have any questions,
-Kyle
Friday, November 13, 2009
Nice day for a tour
Well, another week down, and I have to say that it was a pretty nice week. The weather turned inexplicably good around the middle of it, and there’s been a lot of activity on campus. Plus, I managed to swing by the gym a couple of times, which I wasn’t expecting (based on my schedule of projects/reports for the rest of the semester). Today was a pretty good day for tours, as well; a lot of visitors are coming by the campus right about this time of year. Speaking of which, December’s right around the corner, so if you’re interested in some of the scholarships we offer, it wouldn’t hurt to get your application in soon.
As for myself, I’ve got more than a few things on my mind. In terms of academics, I’ve got a couple projects yet on my hands, both for classes and student organizations. The biggest one on my mind is a case report, due the Monday the 23rd. It’s a pretty big deal, but the group I’m in is definitely on track.
So in other words, it’s been a busy week, and it isn’t quite over with yet. I have some tours to do on Saturday, some more research, so on and so on and so forth. Rent starts this week for GVSU, opening night is tonight, but I won't see it until closing night on the 21st. Even without a football game, there’s still a lot to do. Speaking of which, playoff season is here, but that’s another story for another day.
Like I said before, I had a couple of good tours today, a lot of questions were asked by the visitors. Some of the students in particular were pretty interested in the honors program, which is great, because (as I’ve said to almost all of my tours) the program is amazing. Swing by their website, or drop in for a visit of the building, if you don’t believe me. On that note, though, I think I’m signing off here. Feel free to ask any questions,
-Kyle
As for myself, I’ve got more than a few things on my mind. In terms of academics, I’ve got a couple projects yet on my hands, both for classes and student organizations. The biggest one on my mind is a case report, due the Monday the 23rd. It’s a pretty big deal, but the group I’m in is definitely on track.
So in other words, it’s been a busy week, and it isn’t quite over with yet. I have some tours to do on Saturday, some more research, so on and so on and so forth. Rent starts this week for GVSU, opening night is tonight, but I won't see it until closing night on the 21st. Even without a football game, there’s still a lot to do. Speaking of which, playoff season is here, but that’s another story for another day.
Like I said before, I had a couple of good tours today, a lot of questions were asked by the visitors. Some of the students in particular were pretty interested in the honors program, which is great, because (as I’ve said to almost all of my tours) the program is amazing. Swing by their website, or drop in for a visit of the building, if you don’t believe me. On that note, though, I think I’m signing off here. Feel free to ask any questions,
-Kyle
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Not much to say
People always seem to start pointing out how fast the semester is going by once we hit November, but I’m just not seeing where they get their sense of time. I would say, though, that we are on the second leg of the term, and my night class professors keep reminding me that we only have so many more class times ahead of us.
That’s not to say that I don’t have the end of this semester in mind, it’s just not in the way that people traditionally think students think about the end of classes. I’ve been trying to rework my schedule for second semester, and the good news is that I’ve finally had a little success and (hopefully) set down my classes (not that you should wait until I did to fix scheduling errors, I just got lucky). My next step is to get an appointment with an advisor and go through a degree analysis, mostly just to see if I’ve missed any bases. But degree analysis isn’t just a tool for when you’re worried about graduation, it’s also a great way to keep track of your Gen Ed. classes. It’s probably most useful, though, if you’re thinking about changing a major, since the analysis essentially shows all that you’ve completed and all you still have to do for any given program.
But I’m drawing a blank on anything else to say right now, I guess this qualifies as just an update on my activities. Feel free to let me know what’s going on with you guys, though; I’m really curious to know what you readers have on your minds.
-Kyle
That’s not to say that I don’t have the end of this semester in mind, it’s just not in the way that people traditionally think students think about the end of classes. I’ve been trying to rework my schedule for second semester, and the good news is that I’ve finally had a little success and (hopefully) set down my classes (not that you should wait until I did to fix scheduling errors, I just got lucky). My next step is to get an appointment with an advisor and go through a degree analysis, mostly just to see if I’ve missed any bases. But degree analysis isn’t just a tool for when you’re worried about graduation, it’s also a great way to keep track of your Gen Ed. classes. It’s probably most useful, though, if you’re thinking about changing a major, since the analysis essentially shows all that you’ve completed and all you still have to do for any given program.
But I’m drawing a blank on anything else to say right now, I guess this qualifies as just an update on my activities. Feel free to let me know what’s going on with you guys, though; I’m really curious to know what you readers have on your minds.
