What’s new in the summer quarter? The new Berkeley e-mail! Everyone has been talking about the new e-mail and discussing the advantages and the disadvantages. From listening to peoples conversations it has really been a love it or hate it program.
Some people say they love it for its new look, the convenience and reliability. It’s from Outlook so many people have been using a similar or the same program for many years. Blackboard did not use Outlook before but now students can get used to it. This is a good deal because many companies use Outlook. Students will have experience on Outlook and when they start work for a company they will already have the experience.
Other people hate it. They say it’s inconvenient, hard to use, complicated and annoying that you have to constantly sign in. You can set it so it remembers your e-mail on your computer but every time you’re on a different computer you have to type out the whole e-mail for example Aleksandra-kopec@mymail.berkeleycollege.edu. It just so happens that my name is long, but you get the picture. It can get agitating. Another reason students don’t like it is because if you use another program from the same company you have to keep switching log in’s.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I neither like it nor dislike it. I was having some issues with it because I couldn’t figure out how to forward my mail to another e-mail account. Because I like to avoid steps I forward all my mail to one e-mail so I only have to check one e-mail address. I have to admit it was complicated but I got some help.
Berkeley offers live online help which was great at helping me figure out how to forward my mail. It’s like instant messenger where you talk to a REAL person and they tell you step by step how to do something. At first I asked the librarian if she could help me and she was having the same issues as me. She tried very hard to figure it out but when I got the solution I printed out the steps for her. I’m sure other students will have similar questions. I like the features and options that it offers. To me it’s really not that complicated to use.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
First Day of Classes
Vacation time is over, and we’re back in full swing. Yesterday was orientation which was really nice. I came to school at 9am and had to wait around a bit for Ms. Young. When we came into her office I noticed the lovely little thank you gifts she made for us. We each got a free t-shirt, planner, pen and Starbursts! It pays to get involved. There were about 100 new students starting in the summer which was a surprise to me. I didn’t think that many students wanted to go to school in the summer time!
We educated them about what Berkeley is about, what to expect from professors and explain some rules around the campus. The volunteers then played some games with the students. We played the name game and questions game where they got to ask me random questions they had about the school. It was fun answering them because I was able to be honest and give them a good view from a student’s perspective.
Today was such a hot day that I was so happy to be in an AC room for my class. It was my first day of class and I got to meet a new professor. She was very nice, funny and creative. We went over the syllabus and class requirements. We got a great deal that if we attend all classes with a perfect attendance we will not have to do one paper! I was so happy to hear this because the paper that is being dropped is a 15 page paper. I really did not want to write a 15 page paper at the end of my last quarter.
With new classes comes buying new books. For this class, Global Change, the book in the school bookstore was selling for $37 new, but I was told that book was being sold at Barnes and Noble for only $19.99! That’s almost 50% inflation! I thought that it was ridicules so I drove down to Barnes and Noble after class and got the book. You really have to do your book research for classes. It can save you a lot of money.
We educated them about what Berkeley is about, what to expect from professors and explain some rules around the campus. The volunteers then played some games with the students. We played the name game and questions game where they got to ask me random questions they had about the school. It was fun answering them because I was able to be honest and give them a good view from a student’s perspective.
Today was such a hot day that I was so happy to be in an AC room for my class. It was my first day of class and I got to meet a new professor. She was very nice, funny and creative. We went over the syllabus and class requirements. We got a great deal that if we attend all classes with a perfect attendance we will not have to do one paper! I was so happy to hear this because the paper that is being dropped is a 15 page paper. I really did not want to write a 15 page paper at the end of my last quarter.
With new classes comes buying new books. For this class, Global Change, the book in the school bookstore was selling for $37 new, but I was told that book was being sold at Barnes and Noble for only $19.99! That’s almost 50% inflation! I thought that it was ridicules so I drove down to Barnes and Noble after class and got the book. You really have to do your book research for classes. It can save you a lot of money.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
My Last Orientation
The school quarter hasn’t started yet but we are already starting so many preparations! Orientation is only a few days away and many things need to be done. The students and the volunteers and getting a free breakfast and lunch on Monday! How great is that? It’s worth getting involved at Berkeley! In addition to free food, we also get a free t-shirt. Ms. Young called me yesterday to ask me my shirt size.
Getting to orientation is going to be a nightmare. This Thursday I’m going to North Carolina (driving), and coming back on Sunday. After being in a car for 9 hours I will then have to drive 2 more hours’ home from my boyfriend’s house. I was thinking of possibly driving home on Monday morning but I really don’t want to run into morning commute so I think I will just stick with Sunday. I will be so tired of being in a car by then!
