• bad times,  probation,  suspension,  UTM

    just keep swimming

    July 6, 2016

    Hi Aska,
    How are you?
    I have recently been suspended from UTM (I have a CGPA of 1.41) and I tried summer school and ultimately disappointed myself and my parents (they work very hard for me yet I could not do such a simple task) SO now I have a year off and I have this unruly fear that if I stay out of UTM for too long I am gonna lose whatever drive I have to study (and based off my gpa, not
    so much). I just do not want to come back to UTM after a year and make the same mistakes. I am totally aware of my mistakes and I demand redemption next year.

    tl;dr Im suspended for a year and I dont want to lose my drive to study. How do I maintain an academic mindset?

    Thank you so much and you are forever appreciated in my heart!

    ———————————————

    hello!

    i’m doing pretty good, thanks for asking!

    firstly, school is hard. don’t feel discouraged if you’re struggling. so you had a minor setback – it’s okay. you are not alone and you have a lot of support at UTM.

    the number one piece of advice we have for you is to keep in contact with your registrars because they are there to advise you in all your academic endeavours. sit down with your registrar to formulate a good plan for your undergrad. ask yourself if you truly enjoy what you are studying. if not, consider switching programs. since you seem to have trouble staying motivated, regular check-ins with the registrar will be extremely valuable for you so you can be held accountable and be less likely to slack off.

    furthermore, there are a number of academic resources available at UTM including workshops and skills development sessions. they are designed to help students develop better study habits and i’m sure they’ll be very helpful.

    some other pieces of general advice i would offer are:

    1. don’t be too hard on yourself because you can’t win them all. in the grand scheme of your life, this will only seem like a minor setback. don’t let this discourage you and bring you down.
    2. acknowledge small victories. if you finish a chapter of reading or get through a day of class, reward yourself with a treat. little progress is still better than none at all.
    3. set goals. lists are very useful when setting goals because there is a certain kind of satisfaction that comes from checking something off your list. set realistic goals like, “today i will put on pants” or ” i will attend all classes this week.”

    and there are obviously other things like exercising regularly that you could try. some people claim that you ACTUALLY feel better after exercising and you don’t actually feel like you’ve been run over by a train, but that’s just my opinion.

    during your year off, i would encourage you to try reviewing some of the course material from your first year to practice good study habits. it might seem pointless since you’ve already gotten your grades back, but at the end of the day, you’ll feel a lot more confident and prepared to tackle your second year if you feel like you know your first year material very well. use the time that you have to better your habits, and you’ll see results in the new year.

    random inspirational tidbits:

    alfred pennyworth: why do we fall sir? so that we can learn to pick ourselves up. – the dark knight rises

    THIS VIDEO is probably one of the most inspirational videos i’ve ever seen in my life. i think it’s a lot more inspirational than dj khaled.

    but nonetheless, i appreciate you too.

    good luck on getting back into the groove, we here at askastudent believe in you! may the force be with you.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • life science,  psychology,  science,  UTM

    sorry they don’t care about you

    June 3, 2016

    Hello, with regards to priority enrolment at UTM I was wondering if a psychology major gets priority with classes such as Biology, Chemistry and Math. I know that Life Sci students are the main priority but do psychology majors also fall into that group since it is a Science?

    ———————————————

    hey!

    you are definitely right, students in life sciences will get priority if they are in majors such as chem, bio, or math. as a psych major, you’ll only be getting priority in psychology courses.

    the only kind of exception ish (cue paramore) to this rule i could find is that that there is one bio course listed in the psych major (pg. 325) that you could put towards your degree:

    BIO304H5: Integrative Animal Physiology (located in the Biological Bases of Behaviour Section)- but even this course has prerequisites that you have to take to which leads you to a seemingly endless loop of other courses with prerequisites. i’m assuming the biology department peeps will know that psych students can use this for their major and while still giving priority to actual bio students, they might take your major into consideration.

    if you are determined to take these courses, you can probably consider doing one of those subjects as subject posts.

    basically, psychology is in a completely different department than all of the other subjects that you mentioned and there would have to have a better excuse than “it’s also a science” to give you secondary priority.

    i hope this helped!

    cheers,

    aska

     

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  • frosh,  subject POST,  UTM

    short and sweet

    March 1, 2016

    Hey aska.
    Ok I have a ton of questions so I’m just going get straight to it.

    1. So at this moment I’m not sure if I want to do a specialist, double major or a major and two minors. Is there one that is necessary/recommended for grad school? Also I know you can apply to as many Posts as you want but can I apply to the same one. For example can I apply for a human biology specialist and major and then decide after which one to do? Also Is it possible to do 2 majors and a minor or 3 majors or a specialist and a major? I want to go to grad school but Im not sure if I want to do bio, chem or physics cause I just love them all. *sigh*

    2. I’m a first year student right now and I want to take some classes at UTM next semester that are part of my program so how do I do that? Do I have to speak to my registrar? Is there a limit on the # of classes I can take?

