A Guide to University for First Years

[obliviousninja]

Michaeljennings

ismeta

Ty Mr. Spiral

[Crobat]

Anyone else? I think he has been inactive for the past couple of weeks.

I have a few friends who made co-op last year but not all have BoS accounts.

The 2 that have BoS accounts are Shangg (he has a thread selling his HSC notes with his email up in it too if you want to contact him by email) and Kishek95. Both are pretty much inactive but I can fling them a message over FB if you like?

[flashtrick]

Great read! Got a few questions for any university-goers:

What would the estimated contact hours for B. Science at University of Sydney be?

I never really payed attention in science class and never did any homework, mostly learning everything by myself a week or two before the exam: is such a thing possible in University?

Would it be possible for me to go to uni in 2014 then suspend my uni degree and take a 'gap year' in 2015?

[SpiralFlex]

Great read! Got a few questions for any university-goers:

What would the estimated contact hours for B. Science at University of Sydney be?

I never really payed attention in science class and never did any homework, mostly learning everything by myself a week or two before the exam: is such a thing possible in University?

Would it be possible for me to go to uni in 2014 then suspend my uni degree and take a 'gap year' in 2015?

1) The first question is hard to answer, it depends on the subjects you are taking.

2) You can, but it is very hard to do and you'll most likely be rote learning the content.

3) You will need to see someone else about that matter.

[SpiralFlex]

Great read! Got a few questions for any university-goers:

What would the estimated contact hours for B. Science at University of Sydney be?

I never really payed attention in science class and never did any homework, mostly learning everything by myself a week or two before the exam: is such a thing possible in University?

Would it be possible for me to go to uni in 2014 then suspend my uni degree and take a 'gap year' in 2015?

1) The first question is hard to answer, it depends on the subjects you are taking.

2) You can, but it is very hard to do and you'll most likely be rote learning the content.

3) You will need to see someone else about that matter.

[flashtrick]

1) The first question is hard to answer, it depends on the subjects you are taking.

2) You can, but it is very hard to do and you'll most likely be rote learning the content.

3) You will need to see someone else about that matter.

Thanks for the response.
Still not sure what I'm majoring in, but is there any chance the contact hours would exceed 30 per week?

As for rote-learning, I never really did that for the HSC. A lot of stuff for physics and chemistry I already knew (was very interested in science as a kid), and I'd always create fast and efficient ways of learning stuff I didn't know (creating acronyms/rhymes for patterns or thinking logically and how it works in real-life applications)

EDIT: Almost forgot. Is it possible to 'upgrade' my degree from B. Sci to B.Sci (Adv.) if I'm getting bored with the normal one? I don't really want to do (Adv.) initially cause there would presumably be a lot more contact hours and work.

[SpiralFlex]

Thanks for the response.
Still not sure what I'm majoring in, but is there any chance the contact hours would exceed 30 per week?

As for rote-learning, I never really did that for the HSC. A lot of stuff for physics and chemistry I already knew (was very interested in science as a kid), and I'd always create fast and efficient ways of learning stuff I didn't know (creating acronyms/rhymes for patterns or thinking logically and how it works in real-life applications)

There is little chance of that. The worst you can be looking at is I reckon 24ish. I had 25-26 contact hours (which is more than my friends and people I know). So I wouldn't think you would be looking at 30, that is way too much.

[SpiralFlex]

Thanks for the response.
Still not sure what I'm majoring in, but is there any chance the contact hours would exceed 30 per week?

As for rote-learning, I never really did that for the HSC. A lot of stuff for physics and chemistry I already knew (was very interested in science as a kid), and I'd always create fast and efficient ways of learning stuff I didn't know (creating acronyms/rhymes for patterns or thinking logically and how it works in real-life applications)

EDIT: Almost forgot. Is it possible to 'upgrade' my degree from B. Sci to B.Sci (Adv.) if I'm getting bored with the normal one? I don't really want to do (Adv.) initially cause there would presumably be a lot more contact hours and work.

Make sure you read the handbooks. In B. Sci. you can pick the same subjects as that for B. Sci (adv.) bar some restrictions. So you can have the same hours.

[flashtrick]

Make sure you read the handbooks. In B. Sci. you can pick the same subjects as that for B. Sci (adv.) bar some restrictions. So you can have the same hours.

