i wish i had known how to better choose my courses. i was also in life sci. and the way i chose my courses was like this: 2 bio, 2 chem, 2 physics, 2 kine, and 2 math....over the course of the year, i failed twice, ended up dropping some courses and replacing them with "easier" courses...anyway, take those courses that YOU ENJOY...
for example: an alternative i could've done was take 2 bio, 2 chem, 2 psych, 2 kin, (should've left math and physics for the summer) ... i did not keep any consistency in the courses i had chosen in first year, and it really hit me hard...u have to realize that u have VERY less time than the time u get in high school in a typical semester, so staying on top of things is hard and extremely important

another thing...i quoted the word "easier" above:
most life sci people take enviro 1a03 as an elective because people tell them that its a "very easy" and a "bird" course...it is an easy course but u still have to put in quality work to get a 12. u always have to put in the work.
**i used enviro 1a03 as an example only. there are many other courses.


dont overestimate yourself or do more than your body can take. i m only saying this that overworking in high school and overworking in university are different experiences. get adequate rest...TRUST ME, many people will do this ...

and most important thing: dont calculate your potential final mark after every assessment. if u did crappy on ur first chem lab, and then telling yourself that u r gonna get perfect on the remaining labs isn't very realistic. sure u should aim for a perfect mark...but dont waste your time calculating your "potential" mark...just work hard and stay on top of everything. i would recommend that u use a big white board (that u can hang in ur room) and writing down all the things u have to do, all the things that are coming up etc....i dont like to use agendas as i use them once but dont look at them again

and best of luck in your first year. its a hard year but also doable with the right strength and motivation.

I just finished first year so I don't really anything else to compare it to, but it wasn't as hard as i thought it was going to be. It came with its own challenges, but it was still do-able. I don't know how I ended up skipping class and procrastinating and becoming nocturnal by the end of the year..but proper time management, good sleeping patterns and NOT SKIPPING CLASS are very important, and you can do well if you have these three down.

Also:

• studying in groups can be incredibly helpful, assuming that you're all focused!
• don't buy textbooks until you've gone to the first class because profs can change their mind and you can gauge whether you need a textbook at all (I really wish I had known this before-.-)
• Welcome Week is not the only chance for you to make friends. It actually got awkward at times, the conversations with people you meet then are pretty prescribed (what program are you in, where are you from?). I found that I made most of my good friends in the first few months, but not at welcome week. Especially in science, it's hard because classes are so big, but don't be afraid to say hi and talk to someone and decide to study together for a course, everyone wants to know more people. Also, getting to know people in your rez or near your rez is easier because you have a higher chance of seeing them again (unlike meeting someone in class, sometimes you never see them again).
• take notes in class, don't rely on full posted notes at the end of the week because some profs just have pictures and words circled
• allnighters seem to be your friend at first, but they end up screwing you over BIG TIME when you start using them too often. trust me, this isn't worth it and you end up going to a midterm or exam half-asleep. Never pull an allnighter the night before an exam, if you have to at all. it might work the first time, but it'll get you sooner or later.
• mastering chemistry (online practice) actually helps you, so do it earlier in the week so class is easy to understand (also, doing chem questions > reading chem textbook!)
• do bio pre-tests with another person so that you can see the different questions you may be asked (and do all three tries even if you get perfect on the first try so that you see all the potential questions)
• try not to get behind on psych web lectures! they can really pile up and it sucks having to do a whole bunch of them at one time!
• do tutorials when they are given!

Sorry if this has been said already

In addition to what everyone's been saying, I think it would be super beneficial to take a course outside of your faculty. I provides that balance - sort of like a break from thinking in a science-y way all the time. Like, I took Philosophy - I really enjoyed it and got an awesome mark.

I'm not saying philosophy is easy for everyone. Obviously you should really have an interest in your 'different' course.

Don't ever wait for things to happen to you or for people to approach you or for opportunities to be presented to you.

You're your best friend and your worst enemy depending on how you choose to spend your first year (and entire undergrad career, for that matter)


University is what you make of it.

Originally Posted by epikness

i wish i had known how to better choose my courses. i was also in life sci. and the way i chose my courses was like this: 2 bio, 2 chem, 2 physics, 2 kine, and 2 math....

Looks a lot like what I took in my first year:
Bio 1M03, 1A03
Chem 1A03, 1AA3
Physics 1B03, 1BA3
Psych 1X03, 1XX3
Math 1A03, 1AA3

To a large extent, I felt your pain. At the time, I was under the impression that I wasting my time when I could've chosen easier courses like physics 1l03/math 1ls3, inquiry, etc. It felt like I was working so hard when I could have chosen easier courses and gotten higher grades by putting in less work. You see, I had forgotten why I took these courses in the first place. I simply didn't want to waste my time relearning boring things I already knew (even if it meant less work). I welcomed the challenge.

Luckily, things worked out for me, and by the end of first year, I had met the prereqs for ANY science major that I wanted (including physics, chem, bio, psych, math and physics, everything).

Hard work pays off.

I just finished up my first year in Life Sciences I .. these are the things I wish I knew...

