These days, when incoming freshmen in the dorms find out that I am a second year student, they begin asking me whether I had any advice for them. Therefore, I decided that with fall semester classes starting in eight hours, now might be a good time to list the advice that I have for incoming freshmen and all students in general, based on my personal experiences this past year at Berkeley. I will skip any social tips since I tend to not socialize much unless it involves one on one deep conversation. Instead, I will focus on academic tips since the one thing that all Berkeley students hold in common is the desire to succeed in the top public university in the United States. So here are some general tips to survive and succeed in classes at Cal:

1. Do not believe anyone who tries to tell you that a certain class is difficult/impossible. Regardless of whether this person is your best friend, a random stranger, or your professor himself, half the battle is lost if you come into a class expecting a low grade due to the difficulty. No class here is impossible to ace. Don't let anyone discourage you from doing your best. I find that most people who don't do as well are those who expect a class to be difficult and therefore not try as hard. Efforts will pay off in the end, believe in yourself. No class is hard by nature, it's what you make of it.

Continue reading "Academic tips for succeeding at Cal" »

Posted by Jade Liu at 11:53 PM | Permalink

I discovered many incomprehensible errors on my last entry due to the fact that I was extremely tired that night and had been practically falling asleep even while typing. I apologize for that and promise that I will use correct grammar and spelling today, and I will also use words the correct way.

So, tomorrow will be the day of my last final, for French 4. It's so difficult to believe that my first summer spent in Berkeley will so soon be over. This summer has been awesome, and with two French classes, I was able to recover my "skills" after a spring semester without French. I've learned so much within these eight weeks, and I'm infinitely grateful to my instructors for having all the patience to put up with my twenty thousand questions per day as well as many other things. Now, after my experience during Summer Session 2009, I have some advice to give in terms of the classes I took this summer. Perhaps in my next entry, I'll talk about past classes, but I have so much to write just about these few classes that today, I can only focus on these.

Continue reading "Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall" »

Posted by Jade Liu at 10:01 PM | Permalink

I am home right now, after session A of summer sessions have ended. I'm taking three classes during session C though, and I've been even busier than spring semester. But I'm done with Anthro 1. By the way, Anthro 1 (biological anthropology) was a really great class, like the other two anthro classes I've taken thus far at Berkeley (3AC and R5B). I recommend every one of them, and I find all the GSI's and professors in that department to be outstanding. They are all more responsible, knowledgeable, and interested in their subject than I would ever have imagined.

Now to my main subject for today, which is BART. I find BART an excellent mode of transportation for those living around the Bay Area and even for those who don't. The downtown Berkeley station is right next to campus (especially close to CNR headquarters), and the trains come so often that I never need to check any schedule. However, it is times like today that made me want to say that whereas BART can be a convenient way to get around, it may not be the most dependable way.class.

Continue reading "Life and BART Adventures" »

Posted by Jade Liu at 12:26 AM | Permalink

For better or for worse, in college we are faced with the opportunity to plan our days, months, and years however we want. This means that if we so choose, we may not get a summer at all. In fact, I know very few people who have no summer plans other than hanging out with friends and having fun. Most are either working or taking summer classes. I am doing the latter.

This summer, I am taking Anthropology 1, French 4, French 35, Public Health 162A, and PE 1 with a total of 15.5 units, a load equivalent to a fall or spring semester. A part of the reason is that I receive tuition from Stanford University due to my mother's benefits, but another part is that I am genuinely interested in these classes and they are useful at least to some part of my academic plans (the useful part is how I explain things to my mother), which I will reveal later.

Continue reading "Summer and Scheduling" »

Posted by Jade Liu at 11:09 PM | Permalink

Today, about a week after I have received my logon info, I have finally decided to create my first post. First, I would like to introduce myself. I'm Jade, and I am currently about to be a second year student majoring in nutritional sciences. My first year in college was filled with experiences that I shall hold dear, perhaps for the rest of my life. As I post more entries onto Fresh Faces, I will seek to share much of my experiences and intakes. I am sure that they will be very unique.

Now, I would like to give a heads up on my life in Berkeley for the past year. During the fall semester, I was primarily occupied with the marching band, which took up more time than I had anticipated. Through interactions with college students such as those in band as well as my floormates, I came to know what life may be like outside of my childhood as the only child of a widowed Chinese immigrant. I did not like what I found, and I became disillusioned at the importance so many people placed on social life and the differences between their values and my traditional ones, but as the spring semester approached, I began to find my niche. I found it in academics. That's the semester I decided to take on 23 units, plus University Chorus, which I wasn't doing for credit. I found that my place is wherever there is structure, wherever someone definite is in charge, wherever I can talk to others without socializing in its strictest sense. I know this is different for most people, but I do not regret anything.

That's it about my school life for now. I may go into more detail later, but now is not the time. This summer, what I'm doing, besides taking quite a few summer classes, is learning to drive. I've been postponing it long enough. So long, in fact, that the only reason I'm learning at all is because of parental pressure. Sigh...I've always denounced automobiles (it used to be televisions and computers too, but I've grown out of that). Automobiles give off too much stinky fumes. It's almost as bad as cigarette smoke, though not quite.

Well, it's very late now. I try to be conscious about my sleep schedule, but it doesn't always work. This has been quite a lengthy introduction. And now, I bid farewell.

Continue reading "Introduction" »

Posted by Jade Liu at 10:55 PM | Permalink