What is university life like?

[CodeMonkey2000]

I am just wondering. Also how is the transition from high school to university? Is there a sharp learning curve? Does high school prepare you enough to ease the transition?

[Cervantes]

I found the transition super easy. University started off kinda slow so you could get into gear.

It largely depends on the high school and the university, though. I don't think anything more can be said.

[Tony]

First term is usually made super easy on purpose, because different high school backgrounds are all over the place. There are a bunch of out-of-province students and even some international students - so the idea is to get everyone caught up. It's similar to the idea of starting out in a CS major without taking any compsci in high school.

The single biggest difference is that you get a lot of your own responsibility. They try to ease you in, but you get stuff like homework counting for 0% of your grade (2nd+ year Engineering), nobody ever cares if you don't show up for a lecture, or don't do some assignment. There's no nonsense like blocking your webmail and monitoring what you do online.

It is really easy, and it's really easy to screw up. The workload increases quickly in 2nd term.

[PaulButler]

When I look back to high school, there are some major differences, but honestly I don't really notice them. For me any change from high school is a welcome change (not that I didn't enjoy high school, but I felt more than ready to move on to bigger things), so I didn't mind the transition.

In terms of academics, the biggest change is that there are less checks in place to stop you from screwing up (ie. not doing the work). The nice thing is that there are more resources for you if you do need extra help, it just has to be self initiated.

I am in my first year at UW, so obviously my comments reflect only my experience.

[Dan]

I think the bigest transitions are not in terms of the acdemics but all the other things that have nothing to do with your grades or even corses you are taking.

Things like moving away from home, meeting new peoleop, daily campus life, ect are the big changes that high schools dose not perpare you for at all.

There is always some one in rez in 1st year who can not handal thess non admeica changes and ends up droping out.

The closer you are to home the less this probly effects you but that is not nesraly a good thing since you have to deal with it some day and it is better to screw eraly in life where you have the support of your parents then latter down the road.

[PaulButler]

Good point, the non-academic stuff makes a difference. I was going to mention that but something came up and I had to finish up my post.

Anyway, I came from farther away than most people in my program (I came from Halifax - few others are form outside Ontario), and I am living off-campus, so the change for me is probably more extreme than the average first year. Rez might seem like more of a change from home, but you have more rules and structure when you are living on campus, just like you would at home (I have never lived in rez, but this is the impression I get). Still, the change is bearable. A few of first years I have talked to don't even miss home at all... I feel sorry for their parents. And I'm talking about people who came from outside Ontario. Personally, I know I miss my family, but thanks to Skype and cheap webcams, the distance seems much shorter.

[CodeMonkey2000]

What about the actual courses. I hear university courses go insanely fast, and they tend cover an entire text book within a semester. How much time should you be spending on homework/study to keep up?

Oh and about apartments, what is a good price, and how far would you say it should be from the university?

[Cervantes]

A typical figure is 2 hours of work out of class for every hour you spend in class. From my experience, you tend not to cover an entire textbook in a semester: more like 2 or even possibly 3.

Living costs range greatly depending on the city. Distance from the university depends only on what you're comfortable with. It's a personal question. Are you okay walking half an hour to campus every day? Or do you want that to be a ten minute walk? Do you want to bike or bus?

[Tony]

Yes, you cover a textbook (or at least the relevant material out of it) in 4 months. Though it's not actually that bad, you get used to it.

CodeMonkey2000 @ Mon Oct 08, 2007 11:47 am wrote:

How much time should you be spending on homework/study to keep up?

How much it takes. This one really depends on yourself, your learning abilities, the course, and the professor. In technically heavy courses (Math, Engineering, etc) you should expect the need to sit down and go over practise problems until you get it right. In more artsy courses (Economics, Philosophy, Psychology, Law) you could, potentially, get away with just attending the lectures and paying attention.

CodeMonkey2000 @ Mon Oct 08, 2007 11:47 am wrote:

Oh and about apartments, what is a good price, and how far would you say it should be from the university?

Depends on the budget. It's cheaper (and more fun) living with roommates. It should definitely be within a walking distance of the University campus.

[PaulButler]

CodeMonkey2000 @ Mon Oct 08, 2007 11:47 am wrote:

What about the actual courses. I hear university courses go insanely fast, and they tend cover an entire text book within a semester. How much time should you be spending on homework/study to keep up?

To echo what Tony said, yeah it goes faster but it's not that bad.

Quote:

Oh and about apartments, what is a good price, and how far would you say it should be from the university?

IMHO, $300-$400 is a good price, but depending on location/size/etc. you might see prices as high as $600/month. Of course, some cities are more expensive than others, that is just from my experience looking in Waterloo.

As Tony said, definitely walking distance if you can - I wouldn't want to limit the times I could enter or leave campus based on a bus schedule. How close you can get would probably depend on which university you go to and what city you are in. Why do you want to live off-campus, or are you just looking at the options?