Australian schooling is very different in some aspects, yet similar in others. The campus is much the same as a typical college campus in the U.S. Lots of big buildings, lecture halls, auditorium style seats with the little table that folds on the side. My Uni - University of New South Wales - happens to be build on a gigantic hill, so we have "upper campus" and "lower campus" and there's a few massive staircases connecting the two. At this rate, my legs should be pretty toned by the end of the semester! This campus has a lot more little stores and shops throughout. They have quite a few cafeteria/buffet type areas to grab a bite, LOTS of coffee shops (Australians love their coffee. And they don't brewed coffee - only expressos!), plus convenience stores, and even a hair salon! Class structure is basically the same: Lecture for 2-3 hours a week and a tutorial. Tutorials are classes of about 20 students from the lecture where topics are discussed further, much like a recitation for those of you who have/had those in college.
The biggest difference in schooling is how we are assessed. Each class is basically the same: one essay, one exam, and participation. That's it. That's the entire grade. I see it as both a blessing and a curse. It's really nice that we don't have to spend our time studying for little quizzes that end up not counting for very much, and there's no weekly homework like I'm accustomed to, but there is SO much weight on one project. I'm definitely going to have to adjust my study habits to accommodate. I'm definitely a procratinator, and that is definitely not going to fly in this system. I've already been surprised by the amount of reading required before each class... I'm quickly learning that I definitely need to leave myself enough time to be thourough.
My favorite class so far is entitled "Innovation and Entrepreneurship." I'm in a team for the entire semester and together we build our own business, and by the end of the semester we will be pitching it to real executives, who will it turn critique our pitching style and our business. I'm looking forward to this for a number of reasons... Dad will know one in particular! =) But in this class I'm actually getting to meet a lot of locals and get a sense of what they're like. The tutorials for this class are pretty fun. Instead of small discussion groups, we have real entrepreneurs come and give talks about how they started their businesses, tips for success, troubles they had, etc.
On the topic of non-school related issues, my roommates and I took a walk along the eastern coast from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach. (See pictures at the bottom.)You might think if you've seen the ocean once, you've seen it a million times, but the coast here is like nothing I've ever seen. It was breathtaking! It was amazing looking out to the ocean and knowing that there's nothing out there for thousands and thousands of miles. We were hoping to see some dolphins or whales, but no such luck! I can't wait for it to warm up a bit so we can lay out and go swimming!
One more thing to comment on before I go. Most Australians are very environmentally conscious. People take canvas bags to store and grocery stores all the time. ALL the time. Some stores (i.e. Target) even charge if you want to put your things in a plastic bag. Sydney is honestly the cleanest city I have ever seen. Walking along the streets downtown, where you would expect to see little in the drains, and little specks of garbage on the sidewalk, there is none! It's great! I was really impressed walking along the coast as well. I thought trash might be thrown in the ocean and wash up against the rocks, but nope! I love it! The city transportation is amazing and highly used. They don't have big SUV's and literally no trucks (but they do have lots and lots and lots of little cars!).
Here are your promised pictures! If you have any questions for me or anything, please comment and I will answer them in the next blog! Hope everyone back home is safe and well =) Love, Em.
From left to right: Me, Vessie, Hannah, Hali, Halana
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