1) The more you ask about a course, the more mixed answers you'll recieve. Bottom line is that every person has different opinions about the courses they took, and many times the same profs don't teach the same course every year. Also, they make changes to courses based on feedback that the students give at the end of every year! If you think you will enjoy a course, go for it! in the end, you'll probably end up with a good grade because you're actually interested in the material.

2) You CAN NOT escape PHYSICS 1B03 If you took Grade 12 physics, its better to just get it over with in first year. Even if you took Physics 1L03 in first year, many second year programs require you to complete 1B03 by the end of second year. I made this mistake and didn't take 1B03 and now I'm stuck taking it in my second year while everyone else is taking courses they are actually interested in. My advice would be to look into second year programs that you are interested in and see what the requirements are to complete your degree.

3) Office hours do help. I was in denial my first year and figured that I could learn all the material by myself. This is NOT true. During the end of second semester, I FINALLY decided to go to office hours, just to see what they were all about. To my surprise, I discovered my prof sitting at a desk with a whole group of students having a group study session for the full two hours! You could ask questions, or simply just sit and listen to other people's questions. I'm not sure if all profs do it this way, but if I would have known this at the beginning of the year, I would have gone to every single office hour there was.

4) Textbooks ARE helpful. Almost all of my classes in first year followed the textbook to the tee. I was actually very shocked that most of the information on the lecture slides came WORD FOR WORD out of the textbook! This is a great tool to have if you are a self-learner. I found it very helpful if I didn't understand a topic discussed in class, because chances are the textbook gives a lot more information on the subject!

5) Used textbooks are not so bad after all. I made the mistake in my first year of going to Titles and buying all of my textbooks brand new. BAD IDEA. If you can find the same version on the Macinsiders marketplace, the Titles classified section, or anywhere else, GO FOR IT. I spent close to 800 dollars on my textbooks while my friends saved huge money buying them used! Their books were in great, if not perfect condition for half the price!

6) Small assignments/quizzes worth 0.5% - 2% really do help. This is by far the best advice I can give. There were countless times where the words "oh well, its just 0.5%" came out of my mouth. Did you know that 3% can be the difference between a B+ and an A- ? It is sooo frustrating knowing that you were only 1.5% away from getting the mark you were hoping to achieve in a class. Guess where that 1.5% could have came from? Those little assignments that you forget about or choose not to do because "they're only worth a little." Trust me, they add up.

7) Remember to take time to meet new people and get involved at Mac outside of the academic world. McMaster provides students countless opportunities to get involved in the McMaster community. Join a club, help out with a fundraiser, or go to 1280 one night and just let loose. There's a lot more to university than studying 24/7.

Hope this helps !

oh man i wish someone told me earlier on in first semester that you should start considering your 2nd year programs right away (Life Sci), and told us of all those options so we knew which courses we should take for first year to get into those 2nd year programs.

Don't get addicted to caffeine, it does not substitute for sleep.

Going through withdrawal-like symptoms after exams isn't fun.

Not sure if this has already been posted (I would honestly look, but there are too many pages to this post), but go out and explore the city. Yeah yeah, Hamilton is no Toronto, we get that, but it still has a lot to offer. More in the historic sense, mind you, but still. Take a bus downtown, go to the part of Cootes that's off campus, go to the mountain, etc.

This applies for both commuters and well as those living on campus. Seriously, leave the school.

Originally Posted by macsci

Luckily, things worked out for me, and by the end of first year, I had met the prereqs for ANY science major that I wanted (including physics, chem, bio, psych, math and physics, everything).

Hard work pays off.

Just to clarify, you would have needed an extra math course to get into a math program (MATH 1B03).

But agreed, doing and learning something new is always a payoff, especially since I've found all the professors I've had thus far enjoyable to some degree.

Originally Posted by AelyaS

Not sure if this has already been posted (I would honestly look, but there are too many pages to this post), but go out and explore the city. Yeah yeah, Hamilton is no Toronto, we get that, but it still has a lot to offer. More in the historic sense, mind you, but still. Take a bus downtown, go to the part of Cootes that's off campus, go to the mountain, etc.

This applies for both commuters and well as those living on campus. Seriously, leave the school.

The first Tim Hortons is in Hamilton so that would also be cool to check out.

http://www.forgottenbuffalo. com/fo...mhortons1.html

Where is the closet Starbucks to campus?

Yes- I'm going into second year and I think that for first year they demand quite alot, but if you have mastered time management and organizational skills - you'll do great!

Originally Posted by particle

Just to clarify, you would have needed an extra math course to get into a math program (MATH 1B03).

But agreed, doing and learning something new is always a payoff, especially since I've found all the professors I've had thus far enjoyable to some degree.

I had conditional acceptance to math and physics. The condition was the completion of Math 1B03 during the summer. I did end up taking math 1b03 that summer.

Originally Posted by lordnerd

Where is the closet Starbucks to campus?

There's one in the hospital cafeteria. Go to HSC, walk in and go past the Williams that's across from the RBC ATM inside. Follow the signs to the caf.