For better or worse, many of you will likely take large classes in college. In case you’re wondering what “large” means, it’s relative—that is, it’s defined in comparison to the size of the other classes at your school. At a big university you might have 50,000 total students on campus and large classes of several hundred or even close to a thousand students. Your class might have more than your entire high school graduating class, and this can be pretty daunting to think about. Do NOT let this overwhelm you! If you think that any big class should be avoided, stop assuming this, because it’s simply not true. Some of my best classes were large classes and some of my worst classes were small classes.
Keep in mind that whether a large class is successful greatly depends on the instructor—there are countless examples of students packing a lecture hall just to hear a certain professor teach. Most instructors who teach these classes are volunteers, because teaching this kind of class requires a lot of work. Instructors not only have to make sure that each lecture is highly organized, but also have to be prepared to deal with many more students than normal. They generally have to be more organized than other instructors, because the class would be unmanageable if they weren’t. Therefore, your instructor will know how to speak clearly, present demonstrations, show videos, and use other technology like social media.
Instructors who teach large classes often have a certain personality. It is hard to pin down that personality, but one way to think about it is that great instructors of large classes really show (verbally and non-verbally) how much they love being in front of a crowd. In addition, these great instructors always think of exciting things to do in class that will motivate you to keep attending. The key thing is that an experienced and motivated instructor will work hard to make a large class more like a small class. You’ll feel part of a community, rather than feeling like an isolated student. One last thing to keep in mind: if you get into a large class, and you can tell right away that the Instructor just doesn’t care about the class (let alone you), my advice is that you should drop it and add some other class.
Tuesday, August 25, 2015
Friday, August 21, 2015
The Structure of College-2
The next thing to keep in mind about college structure is that in addition to being part of a major, you will be part of a group of different majors. Now this can get confusing. Let me start by saying that in higher education we talk about going to a college or a university. You are all in college, but you should understand that a 4-year college typically only gives out undergraduate or Bachelor’s degrees, whereas a university also awards graduate degrees (i.e., Master’s and/or Doctoral degrees).
If you are in a 4-year-college the level up from your major will likely be called a “division” and it will include related departments that manage majors. For example, if you are a Chemistry major you may be in the Division of Natural Sciences. This division will likely also include Biology and Physics. The level one up from a division is the 4-year-college itself. Thus the ordering (from smaller to larger): Major Department, Division, and College.
Now if you are in a university, things are a bit different. In addition to the department that that manages your major, you will also be part of one of many colleges. (We know this gets confusing, but the term “college” gets used in these different ways.) These colleges may include Art & Sciences (sometimes called Liberal Arts), Engineering, Business, Education, Agriculture, Architecture, Journalism, Medicine, Law, etc). These colleges are again comprised of related departments that manage majors. To make things more complicated, colleges can sometimes be broken down into the divisions described above. For example, in a College of Arts and Sciences there is often a Division of Natural Sciences, a Division of Humanities, and a Division of Social Sciences, Here is the ordering (from smaller to larger) for a university: Major Department, Division, College, and University.
One big reason why it is important to know all of these distinctions concerning the structure of your particular college or university is that each level often has their own course requirements. However, keep two things in mind about fulfilling requirements: (1) a particular requirement can often be fulfilled by taking one of multiple courses, and (2) even with all of the different requirements you will still have enough electives (i.e., courses not tied to a requirement) to have some freedom in what courses you take.
I hope these last two posts give you a better feel for how things are organized at your particular college or university.
If you are in a 4-year-college the level up from your major will likely be called a “division” and it will include related departments that manage majors. For example, if you are a Chemistry major you may be in the Division of Natural Sciences. This division will likely also include Biology and Physics. The level one up from a division is the 4-year-college itself. Thus the ordering (from smaller to larger): Major Department, Division, and College.
Now if you are in a university, things are a bit different. In addition to the department that that manages your major, you will also be part of one of many colleges. (We know this gets confusing, but the term “college” gets used in these different ways.) These colleges may include Art & Sciences (sometimes called Liberal Arts), Engineering, Business, Education, Agriculture, Architecture, Journalism, Medicine, Law, etc). These colleges are again comprised of related departments that manage majors. To make things more complicated, colleges can sometimes be broken down into the divisions described above. For example, in a College of Arts and Sciences there is often a Division of Natural Sciences, a Division of Humanities, and a Division of Social Sciences, Here is the ordering (from smaller to larger) for a university: Major Department, Division, College, and University.
