Adding a Major

Whew! Sorry everyone for the sparse postings... the last few weeks have been jam packed with getting ready to head out to spring break strong in all of my classes. A few weeks ago I decided that I wanted to get a double-major in German along with my Leeds degree. I absolutely love languages (I'm talking Spanish this summer) and I'm hoping that taking German will give me an edge when graduation comes along.

Adding a major from a school within CU different from your own (i.e., business to arts & sciences, etc) is much easier coming from the business school, because Leeds has much higher standards when it comes to transferring in versus applying as an incoming freshman. One of the best pieces of advice I got from an upperclassmen before I even applied was to apply to the business school if you're even remotely interested in business- it's much easier to get out than in. Plus, I've found that business classes contain useful information for any major, so don't sweat taking them and then not using the credits later if you do decide to transfer.

Since I'm "moving" from business to arts & sciences, I have to attend both a meeting with a German advisor as well as a meeting for intra-university transfer students. After that, I get to bask in the glow of being one of the many students at CU who are double majoring. Double majors can even be done in 4 years- so if you're interested in two different subjects, look into the programs.

Midterms Season

... Is suddenly upon us, and with a friend headed to a test every night the mood has been gloomy on campus for the last two weeks or so. It happens every semester- suddenly you have a test in every class and need to review all the information you've been mindlessly copying down for the last few weeks, and while springtime is calling to you at that!
I just had my business statistics midterm- it was pretty tough, but at least by now I'm used to the atmosphere. All large classes on campus- Intro to Business, Biology, and other common courses- have their finals and midterms all together in Coors Events Center. When you walk in to 600 other people taking the same test as you, it can definitely be a little intimidating. Here's a photo of my stats midterm, and this is after a few people had already left:So when you're headed into midterms next fall, make sure you really know the information, even with small distractions like coughs echoing around the room every few minutes. Good luck on all your midterms current Leeds students!

Missing Class In College

Weather in the 60's and 70's this week brought everyone out to lounge in the grass. [Farrand Field]

So as most of you have probably heard and are anticipating greatly, attendance is generally not taken in college. You can decide that that 8 a.m. lecture is just not worth your time and turn right back over once you turn your alarm off.
However, the likelihood that you will be on acedemic probation after a semester's worth of late nights: Really, really high.
This past weekend I missed 2 days of classes (I have Tuesdays and Thursdays off this semester) to visit my mom in Connecticut. Missing classes in college requires serious pre-planning- before I left I emailed all of my professors and T.A.'s, and for the most part I could make up my homework and assignments pretty easily. One quiz that would occur while I was gone was a no-go though- even though I gave advanced notice, my T.A. wouldn't let me take the quiz early. I was pretty frustrated with it, but I think that's a sacrifice you have to make for leaving school when classes are still going on.
Lesson learned: save your travel for when classes aren't in session, and go when you have the chance. That way if you do need to miss a few days, you haven't already missed half of your classes. If you aren't on your professor's bad side (especially in small classes, like first-year writing) they are much more willing to be flexible in when/how you turn in your work.