Academic Purgatory

Exams are two weeks away from today. (eeek!) LSE has a six week summer term period for exams, and mine all fall within a week of each other. Three of them are back to back, actually.

I've labeled this post academic purgatory because I wake up studying, fall asleep studying, and I do believe I've been having dreams with economic theories.  I knew this summer term would be rough, but I've never experience anything like this before. Having no exams, quizzes, and hardly any graded assignments during the first 20 weeks of this year has placed a direct impact on my studying this term.
Truthfully, I stayed consistent with the materials that we were learning each week. I reviewed during the Christmas break. I completed my weekly STATA assignments due to the random grading of one of them. And, yet, I'm still nervous for what is coming.

Essentially, I feel that I am cramming as much material in my head as I can before these exams. We are given access to past exams, and I've detected the patterns of exam questions and topics. But, at the same time, I've reread so many textbook and articles that sometimes I feel my brain has turned into mush. Yes, at Syracuse, I did sometimes cram the night before a test, and I was fine. This is entirely different.

But, it's a learning experience. It's the UK higher education system. And, I signed on for it.

Just two more weeks...

And, so the 2nd term comes to a close.

I literally feel as if I just stepped back off the plane at Heathrow in January. 

Time flies. So quickly. 

And, yet, my second term of grad school is now officially over! 

The weeks were long with numerous STATA assignments, readings, essays, and group projects. But, as always, it will be worth it in the end. 

For now, though, I've got a five week vacation to start.

See you Monday, Dad!

End of the Semester is Upon Us

I cannot believe that the term ends in two weeks. I feel as if I just got back from my winter break at home. As usual, my spring terms just fly by. I felt like that for all four years at Syracuse.

The semester has been a long run full of many essays, STATA assignments, projects, and readings. While I have had many sleepless nights this term just like the last one, I know it will all pay off in the end. 

Since we have a five week break following the end of this term, I have started to do some exam prep and time management for that ahead of time. Getting used to the UK system of exams is going to be difficult. I am trying to get ahead in the planning as even though I plan on doing some work in the early mornings and evenings on my few weeks of travel, some days I may not be getting anything done. 

But, enough of exam talk now, I have a list of things to do before the end of the semester sprinkled among a lot of fun things. For now, here's that list as I must get back to reading: 

-2 STATA assignments to go

-1 management essay

-2 management projects (same topic, first one is non-graded, second one is)

-1 non-graded economics group project

-1 government group project

-too much reading to count

-MPA ball

-MY 23rd BIRTHDAY

-Schedule several events for the Pi Phi Alumnae Club (I'm the new Vice President of Event Planning!)

-And, so much more!

Lent Term Begins!

Ahhhhh...the smell of a new semester! 

Or, term as they call it over here.

Lent Term officially begins today. While my schedule and courses stay the same for the semester, I'm looking forward to getting back into a routine. My day consists of my usual four hours of econometrics for Monday, but I'm actually really looking forward to dealing with STATA and problem sets today!  

One change that I will see with my courses this semester is that my economics class will begin to focus on macroeconomics until final exams. As for everything else, I will be interning with the internship that I landed at the start of the Michalmas Term. It was delayed starting, but I'm looking forward to having a few other things in my life besides math and game theory!

If you will excuse me now, I need to get coffee and get to work!

End of Michaelmas Term

As I sit here writing this blog post, I've got the last bit of laundry drying and trying to decide what I really need for three weeks at home. Honestly, I still cannot believe I've been done with my first term of graduate school since Wednesday. Time sure does fly when you were trying to balance the heaviest course load known to man, an internship, and a general life. But, here, I am...December 16th, and finished.

The last week of term consisted of a final STATA problem set of the term, government group project, economics homework, and a management working group outline for a project. All of that was on top of the usual reading for the week, final activities, etc. Yet, all of it got done. Monday night, I only slept four hours, and Tuesday resulted in a 30 minute nap at my desk around 6am. But, if you know me, that's usual. I'm the type of person to just stay up and putter through. 

As you saw from an earlier post this week, I got to go to the Mumford and Sons concert on Tuesday. Still on cloud nine...even though it is Sunday now. Wednesday evening, the girls and I grabbed drinks at the George celebrating our freedom for a month and then went for a quick bite to eat.  More to come on Thursday- Sunday activities...

Honestly, as I look back now, time flew by. I'm a new person with a new outlook on different career options,  math, and life, itself. Tomorrow, as I board my two planes to go home, I'm excited for a break, but already counting down the days till I'm back! 

"Spoonful of Sugar"

Well, if you cannot tell from the title of this blog, I've come down with my usual fall cold/sinus infection. The weather, lack of sleep, and being around my peers who have also been sick contributed to my sickness for the past few days. Thankfully, today, I'm finally feeling better. Surviving on OTC medicine I brought from the US, it was clear that I should have registered with the NHS earlier on. I'll be doing that next week, so if I get sick again, I can at least get some prescription medicine.

Despite being under the weather, I've had a fairly busy week. Monday-Wednesday, I had something due in all my classes. For the most part, the assignments that have been due aren't graded. A lot of them are for feedback which is nice, especially with economics! We had our first big STATA problem set due this week in econometrics. That could be graded since three of them are randomly chosen and averaged to make up a percentage of my final grade.

Outside of classes and trying to get over my sickness, I've joined the LSE Think Tank Society. I'm a committee member with helping to organize a roundtables around US politics due to my background. It should be fairly interesting to work on for the entire year. This weekend, the first years are having a MPA BBQ which I'll be attending along with trying to get ahead in some of my reading. It's not a secret-grad school is hard!

Sorry for the quick update, but I'm off to the Public Sphere Journal meeting! It's a journal just for MPA students to contribute too!