One big reason why it is important to know all of these distinctions concerning the structure of your particular college or university is that each level often has their own course requirements. However, keep two things in mind about fulfilling requirements: (1) a particular requirement can often be fulfilled by taking one of multiple courses, and (2) even with all of the different requirements you will still have enough electives (i.e., courses not tied to a requirement) to have some freedom in what courses you take.
I hope these last two posts give you a better feel for how things are organized at your particular college or university.
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
The Structure of College-1
How is a college set up (i.e., structured)? When you are ready to start doing something new, it only makes sense that you understand how that something is designed. For example, if you buy a new cell phone you should know (at least) something about the phone’s set up. This will not only make your life easier, but will save you a lot of time and potential heartache if something goes wrong. Believe it or not, college is no different. When you start college it is critical that you understand how things work on campus. Otherwise, you will join the ranks of many other undergraduates wondering what to do and where to go. You can always ask friends and relatives, but quite honestly these individuals often have the wrong answer. Or, what can happen is that your parents will give you an answer about something, but what was true for them 20 years ago when they went to college simply is not the way things work now.
Let’s start at the beginning. When you go to college you have multiple affiliations. That is, each student in college is connected to several units. First, you become a member of a department that manages your major. A major involves concentrated study of a specialty area. These specialty areas are referred to as “disciplines”. In this way, Psychology is a discipline. Similarly, disciplines include English, Hispanic Studies, Economics, Mechanical Engineering…I think you get the picture! I should note that it is possible to have two majors--a “double-major”.
Second, everyone declares a major, but you might also decide to minor in another discipline. The distinction between a major and a minor is pretty self-explanatory, but just to be sure you follow a major is what you are most interested in, while a minor is typically a side interest you have or another discipline that complements your major. For example, you might choose to be a Psychology major (the study of the human mind and behavior), but minor in Sociology (the study of human society, with a specific interest in the changing relationships among individuals and groups). Psychology and Sociology study different issues, but they are clearly related—both study how humans behave.
Third, your career interests may not match a specific major. For example, you may be interested in Medicine, Dentistry or Law). You should understand that there is not a major (e.g., “medical doctor” major) for any of the careers just listed. Instead, you will choose a major in another subject, often directly related to Medicine, Dentistry, Physical therapy (e.g., Biology) or Law (e.g., Political Science). After graduating with your undergraduate degree you will then apply to a specific “professional school” to get a graduate degree. We should add, however, that for all of these fields times have changed quite a bit and you do not necessarily have to major in a directly-related field. In fact, you can major in anything as long as the courses you take meet the requirements of the Medical School, Dental School, or Law School you would like to attend.
We’ll talk more about the structure of college in my next post.
Let’s start at the beginning. When you go to college you have multiple affiliations. That is, each student in college is connected to several units. First, you become a member of a department that manages your major. A major involves concentrated study of a specialty area. These specialty areas are referred to as “disciplines”. In this way, Psychology is a discipline. Similarly, disciplines include English, Hispanic Studies, Economics, Mechanical Engineering…I think you get the picture! I should note that it is possible to have two majors--a “double-major”.
Second, everyone declares a major, but you might also decide to minor in another discipline. The distinction between a major and a minor is pretty self-explanatory, but just to be sure you follow a major is what you are most interested in, while a minor is typically a side interest you have or another discipline that complements your major. For example, you might choose to be a Psychology major (the study of the human mind and behavior), but minor in Sociology (the study of human society, with a specific interest in the changing relationships among individuals and groups). Psychology and Sociology study different issues, but they are clearly related—both study how humans behave.
Third, your career interests may not match a specific major. For example, you may be interested in Medicine, Dentistry or Law). You should understand that there is not a major (e.g., “medical doctor” major) for any of the careers just listed. Instead, you will choose a major in another subject, often directly related to Medicine, Dentistry, Physical therapy (e.g., Biology) or Law (e.g., Political Science). After graduating with your undergraduate degree you will then apply to a specific “professional school” to get a graduate degree. We should add, however, that for all of these fields times have changed quite a bit and you do not necessarily have to major in a directly-related field. In fact, you can major in anything as long as the courses you take meet the requirements of the Medical School, Dental School, or Law School you would like to attend.
We’ll talk more about the structure of college in my next post.
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