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Psychology at University of Western Ontario
Noopur (Year 2)
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.Â
I chose Western because from what I had seen, they not only prioritize academics but the social and personal wellbeing of their students. Western has a variety of clubs and councils targeting different demographics, allowing for us to find other people who share our interests. A minor disadvantage to its campus would be that many of my classes were in buildings that were almost a half hour walk from each other which made it difficult to reach different classes right after one another. The transit in London wasn't reliable as the busses would either not show up at all or arrive late which left walking as my only option. Other than the transit and the distance between buildings, my overall experience at Western was amazing. (also the parties were pretty fun too)
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.
Going into first year I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted to major in and how university really worked. However, I would say it was my fault because I didn't do as much research as I should've. If I could go back I would tell myself to do more research and explore different career paths to find an environment I would excel in. I think that both the advantage and disadvantage to my program would be the same. Psychology is a very broad and general major meaning that there is so much that can be done with it but also that if you're not sure the exact career you want to pursue, it may leave you even more confused.
What was your favourite university experience?Â
My best university experience would probably have to be the dining hall at residence. I can honestly say that I took the different amenities that Western residences offer for granted. The dining hall would probably be my favourite part because of the different meals they served and they have vending machines on every floor so most of my res money was spent there.
What was your least favourite university experience?
Most of my worst experiences involve me sleeping through my alarms, missing the bus, giving up and just not going to class.
What is the hardest part about your program and what were the steps that you took to overcome any difficulties?
As of now I don't see anything hard about psychology. My first year courses consisted of Psych 1000 (Intro to Psych) and then two math courses which weren't really that bad. Psychology is a lot of memorization though and some of the upper year courses have a lot of content which may be difficult while balancing other coursework. A helpful study tip would be either using flashcards, using condensed sheets per unit to highlight all the important information, study groups or just doing the readings as you go so you don't have to cram a night before the exam. Your studying methods really just depend on whatever works for you though.
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?
I took a lot of different courses in first year cause I didn't really know what I was doing with my life. My favourite course would probably just be Intro to Psychology (Psych 1000). If we're being honest, I didn't really need to go to class but the information that was covered was really interesting. It was a pretty easy course and the exams were not cumulative which made it better.