As of about half an hour ago, I am officially done with going to class (for this semester anyway) . I have three finals next week and will be done come Wednesday. It's exciting and crazy to think about. In less than a week, I'll be halfway done with my undergraduate degree. Furthermore, since I'll be studying in Ireland this fall, I have only three semesters left at Iowa State University. Which means, I've completed more semesters here than I have remaining!!
I also completed my last tutoring sessions this week. If you don't remember, I got dropped from my plant pathology lab job at the beginning of the semester due to budget cuts. I began tutoring in February for the second course in the chemistry series for science majors (Chem 178 for you ISU people). I ended up with 5 separate sessions, two of which met twice a week. I was kind of nervous in the beginning, as I can be a bit shy in front of groups, but it actually turned out to be a good fit for me. I never had more than 4 people in a group, and that was a good size. I don't think I'd ever like to be a professor teaching in front of 200+ kids at once, but 4 or less was definitely doable and even fun at times! It was also a great review for me for when I take the DAT (Dental Admission's Test) come September.
So, speaking of September, I figure I should give a rundown of my shenanigans (isn't that such a fun word?) after the dude ranch. I'll be flying home from Montana on August 31st, a Sunday. I'll be leaving from Des Moines for Ireland on Tuesday, September 9th. In that time frame that I'll be home, I'll be quite busy! My birthday is September 2nd (I won't be a teenager anymore!), I'm taking the DAT on September 4th, and my brother, Andy, is getting married on September 6th. I also hope to get up to Ames sometime in there to visit some of my college friends. I'm sure I'll also try to pack in some things like doctor's appointments, and oh yeah, packing for Ireland!!
So, Ireland. As I said, I'll be leaving for Ireland on September 9th. I'll be living in Cork (city), Ireland, and will be attending classes at the University of College Cork. Cork is the third largest city in Ireland (after Dublin and Belfast) and is located in Southern Ireland near the coast. The city is an important seaport. The River Lee runs through the heart of the city, and the apartment I'll be living in, Leeside Apartments, is located on the river near the city centre (notice the UK spelling! I'm practicing! ;)). Most of their apartment complexes there are similar to the style of Frederickson Court Apartments here in Ames. This means that there are usually between 1-6 bedrooms in an apartment, and you just pay to rent a room. I've heard the area I'll be living in is a great location, and I can't wait to experience it.
The University will between a 5 and 30 minute walk from my apartment (I've been told both of these numbers and everything in between by various people). The University has about 12,000 students and from what I can tell, a beautiful campus! From what I've been told, the system there is a bit different. Much less time is spent in class, and it's much more of a "work at your own pace" kind of thing. Meaning, very few assignments throughout the semester, with most of your score resting on a final exam or paper at the end. Of course, I'll have to tell more about this when I'm actually able to experience it first hand. At this point in time, I do not know what classes I will be taking there. I put in some of my preferences for courses in my application, but I will not know for awhile if I get into those ones or not. Apparently, after two weeks of classes, there is a college fair type thing where all of the departments set up booths and give you information about classes. At that point, you could apparently change all of your courses if you so chose.
Anyway, that's the bulk of information I know about Ireland at this time. I feel like I should perhaps know more, but at the same time I'd rather learn by experiencing. So I'll leave you all for now with some pictures of Ireland from the internet (yes, be jealous, be VERY jealous! :P).
Cork City
Shots from University College Cork
And other random shots from around Ireland.
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