Off and running with classes

Oftentimes, the first class generates the most anxiety. It's that whole not-knowing-what-to-expect deal. What will the professor be like? How about the other students? Will it be a large class or small one? And so on. Especially when you start at a new school!

That's why I had plenty of butterflies and jitters going into my first graduate school class last Thursday, and plenty more going into my second ever class tonight (my first for that particular course).

That part is now done with. I can breathe a sigh of relief!

I've seen the syllabi, I got to know the professors' teaching styles a bit, I got to meet my classmates for the first time, and most importantly I now have a pretty good idea of the expectations.

To be quite frank, the bar is raised pretty high. It will be a challenge to clear, for both classes. I can already see some differences between undergrad and graduate classes. If the shift from high school to college meant "you were on your own," then the shift from college to graduate school is that same phrase times 100. Nobody holds your hand, not even for a second. There's no orientation. You don't know anybody. Your just plunged into things and it's what you make of it. I'm determined to make my grad school experience a positive one and to work my hardest, just as I always have.

In some ways though, these classes aren't much unlike the upper-level classes at Fisher, and I see the similarities too. I think I know what to expect now and I'm ready to go at it. It's good to be back at school, back learning again - I do love learning. I feel 100% that I've made the right choice. And I'm now ready for the second classes and beyond.