Haha, sorry if I'm coming of a little lost, but what handbook exactly?

Judging from your posts, you do/did B. Science? How did they split the hours? I would actually prefer having like 8 hour blocks over 3 days over 5 hour blocks over 5 days - the former would mean I'd have entire days to day whatever I want.

Oh yeah, really appreciate your help. Still so unsure and undecided about uni courses.

[SpiralFlex]

Haha, sorry if I'm coming of a little lost, but what handbook exactly?

Judging from your posts, you do/did B. Science? How did they split the hours? I would actually prefer having like 8 hour blocks over 3 days over 5 hour blocks over 5 days - the former would mean I'd have entire days to day whatever I want.

Oh yeah, really appreciate your help. Still so unsure and undecided about uni courses.

A handbook is a detailed document that outlines the amount of credit points needed to obtain the degree it will outline any compulsory units and electives.

[-may-cat-]

Just a couple of things.

Attendance
Attendance at university is NOT compulsory unless specified. Lectures rarely have attendance marked and in cases where this does happen, usually they are only for the lecturer to take note who is attending (e.g. they may take the extra effort to help students which have been attending). With lectures, you tend to have the flexibility of going to a different timeslot considering that capacity typically opens up after the first few weeks. It i fairly common to see lecture attendance drop by at least 25% by the end of the first few weeks. If you opt for this route, make sure to check if the course content mirrors what you missed in your original timeslot.

Many students find that attending tutorials are more helpful than attending lectures so if you find yourself in a situation where you have to pick between attending either of the two, the tutorial is the safest bet. Some tutorials have compulsory attendance and in those situations, attendance is strongly advised. In these instances, it is critical that you check how tutorial attendance affects your final mark. Failing to attend these tutorials may lead to penalties so make sure to read the fine print. Also, you may find yourself in a situation where you have exams in either a lecture or a tutorial. It is important that you attend the lecture or tutorial which is on your timetable even if you have chosen to attend other timeslots in previous weeks in these cases.

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I just want to make clear that at least at Macquarie, non-compulsory attendance of tutorials/pracs is the exception, not the rule. Often attendance and active participation makes up part of your overall mark (up to 15%) and if you do not attend and make an effort, you can and will be penalised.

Census Dates - What are they?
Each semester, your financial liability is determined by the courses you are enrolled in at the time of the census date. This is different each semester, so check specific dates with your university, but it generally happens at the end of the fourth week of classes. You are able to unenroll from a subject before this date without incurring a financial liability for it. If you choose to drop a subject after the census date, you will still need to pay for it. In the case that something happens and your ability to finish a subject is significantly impaired, you can apply to HECS to have the financial liability for that subject removed, but this requires getting a Discontinue Not Fail grade from the university, along with substantial evidence that you were unable to complete the course, but were only made aware after the census date. This requires a lot of paperwork and your university should be able to give your more information.

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Also important is the The Last Date to Withdraw Without Academic Penalty, which is usually a few weeks after the census date. If you withdraw after this date, you incur both financial and academic penalty, that is, you incur a Fail grade and you have to pay for the unit. You can apply for exception for one or both of these, but they are generally only granted in exceptional circumstances.

O-Week
O-Week (Orientation Week) occurs the week before the session starts each semester. At O-Week, the university hosts a number of events, aimed at getting students involved and creating a fun start for the semester ahead. O-Week is a great chance to get a feel of the uni and meet some other people who will be attending. There are also O-Week parties which as a first year, can be some of the biggest you’ve been to. Also keep in mind that many different clubs and societies set up stalls to give new students the opportunity to talk to existing members and sign up. If you’re looking to get involved, make sure you hit up these stalls.

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Also, at MQ lectures run during o-week; it is technically the beginning of session.

[OMGITzJustin]

calm down.. not everyone will be going to Macquarie, it's a general guide, not uni specific

[-may-cat-]

I'm perfectly calm..?

Was simply mentioning some things that deviate from the norm at MQ for the benefit of future readers.

[OzKo]

I'm perfectly calm..?

Was simply mentioning some things that deviate from the norm at MQ for the benefit of future readers.

Thanks for the update.

We didn't have anyone from MQ contribute to this guide so we weren't aware of these differences.