    3. Me and my friends all became friends in frosh so we were like “we should all be frosh leaders next year!!!!” So i want to know how do we become frosh leaders? What’s the process and where do we apply? We’re at St mikes BTW.

    Thanks homie G

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    1. nope. yep. yep, nope, yep. take a look at these programs maybe.
    2. all you gotta do is sign up for them on acorn and then find a way to get out there for class.
    3. applications typically open around April/May. i would recommend keeping an eye on these channels so you’ll know when applications are out. interviews/the application process generally happens through SMCSU, in collaboration with the Dean’s Office.

    cheers my home slice,

    aska

    P.S. thank you for specifying what college your from – that made answering your question UNBELIEVABLY EASIER. let this be a lesson to all those who might be tempted to send in VAGUE QUESTIONS that force me to make SWEEPING GENERALIZATIONS that just don’t help out anybody.

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  • dean's list,  UTM

    #UTM #dean’s list ok this better come up on google now

    August 7, 2015

    Hi, Is there a dean’s list for UTM? I have a 3.5+ gpa after finishing first year (5.0 credits) but heard nothing about the “dean’s list”. Is it a UTSG thing only?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    nope, it definitely exists for UTM too. hang tight, though – as far as i know, St. George students haven’t received their Dean’s List letters yet either, so you might hear about yours later on in the summer.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • subject POST,  UTM

    have you considered: being an underachiever

    July 9, 2015

    Hey Aska, is it possible to do two specializations or one specialization and a major etc. I’m looking towards forensic psych specialization and a biology/health sciences major, or forensic psych specialization and microbiology specialization. Thanks for all your help (:

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    UTM, eh? yeah, i can read y’all like a map.

    well, you can enrol in up to three subject POSts, only two of which can be majors or specialists (see page 3 of this guide). so if you wanted to do a specialist and a major, or two specialists, that would be fine.

    i mean, i’m not sure it would be?fun, but it’s allowed.

    peace & harmony,

    aska

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  • distribution,  easy,  UTM

    *bill nye voice* inertia is a property of matter

    June 16, 2015

    I’m sure you’ve been asked this before, but for those of us who were maybe a bit naive and short-sighted in high school and didn’t take any Grade 12 U-level math or science courses: what are our options to fulfill the one science credit requirement? Preferably @ UTM. There’s a super-incredible course in CCIT (my intended major) that’s a science, but requires a first year intro to psych course, which of course requires 12U math and biology.

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    well, if you’re keen on that super-incredible course, you can always take 4U math and biology in summer school/night school. (math is also available through a uoft program called PUMP, though we don’t have any equivalent for biology, unfortunately).

    buuuut going to school in the summer sucks, so let’s consider some other options, shall we?

    there are lots of introductory science courses which favour the strengths of a humanities or social science student (i.e. no scary math or graphs to be seen). most of these courses don’t require any high school science courses, or ask that you have any previous familiarity with the course material.

    a few of these courses include:

    ERS103H5: Geology and Public Issues (gain the skill to confidently sprinkle the term “anthropocene” into regular conversation)

    ENV100Y5: The Environment (learn how 2 have opinions about climate change)

    BIO201H5: The Biology Behind the News (learn to read and understand parts of the newspaper other than the comics and crossword sections. next – a course on understanding the Financial Times)

    PHY100H5: What’s Physics Got to do with It? (for those who “want to gain insight into this interesting and important field in a non-intimidating way.” no five kinematic equations for you.)

    and there’s plenty more. note that you don’t have to take a first-year course, but upper-year courses generally have prereqs, so do keep that in mind.

    when you get a chance, spend some quality time with the course calendar and see if you find any other courses that spark your interest – and don’t have any pesky prerequisites attached.

    to make sure a course fills your science distribution requirement, check whether it’s labelled ‘SCI’ – only these courses will count towards your distribution requirement.

    happy hunting!

    aska

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  • St. George,  UTM

    Mississauga deer vs. the St. George…pigeons

    June 11, 2015

    Hello, I was wondering what you think about UTSG and UTM campuses, in your opinion which one do you think is better both academically and socially, or are they pretty much the same?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    full disclosure: i’m a UTSG student, so i have more experience with the downtown campus. however, i don’t have like, any special allegiance to St. George, so don’t expect this post to have any prejudices.

    my only true allegiance is to the original Oreo. don’t talk to me about that faux-marhsmallow double-stuffed crap. i’m definitely prejudiced against those.

