School

Well, it’s barely just going to be the third week of school and I think time literally just crawled. Alright, it’s not that I’m a wimp or what, but I think the school system here is really intense that I think I have never ever done so much work before in my whole life…

Alright, let me ignore the extra-curriculum activities first. Looking at just my lectures and tutorials schedule, things look really wonderful – I just have 15-16 hours worth of lesson times a week! Sounds fantastic right? Now here comes the disgusting part – my tutorials are on issues which are certainly not ‘simple’, and my lectures are usually eons behind my tutorials. I find it so weird that lectures are more of revision, while I’m trying my best to read far and wide just to attempt to answer my supervision questions.

Well, as you all know, reading widely literally took on a new meaning here. In the past, additional readings are really just stuff to read up on if you are interested, but over here, additional readings are like essential readings! That’s not very nice especially when every tutorial the reading list can be 5-7 items long. And I hate it when they are relatively technical.

Hmm, there are occasions are which I wonder whether I picked the right school, especially since I could have gone to Chicago. Seriously speaking, I’m still trying my best to grasp the direction my lecturers and supervisions are headed – as of now, I treat them as up to me myself to work, read and learn. If I wish to do more, go ahead. There isn’t really much of a guiding path? Hmm, I mean it’s really interesting to keep on reading about new stuff, but there comes a limit as to whether am I over-stepping on the limits, and exploring stuff which I don’t have the skills to do so. My sis was complaining as well that my tutorial questions are like NUS year 3/4 work! Is Cambridge seriously that fast pace?

The only relief I have here, I think, is the fact that my discipline is so nicely balanced between reading and doing maths that when I’m sick of doing either, I just turn to the other. That has indeed been a huge relief thus far.

Ok, enough of attempting to torture you all with my ramblings. I’m headed to Oxford tomorrow so I will come back posting pictures!