I'll have it updated tomorrow.

[Peanuts101]

Wow that was really good and thorough! Thanks heaps, i will keep all of this is mind


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[-may-cat-]

Thanks for the update.

We didn't have anyone from MQ contribute to this guide so we weren't aware of these differences.

I'll have it updated tomorrow.

No worries, it wasn't a criticism

[isildurrrr1]

I'm perfectly calm..?

Was simply mentioning some things that deviate from the norm at MQ for the benefit of future readers.

In addition to that UNSW is getting pretty strict on tutorial attendances even if there are no participation marks. You must attend 80% of the tutes or you can fail the course by not being able to complete a final assessment. Enforcement on this rule is course dependent, but don't risk it. I had a level 3 lecturer failing students for missing 4 tutes.

I noticed business courses don't care about attendances but arts do (probably to do with tighter budget and lecturers don't want to be under anyone's sights).

[JohnMaximus]

Add a "scoring with the usyd ladies" section.
Semi-srs

[Kowther]

Thanks for this write-up

[LoveHateSchool]

1. Depends on subjects. Psych has 4 contact hours a week, Chem approx 6, Biology approx 5, maths 3 (maths subjects tend to be 'half' subjects, or only worth half the normal number of credit points so you do two of them per semester which makes it 6 contact hours a week), History and philosophy of science 3-4. If you did, say, a chem, a bio, two maths, and a psych in first semester, you would be looking at approx 20 hours/week.



Don't harass, don't be a tool, maybe be a hipster, be interesting. Being attractive also helps.

Chem is at least 7 hrs a week. 3x1hr lectures, 1hr tute, 3hr weekly lab.

[flashtrick]

must I define 'approx' for you m'dear? There are the odd weeks when labs aren't run, like wk 1 and 13 that I'm aware of.

Not sure if I already asked this, but how do they spread the hours over the week?
It'd suck to have 4 hours of lectures/lab every weekday. Much prefer having a 6-8 hour day, leaving another day of the week with absolutely nothing.

[madharris]

Not sure if I already asked this, but how do they spread the hours over the week?
It'd suck to have 4 hours of lectures/lab every weekday. Much prefer having a 6-8 hour day, leaving another day of the week with absolutely nothing.

It varies depending on your timetable. If you do science then the best you MAY get it at is 4 days a week.

Before you have the opportunity do your timetable, make sure you look at the available subject times before hand so you can plan and know what kind of time table you have in mind instead of seeing it for the first time and ending up getting a shit one :P
(if your uni allows you to see the times that is)

[D94]

Not sure if I already asked this, but how do they spread the hours over the week?
It'd suck to have 4 hours of lectures/lab every weekday. Much prefer having a 6-8 hour day, leaving another day of the week with absolutely nothing.

I think what I am saying is common for all universities - there will be a set program of study that most students follow. To ensure no clashes, they design the times around the set courses for that semester. There may also be priorities for higher years, such as labs and tutorial rooms.

They will almost always offer at least a couple of timeslots if there are a lot of students. A few degrees may have a common course so they obviously have to take that into account. It's a pretty elaborate system, so you may be 'unlucky' if you have 4 hours of labs/lectures everyday.

You really can't tell until the class times are released. You may be able to structure your classes such that you get a free day or even 2 depending on your classes.

[nightweaver066]

In addition to that UNSW is getting pretty strict on tutorial attendances even if there are no participation marks. You must attend 80% of the tutes or you can fail the course by not being able to complete a final assessment. Enforcement on this rule is course dependent, but don't risk it. I had a level 3 lecturer failing students for missing 4 tutes.

I noticed business courses don't care about attendances but arts do (probably to do with tighter budget and lecturers don't want to be under anyone's sights).

Not exactly. I've heard that in maths at UNSW (maybe it's the same for others too?), even if you skip all the tutorials, so long as you do well in the final exam, you won't be penalised.

[isildurrrr1]

Not exactly. I've heard that in maths at UNSW (maybe it's the same for others too?), even if you skip all the tutorials, so long as you do well in the final exam, you won't be penalised.

It's all dependent on the tutor/lecturer, but it's getting stricter these days probably due to fears of budget cuts. If you fail to attend the tutes, they won't let you take the final assessment/exam, hence failing the course by not completing one module of the course.