    UTSG (academic): the downtown campus is an all-arounder when it comes to academics, mostly because it’s so big. no matter what your interests are, you can probably find a good program to satisfy them. UTSG is neither a liberal arts or a STEM university – both mix and mingle within the Faculty of Arts & Science, which is pretty unique.

    especially notable undergrad programs include engineering, rotman commerce, and international relations.

    UTM (academic): UTSG has a lot of programs, but it’s not flawless. a common complaint from downtown campus students is that their degree has no real-world applications. which is a pretty reasonable complaint considering we’ll all be DROWNING IN DEBT after we leave this place.

    in addition to having a solid (albeit smaller) selection of programs to match UTSG’s, UTM has a few programs unique to its own campus, which bridge academic study with real world experience nicely.

    the most notable of these, i would say, are the Institute of Culture, Communication of Technology programs, management programs, and forensic science program. to be honest, the fact that UTSG doesn’t have its own communications program is kind of baffling to me (though our closest equivalent, Book & Media Studies, is gr8).

    UTSG (social): if you want to have a social life on the downtown campus, you have to make it happen. the Faculty of Arts & Science offers a lot of flexibility in terms of mixing and matching programs, but that means that being in a certain program doesn’t guarantee you’ll see the same people all the time.

    making friends means putting yourself out there, here more than anywhere. and there are opportunities to get involved in the community, be that your college community, the community around your academic department, or a certain extra-curricular organization.

    however, it won’t come to you. you have to actually join stuff – which can be annoying and hard. if you’re commuting (which a lot of downtown campus students do), that makes things even more difficult.

    also, UTSG can feel a bit old-boys-y, especially if you’re part of one of the older colleges. that can sometimes put people off.

    so there is community here, but it’s hard to find, and a bit all over the place. there is almost definitely a community of people here that’s perfect for you. the trick is to find it.

    UTM (social): UTM is a lot quieter than UTSG. it is also a lot smaller. the lack of a college system means that there is no intra-faculty bickering, which will save you a headache and a half. also, if you’re planning on living on rez, you will a part of the UTM residence community, rather than just the rez community at one college, which is very insular and can feel a little bit like being back at high school.

    UTM tends to be a bit more peaceful than the downtown community, and students will often see deer on campus.

    that said, you likely can’t sustain yourself for four years based on a friendship with a deer.

    UTM also shares the rather unfortunate status of commuter school with UTSG, making community harder to build and maintain. relatedly, Mississauga is quieter in terms of things t0 do than Toronto, so if you’re someone who loves the nightlife, then you may want to think about that.

    hope that helps! see ya around in September maybe,

    aska

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  • first year,  UTM

    go to your own campus, stay a while

    June 9, 2015

    Hi, I was wondering if you can clarify something for me, I’m going to be attending UTM this September (first year) and I was wondering if I could take a history/political science course at UTSG? When I checked it said “You are eligible to take courses at other U of T campuses only after you have successfully completed 4.0 U of T Mississauga credits.” Does this mean I can’t take courses at another campus until after first year?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    yes, that is correct. honestly, it’s probably a blessing in disguise. you don’t want to be hauling your exhausted flesh bag of a body to and from Mississauga on a bus twice a week. enjoy UTM, and then you can bugger off to Toronto, with its reckless pedestrians and confusing campus, after first year.

    by the way, it’s kind of irritating to me that i didn’t know that rule off the top of my head. hmph. i think this calls for another day of unnecessary pouting and too much takeout food.

    see you on the flip side,

    aska

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  • subject POST,  UTM

    “programs”

    June 2, 2015

    Hi! I accepted my offer to utm for the psychology program, but I want to transfer to the life sciences program to major in biology. To do so would this be after first year? And I would need to have a minimum of a B average? Thank you in advance!

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    honestly, i wish the university would stop admitting people into “programs” right out of high school, because it just creates unnecessary confusion for everybody. do they enjoy it? DO THEY LIKE TO WATCH US STRUGGLE?

    everything they told you has been a lie.* you’re not really in a program. you may have been admitted to the general area of psychology, but you’re still going to have to apply to your subject Program(s) Of Study (or “subject POSt(s),” i.e. your actual programs) after first year, anyway.

    lucky for you, even if you’re not in life science, you can still apply to their programs.

    as long as you complete 4.0 credits including BIO152+5 (MAT134 is recommended) and finish with a 2.0 CGPA during your first year, you can apply to the biology major program after first year.

    also, you’re going to need to accompany that biology major with either another major or two more minors (learn more about acceptable combinations of subject POSts and how/when to sign up for them here).

    so yeah. first year is all just a program-less lie. fortunately, a general first-year means that you have some room to make mistakes and reinterpret your entire life and have an existential crisis or two. so at least your inevitable confusion is all built into the framework of your degree.

    i hope you have a wonderful first year. try to enjoy getting confused.

    xoxo,

    aska

    * well. not?everything. that would be?melodramatic. and aska is?never?melodramatic.

