Semester – College Admission at Loyola

Almost a Sophomore

By | March 31, 2015

With just a little over a month left of school, I can say I am almost finished my first year of college. So much has happened here at Loyola. I have created so many memorable experiences, both good and bad.

Hopefully when the fall semester begins and I become a sophomore, I will learn from my mistakes from freshman year and do better. Academically, I now know that I must not push my personal limits on how many classes I enroll in per semester. With many classes, it is extremely hard to balance each class out alongside its homework, projects, and quizzes/exams. Also, because I am a commuter, I intend to enroll in classes that do not carry over past 3:30 or 4:00pm. (Currently I have a class that ends at 4:40 and I always find myself exhausted and tired).

Besides academics, I must remember to take care of myself. If I am not well, then the outcome of the things I do will not be so good. With that being said, I want to aim for 7-8+ hours of sleep per day, a good, full breakfast, have some time for relaxing, and some time to socialize. If I accomplish these things, I know my mind and body will be in the right place and I will be able to be more active and productive towards myself and society.

How Semesters at Loyola Work

By | March 27, 2012

Now that we’re into the 3rd out of what I would say are 4 parts of the semester, I think I’ll give a breakdown of how I’ve noticed all the parts of the semesters generally trend:

1. I think the first part of every semester is, in general, a “get to know you” section where the instructors and students learn each other’s style through small individual assignments and lectures. This goes through the first quarter of the semester, usually.

2. The second quarter is a solid increase in student responsibility that comes to a head at Midterms, which is the first major concentrated effort of the semester. Up until this point the instructors are doing the lion’s share of the work to get kids up to speed in the subject. Midterm projects range from the first big paper due to an actual exam and everything in between. Whatever it is, there is a sudden ramping up of effort expected from and given by students that peaks at the end of the 2nd quarter of the semester.

3. After Midterms there is a sharp fall off of effort on both sides; the instructor and students at this point have settle into a comfortable but brisk cruising speed that is a little under halfway between the start of the semester ease and the peak of midterm. This continues for a about half of the 3rd quarter until the next big project due dates become visible on the horizon (usually they are group projects this time around). However, the peak of group projects isn’t quite as high as that of midterms.

4. After the next big peak from the end of the 3rd quarter is a smaller drop off, but then comes Finals week, which is known pretty much universally as “heck week” by many. Later, when the time comes for that, I will try to post a little piece on how to deal with Final’s week stress and successfully navigate the last week and a half or so of the semester. For now, just know that as soon as you clear the 3rd quartile you’re basically always eyeing the end. And it drops faster than a ham on a bungee cord.

That’s basically it. Four different sections that each ramp up the intensity before a drop-off. First comes passive learning while the teacher gets students up to speed, then active independent work to prepare for and take midterms, then an even level of effort from both parties that comes to another head when group projects (or those of similar weight) come due, then one final breath before the charge into Final’s week.