May - the travel month

One of the things I love most about Europe is how easy it is to travel around and grow as a person by absorbing as much of the world as possible. In a week a friend and I will be flying to Paris. We're very excited because we spent most of Easter/spring break researching for our dissertations. I've already put in hours of scouring through academic journals and have written a substantial amount. Now it's time to have some cultural learning because after Paris, at the end of May I will spend a few days in Amsterdam with a childhood friend from Russia who will meet me there. And a few friends from Aston are also trying to organize a trip to Edinburgh. Although it is challenging to plan and accommodate a group of people, we all want to travel and get as much as we can out of our study abroad experience. 

Today is another research day; I am trying to pace myself with the reading and writing because I know that the more disciplined I am now and the less I procrastinate the less stress awaits me as the summer progresses. 

Easter Break

Now that I've finally turned in my proposal and last group project, I can finally let myself relax a little, but I don't want to lose momentum, so even if for just a few hours, I will do research every day. When I let myself slack off during Chrismas I found it much harder to get back to a study schedule, and now I realize that a few hours per day is very reasonable.

Speaking of group projects and work in general, it is extremely beneficial at such a diverse university to interact and collaborate with as many different people as possible. However, the extremely beneficial part depends on who you are put into a group with unfortunately. I've had both amazing people to work with this year and also some that frustrated me to no end. Making group work fair and mutually beneficial is definitely a work in progress because with everyone having different knowledge of English, laziness and procrastination are a curse. We are here first and foremost to learn and challenge ourselves, so it should never happen that in a group of five people only two complete an assignment. And my advice to those groups struggling to get everyone to do a fair share is to speak up; tell your professors, tutors, etc. what is going on and they will take it seriously. You are not here to work for others. Showing initiative, conscientiousness and responsibility should not be so difficult, and I have heard many horror stories of group work problems. That being said, as each year goes by, it would be great for professors to learn from the problems at hand and take them seriously because like I said, I also know how wonderful it is to experience cultural diversity.

As far as Easter break goes, I think I will just be here chipping away at my research, enjoying the sunshine and counting down the days til my trip to Paris in May. A handful of my friends are staying here over break, so I definitely don't feel as lonely as during Christmas vacation.

I smell spring

Well term two is over, and although I still have one group project to finish up and my proposal calling my name, I am finally relaxing a little. 

Yesterday, a group of friends and I went to explore Birmingham. It wasn't a very planned adventure, but we ended up seeing some really nice parks and lovely suburban neighborhoods. I finally got to ride a double decker bus and was way more excited about it than I should be willing to share. I have to admit that climbing to the top while the bus is moving is a bit beyond my balancing abilities. All in all it was a nice spring day. 

Moral of the story is that Birmingham has a lot more to offer than the busy city center like peaceful and relaxing nature. The pictures above are from Sutton Park. 

But now that I am back in the students' lounge to do more research, the thing that will keep me going is my upcoming trip to Paris in may. It's finally booked, and I am thrilled to have something to look forward to. 

A second end

Well I've just finished the last exam of my postgraduate career. It feels very strange. Maybe it just hasn't sunk in yet. I know that masters programs in England are an expedited process, but having the second term be over so soon should be illegal. I still feel like I just got here. 

I have to say the past three days were very stressful. I tend to make myself very nervous before exams and lose the ability to sleep like a normal person. Definitely something to work on. Stress cannot be good for performance, and not just in exams but in life in general. Now I have a couple assignments to wrap up because while I tend to start assignments early, I always leave about 10-15% for the very end. Just so that I don't out-nerd myself. 

In true England fashion, we've had amazing sunny weather during revision week when everyone was stuck in the library. Flowers were blooming, birds were singing, and people were dressing like it was summertime. But now that exams are wrapping up, it's gotten colder again. Spring is evasive, but hopefully soon it will come back to stay because we post graduates need some sunshine to help us recover from term two. 

Drawing to a close

With three weeks left of term I keep hearing people saying how surprised or happy they are that these are the last exams of their lives. I don't really know how I feel about this. My whole life has revolved around education and pressure to succeed academically that it's strange to realize that my organized education is coming to an end. Not that you ever stop learning, but it'll be different from here on out. I think the most difficult thing for me right now is to find a balance between my studies and future planning. It is just hard to motivate myself to job search while dealing with the workload simultaneously, but once exams are over I fully intend to budget my time more effectively.

 

I am doing fairly well with my assignments, and our course director took pity on us, so the deadline for the final proposal was extended. There is a lot less group work this term, and I am happy to say that I have some very conscientious people to work with this time. One of the girls is more motivated and on top of things than I am sometimes, and that's very refreshing from some of my past experiences. Between the two of us, we are getting things done more efficiently, and I don't feel like I have to take on the leader role singlehandedly.

On the precipice of week six

I probably said this before, but at the beginning of term one, ten weeks seemed like a long time, but that was deceivingly naïve to believe. Now over halfway through the second term, I'm very glad to have only three classes because I there is plenty to do in each of them. I did my best to get ahead on the assignments, so that I could leave myself a block of time to focus on my dissertation proposal. That's definitely the next big hurdle to overcome.

Besides the academia, I can't help but be excited for spring because I think I'll do the cliche thing and go to Paris. I only spent one day there before and that was hardly enough. About two weeks ago a friend and I went to the Chinese New Year celebration in Chinatown. It was cool how big of a turnout they had. The performances were worth seeing despite the frigid wind (just another reason to be excited for spring!)

Time is flying

At the beginning of the first term, ten weeks seemed like a long time, but now I know better. Now at the end of week three it's difficult not to feel overwhelmed by the assignments and dissertation research that I need to get done. This term involves a lot more individual work rather than collaboration in a group. Although it's less frustrating than having to coordinate different personalities, you are also accountable only to yourself which could make motivation hard to come by. I have three assignments to do which are all 1500 words and involve in depth research of selected companies. I also have to do a final dissertation proposal which will require a lot more research on my part. Overlap that with weekly prereading, and you get a situation where it's imperative to set goals, make a schedule and use time wisely. I am learning how to prioritize in the best way possible.

In other news, we had our first few snowflakes yesterday which is apparently cause for excitement, but having lived in Russia and central Pennsylvania, I can't be asked to feel excited about snow that doesn't even stick. You guys haven't seen anything yet. ;)