As I was reading over course selections at my exchange university in Norway, I realized that many of the incoming Commerce frosh this year are picking their elective courses right about now. I know with the amount of elective choices you have in the Arts and Science program, it can seem a little overwhelming. Below are the steps I follow to make picking my electives every year a little less daunting:

1) Read over all the courses that are offered and highlight the courses that interest you
2) Go back and read over the presented course syllabus and eliminate those that don’t seem well-prepared or don’t seem to be a good fit for you in terms of learning style, course material covered, pace of learning, etc.
3) Check the timetable for when the courses are being offered and make sure they won’t clash with your set of mandatory course subjects
4) Talk to upper years that have taken the course before and get their thoughts (and maybe even their lecture notes too!)

Those steps should hopefully allow you to whittle it down to a more manageable list. Happy course selection!

On an unrelated note, you can now follow me on Twitter @kwongtooyen. Send me a direct message or a tweet and you can expect a fairly quick response!

Katherine Wong Too Yen, BCom’12

I spent part of my Reading Week at my former high school, meeting with some of my old teachers.  I was asked to speak to a number of Grade 11 and 12 classes, so I threw together a short slideshow presentation on myths and facts about the undergrad university life.  I thought I would post some general myths and facts on the student blog to try and address some of the fears you may have.
MYTH: You’ll be drowning in debt upon graduation
- This is completely false.  A lot of universities offer various forms of financial aid, be it through academic scholarships, bursaries, or other awards.  There is also government assistance such as OSAP, or you can choose to work part-time and save up.  I actually chose to work two part-time jobs during the school year and, along with the scholarship and bursary I received from Queen’s, I was able to pay for the entire first year myself.  I worked part-time through first semester, and I am still working the same position in my second semester at Queen’s without having any difficulty with the workload.
TRUTH: Frosh Week will be one of the most memorable experiences you will have at university
- 100%, completely clichéd, truth.  Frosh Week will really set the tone for your first year.  It is completely led by students, the week is a total blast, and I’m sure you’ll be looking back at the experience with very fond memories.  The people you meet at Frosh Week will be with you for the next four years; you may as well get to know them!
MYTH: Your lectures will be led by boring professors who talk for about 3 hours while you fight to stay awake
- Also false.  The first year Commerce classes are one hour and twenty minutes long; about the same length as a typical class in high school.  Also, I have yet to come across a professor who will lecture for the entire time.  Many of the classes are highly interactive and many profs will encourage group discussion and analysis.
TRUTH: Assigned readings and assignment due dates come up a lot faster than you think.
- Stay on top of everything, learn good time management skills, get your priorities straight and you’ll be well on your way to a successful first year.  I’m speaking from experience, trust me.

If you have any other questions in regards to the Commerce program at Queen’s or just general university life, feel free to shoot me an email at 8tykw [ at ] queensu.ca.  I’d be more than happy to answer any questions that you might have.

Until next time!

I thought I was done with school for a good four months. I was wrong. Apparently, the start date to choose courses for the next year is tomorrow. If I plan to do anything of real value in my life it will come down to the decisions I make tomorrow, which is why I have left it to tonight to decide my future. Thankfully that statement is a lie.

Third year is the first year in the program you are allowed to choose what course you want to take. They only have one required course and the rest are all electives.  Here is the best part, unlike other school that make you decide, “I want to be a financial adviser, or a marketer, or an Information Systems Guru and make you sign your life away into that field, Queen’s leaves it open. We are presented with an extraordinarily long and deep list of courses in every field…and we decide what we want. A focus on business strategy with a side of marketing and an accounting class for dessert. I liken it to the mantra at Burger King, “Your Degree, Your Way.”

Sadly, this choice has made it even more difficult by providing too many good looking courses for me to choose from.

Let me know how your own course selections are going. Many of you are probably flipping a coin as I type, between taking Political Science and Sociology.

PS: Go with classics.

Hey Everyone! As it is really close to my first, of six final exams, I just wanted to check in to keep you updated on what I have been up to.

Well, since classes ended, I have been trying to study for my exams (I say trying because I haven’t been as productive as I had hoped to be…but I think when push comes to shove I will get down to it!). I am really looking forward to summer (which officially begins after my last exam (SPAN201 – Spanish) on April 24! I’ll have a lot of time to relax and look forward to second year. I know Year 2 will be tough, but I am excited to learn a lot of new things (as I have throughout first year). I am also excited to work with SCSR (Students for Corporate Social Responsibility as I recently found out I got the position of Academics Director!).  So, I am looking forward to what is to come!!

I think some of you may have received acceptances to Queen’s Commerce and I just want to say that I know what a tough, stressful decision it is; it is reasonable for it to be so as you are deciding where to spend the next four years of your life as well as what university name and degree will follow you for the rest of your career. In giving you some advice, I would like to say that in making my decision, I realized I spent too much time focusing on rankings and which one was objectively “better” rather than thinking of where I would be most happiest, and what was best for ME. Just because a university or program is better does NOT mean you should choose it over another uni/program if it results in sacrificing your happiness and well-being.  There are, of course, many reasons why the Queen’s Commerce program is great, but you need to ask if and why the program will be great for you!! Think about what needs/wants you have and THEN find the program that suits your preferences (you’ll learn a lot about starting with customer needs and then working toward developing a product in the first-year Marketing course, and I think it is a relevant analogy for the point I am trying to make).

All that being said, I am happy I chose Queen’s Commerce because there are many many benefits (profs, education, friends, involvement opportunities, etc.) that are not offered to such a great degree elsewhere. It really is about quality at Queen’s.

Anyway, I am going to study a bit of Economics before I call it a day..so, I wish you good luck in the rest of your final year of highschool (enjoy it…university is a whole new world!) and best of luck in deciding what is right for you. If you have any questions at all, please leave me a comment or Facebook me!!

Farah Lalani

Wow, it seemed like yesterday when I first got here. Time passed by so fast and now I’m already finished my 2nd semester of classes and final exams are coming again. First year is almost over; I am so excited! Over the past few days I have been at Stauffer Library studying for my first 2 exams: Economics and Accounting. I’ve been going at a good pace and I *hope* that I will be ready to go into these exams, which are taking place next Friday and Saturday. Wish me luck!

I have received a few Facebook messages from potential Commies. If you would like to ask me any questions, please feel free to add me as a friend on Facebook or just send me a message. Just specify that you are considering Queen’s and I should be able to answer you within 2 or 3 days. My name on Facebook is Sheila Pan. So if you have ANY questions, please ask! Also I’ll try to keep this going throughout the summer as well, because I know how it feels to have a question about life as a Commerce student and not have anyone to go to, and of course the anticipation really builds over the summer. So please don’t give up reading this blog just because its summer!

Cheers,

- Sheila