Ale, Travis and I have decided to make the SGA meetings this quarter on Tuesday at 4:30. It was very hard for Ale to get to the meetings at 4pm because she had to work. It was much more convenient for her to do it at 4:30. I have class on Tuesday so it makes it convenient for me that I don’t have to take additional time away from my internship and I don’t have to use up more gas having to come on campus. Travis is only on campus for one day this quarter which is Wednesday. Sadly that didn’t work out with anyone’s schedule but he said he does not mind being conferenced in. Hopefully we have a great quarter!
Getting to orientation is going to be a nightmare. This Thursday I’m going to North Carolina (driving), and coming back on Sunday. After being in a car for 9 hours I will then have to drive 2 more hours’ home from my boyfriend’s house. I was thinking of possibly driving home on Monday morning but I really don’t want to run into morning commute so I think I will just stick with Sunday. I will be so tired of being in a car by then!
Ale, Travis and I have decided to make the SGA meetings this quarter on Tuesday at 4:30. It was very hard for Ale to get to the meetings at 4pm because she had to work. It was much more convenient for her to do it at 4:30. I have class on Tuesday so it makes it convenient for me that I don’t have to take additional time away from my internship and I don’t have to use up more gas having to come on campus. Travis is only on campus for one day this quarter which is Wednesday. Sadly that didn’t work out with anyone’s schedule but he said he does not mind being conferenced in. Hopefully we have a great quarter!
Monday, June 30, 2008
Vacation!
Vacation time is great! I just got back from Lake George, NY and I had a wonderful time camping. We went for a whole week which was slowly getting to be too much but it was just about perfect timing when it was time to come home. I love camping because you really get to relax and rest. When you go to places where you explore a lot you don’t really get to relax because you end up doing more walking and work than any other day. It’s still fun but not relaxing.
We were able to do quite a lot while camping. We visited Fort William Henry where we learned how to shoot a cannon and how to make lead bullets. Every night we went out for ice cream and dinner which was really nice. We got a great deal when we went on a dinner cruise because it was the boats 100th birthday. For a trip AND a buffet meal we paid $10! The resort that I stayed at was very nice and I even ran into another Berkeley student! It was really fun.
In my last blog I wrote about my grade being 89.36 which made me wonder if it would be rounded off. Well I e-mailed the professor and she told me no. She said that there has to be a cut off line somewhere and my grade will not be rounded. It made me sad that I was so close but I got all A’s in my other classes so it still made my GPA pretty high. Many times students try to be argumentative with professors but I like to see the point of view from both sides. I understand what she means and I understand her view.
We were able to do quite a lot while camping. We visited Fort William Henry where we learned how to shoot a cannon and how to make lead bullets. Every night we went out for ice cream and dinner which was really nice. We got a great deal when we went on a dinner cruise because it was the boats 100th birthday. For a trip AND a buffet meal we paid $10! The resort that I stayed at was very nice and I even ran into another Berkeley student! It was really fun.
In my last blog I wrote about my grade being 89.36 which made me wonder if it would be rounded off. Well I e-mailed the professor and she told me no. She said that there has to be a cut off line somewhere and my grade will not be rounded. It made me sad that I was so close but I got all A’s in my other classes so it still made my GPA pretty high. Many times students try to be argumentative with professors but I like to see the point of view from both sides. I understand what she means and I understand her view.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Hope for Understanding
Its only 3:30 and I am patiently awaiting my last final exam today. Most of the class took their final yesterday but because I was unable to make it that day the professor and I made special arrangements to meet today. The professor was very nice and understanding. Since what I was doing was very important he didn’t have a problem with me moving the final. I spoke to him after class and we made the arrangement to meet today.
Berkeley College professors are usually very understanding. This is great because I’m having an issue with my Changing Families class. Our professor has posted our grades and I saw that my final grade came out to being 89.36! I sent her an e-mail if she knows if the grade will get rounded up to an A or if it will stay a B. I also asked her if it was to stay a B if I could do some type of extra credit to bring the grade up .64 points. I will feel so ridicules if I was so close to an A but it’s unable to be rounded. If this happens I will have all A’s in my classes. It’s a great accomplishment. She has not responded to me yet, but I am waiting patiently.
For SGA next quarter we are having some issues making a time for a meeting. Everyone has such a different schedule and nobody can just drop their jobs or other responsibilities. This is mine and Ale’s last quarter and our schedules are more packed than ever. We all need to work to support ourselves with the HIGH gas prices on top of our other expenses. We have not decided on a time or place yet but I hope we come to a decision soon.
Berkeley College professors are usually very understanding. This is great because I’m having an issue with my Changing Families class. Our professor has posted our grades and I saw that my final grade came out to being 89.36! I sent her an e-mail if she knows if the grade will get rounded up to an A or if it will stay a B. I also asked her if it was to stay a B if I could do some type of extra credit to bring the grade up .64 points. I will feel so ridicules if I was so close to an A but it’s unable to be rounded. If this happens I will have all A’s in my classes. It’s a great accomplishment. She has not responded to me yet, but I am waiting patiently.
