The P.A.L. Program: Elodie Archives

24 November 2011

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

I hope that everyone is enjoying the time off!

Now, you're probably wondering: "Elodie, why are you blogging on Thanksgiving day?" The answer is this: my mom is taking the opportunity of me being at home to work on my resume, which is especially important since I'll be graduating soon.

Now, I'm not saying that you have to work on your resume right now (because, really, you should be spending time with family, unless family is insisting on updating that resume of yours), but here are a few tips on how to start/improve your resume!

Continue reading "Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!" »

Posted by Elodie Tong-Lin at 5:59 | Permalink

18 October 2011

How To Stay Healthy

Hello everyone! Hope that everybody's been doing well, and that few of you have gotten sick. With the Mumps outbreak and flu season coming up, here are a few basic tips to stay healthy!

Continue reading "How To Stay Healthy" »

Posted by Elodie Tong-Lin at 8:24 | Permalink

19 September 2011

What I Wish I Knew as a Freshman

Today is one of those days. Those days where I look back at my past three years and think about the opportunities and resources that I wish I had known earlier. As a senior, graduation is looming close and I'm thinking to myself, "wow, in over 8 months, I am going to strike out in the real world." And boy, do I not feel ready at all!

Besides the fact that I don't want to leave college so quickly, there's still so many things that I wish I knew earlier and thus take advantage of opportunities earlier. Here are the things I wish I did as a freshman:

Continue reading "What I Wish I Knew as a Freshman" »

Posted by Elodie Tong-Lin at 5:52 | Permalink

12 April 2011

Tele-Bears Strategies (Phase I vs. Phase 2?)

Here are the basics of Tele-Bears:

During Phase I, you can sign up for a maximum of 10.5 units. Units for courses that you are on the waiting list for also count toward this 10.5 unit limit. The reasoning behind this is to distribute the distribution of class sign-ups and prevent "shopping around"-where people sign up for classes that they are sure to drop.

Generally, you should use Phase I to enroll in priority courses or classes that fill up quickly. You can check the Online Schedule of Classes (schedule.berkeley.edu) to see how full any particular course is and decide which classes to sign up for in Phase I.

Here are some tips for making those decisions:

Typically, if an elective is almost full, you might want to take that over a required class that is almost empty.
If you are taking a CNR class that is required for your major, chances are that there will be reserved seats for your major. Even if you don't get in Phase II, there will most likely be special considerations and the instructor might give you a course code. (Essentially, you have a better chance of getting in.)
Check to see if your classes are offered the semester after (i.e. if you are enrolling for fall, is the class offered during spring?) If you don't get in one of them, there is the option of taking it after the upcoming semester. On the other hand, if you don't sign up for a class that is ONLY offered during spring or fall, you won't be able to take it for another year.
When navigating the Online Schedule of Classes, make sure to click on the Current enrollment information and course restrictions (below the enrollment data). From here you can see updated enrollment information, and whether or not seats are reserved for any majors. If there are seats reserved for any major (not your own), then there are fewer seats available to you. This must be taken into consideration.

Hopefully this has helped you. Remember that Peer Advisors are tabling Monday through Thursday from 9AM to 3PM, and are open to any questions (including specific prioritizing of classes)!

Continue reading "Tele-Bears Strategies (Phase I vs. Phase 2?)" »

Posted by Elodie Tong-Lin at 0:07 | Permalink

28 October 2010

Flu season is Coming!

I was just in Moffitt Library yesterday and for whatever reason, paused my music and heard, "Yeah, I just got sick last night. I'm still feeling kinda feverish." -cue cough followed by blowing of nose- I turned to my right and, just as I had feared, the speaker was just a few meters away from me. I quickly finished up what I was doing and made a hasty retreat. Still, it seems like I've still been 'infected' since I woke up with mild symptoms.

As students, we fear getting sick because it affects how well we study for upcoming exams. I am no exception. I'm the kind who only has mild symptoms every now and then, but when I actually get the flu, it's bad. (At one point in time, I was so sick that I coughed non-stop until I was practically choking on lack of air. It really wasn't pleasant, at all.)

In the spirit of staying healthy, here are some tips on how to avoid the flu and how to get better if you do have the flu.

Continue reading "Flu season is Coming!" »

Posted by Elodie Tong-Lin at 3:07 | Permalink

01 October 2010

How to Dodge the Procrastination Bug

"There are a million ways to lose a work day, but not even a single way to get one back. " -Tom DeMarco and Timothy Lister

You may delay, but time will not. -Benjamin Franklin

Procrastination is opportunity's assassin. -Victor Kiam

It isn't easy keeping up with coursework. As Richard Gibson of the Student Learning Center (SLC) mentioned two Wednesdays ago at CNR's "How to Study for Biology" workshop, "you are never done." You can keep up with your classes and still not be done. And the procrastination bug just makes this situation even worse.

At Berkeley, being able to be up-to-date with the material can be what differentiates between a good grade and a bad grade, depending on your definitions of each. For example, I have suffered from the procrastination bug in the past two years and have gotten B's where I could've gotten A's if I had spent more time and procrastinated less. In fact, I still procrastinate every now and then, but I've learnt how to handle and better manage my time.

Here are some of the ways that I find work for me, and hopefully will work for you:

Continue reading "How to Dodge the Procrastination Bug" »

Posted by Elodie Tong-Lin at 8:36 | Permalink