-Kyle
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Free candy, anyone?
It really doesn’t feel like that much time has gone by since the start of the semester, but it also feels like there’s a long ways ahead. I guess we’re kind of in a no-man’s land of classes right now. Halloween is coming up, and I’ve decided that I’m going to dress up as an employee of GVSU admissions; that’s right, I’m working on the 31st. Those students that visiting that day are going to bring free candy, right? It should be a pretty fun day, though; meeting some potential students, hanging out with the other personnel, and there’s a football game that night. I haven’t really been keeping tabs on the marching band lately, so I’m curious to see if they do a Halloween themed show this weekend.
So what else is new? For those of you following, I didn’t do half bad on any of the big assignments/tests that I had last week. I’m going to have a chance to present the paper I wrote tomorrow in class, and I forgot to mention that most of the research (almost all of the 14 sources) for that paper came out of our library’s databases. I’ve been making sure to let my tours in on that whenever they ask about the catalog of resources we have. In admissions related news, the end of October is kind of our rule of thumb time for a good point to take care of all of your college applications. Now if you haven’t done so, don’t panic, it’s just a suggestion. All the same, it never hurts to be early with your applications, especially here at GV. I would just really encourage students to get a move on that within the next month. And don’t think that you have to visit the campus first, either. An application isn’t a commitment to us, it just gives us a chance to admit you. Taking care of that early will provide you with more time to make a decision on colleges. No pressure, eh?
Anyway, as far as questions go, ask them if you’ve got them.
-Kyle
So what else is new? For those of you following, I didn’t do half bad on any of the big assignments/tests that I had last week. I’m going to have a chance to present the paper I wrote tomorrow in class, and I forgot to mention that most of the research (almost all of the 14 sources) for that paper came out of our library’s databases. I’ve been making sure to let my tours in on that whenever they ask about the catalog of resources we have. In admissions related news, the end of October is kind of our rule of thumb time for a good point to take care of all of your college applications. Now if you haven’t done so, don’t panic, it’s just a suggestion. All the same, it never hurts to be early with your applications, especially here at GV. I would just really encourage students to get a move on that within the next month. And don’t think that you have to visit the campus first, either. An application isn’t a commitment to us, it just gives us a chance to admit you. Taking care of that early will provide you with more time to make a decision on colleges. No pressure, eh?
Anyway, as far as questions go, ask them if you’ve got them.
-Kyle
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Busy times
Seven weeks into the semester, this is one of those times when it pays to be on top of things. A big test was yesterday, there’s a long paper due tomorrow, a project down the road next week, plus getting enough sleep. Actually, come to think of it, that’s a pretty sparse schedule compared to a lot of students right around this time of year. A big reason for that is probably the fact that I’m commuting to campus for the first time this year.
In all honesty, it’s not something that I particularly enjoy. That might be because I was spoiled from three years of living on campus, but who’s counting, right? Having seen it from both sides now, I’ve got to say that the difference is like night and day. Not to discourage students from considering to commute, but I’ve started to feel really removed from the campus, mostly just because every night I’ve got to pack up and go back home. It’s not that that makes it impossible to be a part of the community, just more difficult. Not that I’m implying that things only happen at night up here, but being a commuter means that I always have to keep a 45 minute drive in mind. Plus, that’s 45 minutes less sleep, and seriously, who wants to give that up?
Again, I’m not saying that commuting is a terrible experience. I just know what I’m missing out on since I’ve had three years as a resident of the Allendale campus. If I were to go back as a freshman again, I would definitely choose to live on campus.
-Kyle
In all honesty, it’s not something that I particularly enjoy. That might be because I was spoiled from three years of living on campus, but who’s counting, right? Having seen it from both sides now, I’ve got to say that the difference is like night and day. Not to discourage students from considering to commute, but I’ve started to feel really removed from the campus, mostly just because every night I’ve got to pack up and go back home. It’s not that that makes it impossible to be a part of the community, just more difficult. Not that I’m implying that things only happen at night up here, but being a commuter means that I always have to keep a 45 minute drive in mind. Plus, that’s 45 minutes less sleep, and seriously, who wants to give that up?
Again, I’m not saying that commuting is a terrible experience. I just know what I’m missing out on since I’ve had three years as a resident of the Allendale campus. If I were to go back as a freshman again, I would definitely choose to live on campus.