For SGA next quarter we are having some issues making a time for a meeting. Everyone has such a different schedule and nobody can just drop their jobs or other responsibilities. This is mine and Ale’s last quarter and our schedules are more packed than ever. We all need to work to support ourselves with the HIGH gas prices on top of our other expenses. We have not decided on a time or place yet but I hope we come to a decision soon.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Survey's
With the end of the quarter comes a bunch of surveys. You have your class surveys to see how well the professor did teaching the class and then when you’re doing your internship you have your internship and Career Services survey. In this internship surveys you are asked what you think of Career Services and how they helped you in your journey through finding and participating in an internship as well as how they helped you in job search.
I liked that the survey was done to see our opinions but some questions don’t really apply with no option to say Not Applicable. My problem was that some questions asked how well Career Services assisted in helping me find a job. I have not searched for a job yet so I cannot really judge as to how well they did. I didn’t have an option to pick that it did not apply so I just chose the middle answer to be neutral. I know if I was having an issue with it other students did as well. Since many people answered differently with no experience I’m sure that somewhat altered the true results of how well Career Services has done its job. Sometimes things that are so simple are so easy to overlook.
Next quarter I am going to push for Student Development having a mandatory survey for students so that we can see their opinions on Student Development and different activities. College is no longer only about the education, but also about the experience and the people you get to meet. We want to provide the best experience to students but without knowing what they want it’s very hard to aim. We already know what students want that attend our events but there are still hundreds of students who do not. If we don’t hear what they have to say it’s very hard to know what to do in order to satisfy them. We can play around with ideas and see what works and doesn’t work but if an event is unsuccessful it’s a waste of money for Student Development. I will have to talk to the Dean about my idea and see how he feels about the idea.
I liked that the survey was done to see our opinions but some questions don’t really apply with no option to say Not Applicable. My problem was that some questions asked how well Career Services assisted in helping me find a job. I have not searched for a job yet so I cannot really judge as to how well they did. I didn’t have an option to pick that it did not apply so I just chose the middle answer to be neutral. I know if I was having an issue with it other students did as well. Since many people answered differently with no experience I’m sure that somewhat altered the true results of how well Career Services has done its job. Sometimes things that are so simple are so easy to overlook.
Next quarter I am going to push for Student Development having a mandatory survey for students so that we can see their opinions on Student Development and different activities. College is no longer only about the education, but also about the experience and the people you get to meet. We want to provide the best experience to students but without knowing what they want it’s very hard to aim. We already know what students want that attend our events but there are still hundreds of students who do not. If we don’t hear what they have to say it’s very hard to know what to do in order to satisfy them. We can play around with ideas and see what works and doesn’t work but if an event is unsuccessful it’s a waste of money for Student Development. I will have to talk to the Dean about my idea and see how he feels about the idea.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Finals Are Here!
Finals have been taking up so much of time I have not had a chance to write. Today is already Friday and we only have until the end of tomorrow to submit all our work. Lucky for me I was able to get everything done and today I finished my last online test for my Changing Family class. I submitted one of my written paper finals on Tuesday and I had my grade back already the next day for my Race, Gender and Sex class. Luck for me I got a 90 on that final!
I still have a final to take for my advanced spreadsheets class but that’s not until next Thursday. Most of the class took the final yesterday but I was taking my US citizenship test so I wasn’t able to make it to class. The professor and I made special arrangements to take my test because this was very important to me. Lucky for me I passed my test with flying colors and now I am officially a US citizen. Yayyy!!!
This Thursday we had Chillax Day during the activity period like we did last quarter but this time it was a flop. The masseuse that normally comes never got back to us, we had no music, no mocktails (fake cocktails), and not that many people showed up. I’m not really sure why we were so unprepared, but we did serve ice cream for that hour. That was our last activity period for this quarter. We never have anything going on for the last week because its finals week and most people are studying. We also didn’t have a meeting this Thursday because I was unable to make it due to my test. We all hope to have a wonderful break and hope to see many new faces in the summer time!
I still have a final to take for my advanced spreadsheets class but that’s not until next Thursday. Most of the class took the final yesterday but I was taking my US citizenship test so I wasn’t able to make it to class. The professor and I made special arrangements to take my test because this was very important to me. Lucky for me I passed my test with flying colors and now I am officially a US citizen. Yayyy!!!
This Thursday we had Chillax Day during the activity period like we did last quarter but this time it was a flop. The masseuse that normally comes never got back to us, we had no music, no mocktails (fake cocktails), and not that many people showed up. I’m not really sure why we were so unprepared, but we did serve ice cream for that hour. That was our last activity period for this quarter. We never have anything going on for the last week because its finals week and most people are studying. We also didn’t have a meeting this Thursday because I was unable to make it due to my test. We all hope to have a wonderful break and hope to see many new faces in the summer time!
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