Global Business and Digital Arts at University of Waterloo

Gina (Year 2)

ginajiang@hotmail.ca

@ginajixng

What did you wish you knew before going to your university? What made you choose this institution over all others? What are advantages and disadvantages of your institution or campus? List any advice for incoming first-year students about your university.

One thing I wish I knew before coming to university was how to properly manage your home life, mental health, wellbeing, studies and social life effectively. The transition from high-school to university was quite the shock to my wellbeing and I underestimated how much care I needed to implement into my body.

What did you wish you knew before choosing your specific program? What are the advantages and disadvantages of your program? List any advice for incoming first-year students about your program of study.

I really love my program, it has a variety of courses you can take that are beneficial to the pathway you wish to pursue. The flexibility of my program is something I really like because you have four electives to choose from in your bachelor's degree. One thing I wish I knew before choosing my specific program would be coding. I wish I had past experience with coding, it would have made my first year less stressful.

What was your favourite university experience?

My favourite experience was meeting people my first year and living away from home. You get to be independent and live the “first year” lifestyle. You learn a lot about yourself and what you’re capable of.

What was your least favourite university experience?

My least favourite experience at university would be doing Computer Programming (CS) assignments. Especially in CS 106. It was a huge leap from the previous course, CS 105 and I really struggled with the content. So of course, the assignments did not come to me easily.

What is the hardest part about your program and what were the steps that you took to overcome any difficulties?

The hardest part about my program was CS. To overcome this struggle, I thoroughly paid attention in my lectures and asked questions whenever I had any doubts. I also frequently went to TA's for help. Although this was not recommended by professors, talking about the course work amongst your peers really helped me overcome the hardships of CS.

If you were able to take electives, what was your favourite elective? If you were not able to take electives, what was your favourite course and why?

My favourite elective was VCULT 100, the course where I got to review wonderful films and do assignments based on the films I watched. I really enjoy films and analyzing them, as well as the components that go into making films.

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