-Kyle
Monday, October 12, 2009
Honors program
After a bit of a break, I figure it’s probably time to talk about something significant. A topic some of you readers might be interested in is the honors college. The Frederick Meijer Honors College is a spectacular program, and not just because there is a brand new facility for it. In fact, I figure it’s probably best to just talk about the academic portion of the program for right now, and get back to the facilities later on.
One of the first big concerns is “how do I get into the program?” Why thank you for asking, reader. The honors college does require a secondary application, and if I recall correctly it does include a short essay as well as a submission of a previous work from High School. Your admission is also decided in part by your ACT and GPA in High School, but don’t think that these are the only factors, or that there is a minimum GPA. However, if they do have a 28 ACT and a 3.6 GPA, students are invited to apply (transfer or current students have different admissions requirements).
After being admitted, a big concern is in the particulars of the program; advantages and disadvantages, continuance requirements, etc. And believe me when I say this, there are a lot of advantages. But first we should probably talk about the requirements. Aside from needing to maintain a GPA, honors students are required to take three distinct courses. First, they have to take a civilization sequence (usually their freshman or sophomore year). This is a year long, 12 credit pair of classes that can cover a variety of subjects, such as Greek and Roman Civilization, the Making of America, European Civilization, or the Middle Eastern World. After this comes a Junior Seminar, or an intensive course of study in any one field of the student’s choice. The curriculum is capped off with a Senior Project, in which the student conducts a research project on a field within their major, with the approval of honors faculty, in an essentially “independent study” environment.
By now you’re probably ready to hear the advantages, and they greatly outweigh the costs. Honors courses require a lot of reading outside of class, and as a result, the courses themselves are extremely engaging. There’s less busy work and far more focus on significant projects or papers. Many of the courses are team taught, which means that for a single class you will have two different professors teaching from two different areas, giving you an array of perspectives on the subject. One other big advantage is a simple matter of saving time: honors students do not have to take a three course theme to graduate, as their theme is “Honors.” That of course isn’t even bringing up the fact that these students have access to some of the newest facilities on campus. And of course the most obvious reason may be that a degree that alludes to an individual’s completion of a rigorous course of study tends to look quite impressive.
Having talked myself dry and probably bored you to death, I’ll stop here. If you’ve got concerns on the honors program, feel free to ask, as a lot of the admissions students are part of the curriculum.
-Kyle
One of the first big concerns is “how do I get into the program?” Why thank you for asking, reader. The honors college does require a secondary application, and if I recall correctly it does include a short essay as well as a submission of a previous work from High School. Your admission is also decided in part by your ACT and GPA in High School, but don’t think that these are the only factors, or that there is a minimum GPA. However, if they do have a 28 ACT and a 3.6 GPA, students are invited to apply (transfer or current students have different admissions requirements).
After being admitted, a big concern is in the particulars of the program; advantages and disadvantages, continuance requirements, etc. And believe me when I say this, there are a lot of advantages. But first we should probably talk about the requirements. Aside from needing to maintain a GPA, honors students are required to take three distinct courses. First, they have to take a civilization sequence (usually their freshman or sophomore year). This is a year long, 12 credit pair of classes that can cover a variety of subjects, such as Greek and Roman Civilization, the Making of America, European Civilization, or the Middle Eastern World. After this comes a Junior Seminar, or an intensive course of study in any one field of the student’s choice. The curriculum is capped off with a Senior Project, in which the student conducts a research project on a field within their major, with the approval of honors faculty, in an essentially “independent study” environment.
By now you’re probably ready to hear the advantages, and they greatly outweigh the costs. Honors courses require a lot of reading outside of class, and as a result, the courses themselves are extremely engaging. There’s less busy work and far more focus on significant projects or papers. Many of the courses are team taught, which means that for a single class you will have two different professors teaching from two different areas, giving you an array of perspectives on the subject. One other big advantage is a simple matter of saving time: honors students do not have to take a three course theme to graduate, as their theme is “Honors.” That of course isn’t even bringing up the fact that these students have access to some of the newest facilities on campus. And of course the most obvious reason may be that a degree that alludes to an individual’s completion of a rigorous course of study tends to look quite impressive.
Having talked myself dry and probably bored you to death, I’ll stop here. If you’ve got concerns on the honors program, feel free to ask, as a lot of the admissions students are part of the curriculum.
-Kyle
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