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  • commerce,  UTM

    come, comma, commerce

    May 20, 2015

    I am terribly sorry to bother, but i need help. I am very new to the whole system in Canada, so i have problem. I applied to UTM (mississauaga) in Commerce, however due to some personal issues, i was inAble to continue with calculus. I dropped it. After that i got two alternating offers, i was wondering if there is anyway to enter Commerce again. I am willing to do whatever it takes but i CCan’t take the course during the Summer, (personal) i am willing to do whatever it takes. Even if it means taking an extra year in Universitu with Calculus as an elective. I was wondering if i did accept my alternate offer, will i still be able to switch back to Commerce in Second year or first year? What if i took Calculus as an elective( if i can) will i be able to go back to Commerce? Please i will do anything. I promise to do my best, but please tell me what to do. How can i go back to my Program? If i took it as an elective or anything. please. Should it be a prerequisite in highschool or am i allowed to take all the prerequisites for Commerce as alternatives in the first year and apply in the second year to Commerce? Please help me please. Thank you.

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    it’s totally possible to get into commerce after first year. there are just a few things you’ll have to do.

    thing #1: you’ll need to get that calculus requirement under your belt. MAT133Y5 is required for admission to commerce after first year. however, MAT133Y5 recommends that you’ve already completed high school calculus (with at least a 70%) before taking the course. as someone who lived through the hell of first year calculus, trust me that it’s probably a smart idea to stick to that recommendation.

    you can take high school calculus in summer school or night school before then enrolling in MAT133Y5 in the summer, after your first year, or even your second year. alternatively, you can take UTM’s Prep. for University Calculus course, MAT100H5.

    thing #2: you’ll also want to take everything else required for commerce: MGM101H5, MGT120H5, and ECO100Y5. none of those courses have prerequisites, so you can feel free to take them in your first year. just keep in mind that you’ll need a 63% (at least) in each to be eligible for commerce.

    thing #3: because of calculus, you may have to wait until after first year or even second year to be eligible to apply to commerce. don’t let that frustrate you. it takes everyone a different amount of time to finish their degrees, and it’s rarely a straight path from high school to graduation, for anyone.

    if commerce is really what you want to do, then be patient and work hard, and you can get there eventually. however, take advantage of your alternate offer to explore what UTM has to offer. you may find that another program is a better fit for you – and that’s ok too.

    best of luck, chum,

    aska

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  • UTM

    who made me the monarch of management

    May 13, 2015

    Is a 2.60-2.75 cgpa high enough to get into the management program at utm?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    that depends, amigo. the minimum GPA you need is a 2.5, so you’ve met the minimum requirement you need to be considered. however, “[t]he exact required CGPA varies each year depending on the number of applicants and their grades,” so the better everyone else’s marks, the stiffer the competition.

    but how many people apply? what is the average CGPA of people who apply to the program? unfortunately, these are questions i don’t know the answers to.

    however, just from personal experience answering questions on this website, management tends to be a popular program, and that probably means it’s fairly competitive. it might be best to have a backup POSt or two just in case you don’t get in.

    sidenote: your admission to the program depends on a few other factors in addition to GPA, so just make sure you’ve got those under your belt before you apply. you’ll need to have completed MGM101H, MGM102H and ECO100 with at least a 63%, and need to have completed at least 4.0 FCEs.

    best of luck with your POSt application!

    aska

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  • transfer credits,  UTM

    fLOP that transfer credit

    May 8, 2015

    *Latrice Royale voice* Aska you look sickening today, you fabulous thing you. I’m going to go into my last year at UTM this September, and I’m a bio kid… but I have a secret: I’ve been taking calculus at Athabasca online. Third-year me didn’t realize there was such a thing as a LOP, and I’m about to start the second course that counts for MAT134/5 at UTM, but now I’m scared that the OffReg won’t accept my efforts, especially since I took about 9 months for part I because of health. Wat do? 🙁

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    latrice royale in charge

     

    thanks for the compliment, man! means a lot. and right back at ya.

    (sidenote: is ‘OffReg’ what y’all utm-ers call the registrar’s office? man, it’s like a whole different world over there.)

    i hope the courses you’ve been taking at athabasca are MATH265 and 266, because according to transfer explorer, those are equivalent to MAT135Y1 at utm.

    it’s not impossible to get transfer credit without a letter of permission. the university says that “[s]tudents who take courses at another institution without following one of these processes may still be eligible for transfer credits,” so it’s definitely still possible that you’ll get the transfer credit. and it’s a good sign that transfer explorer is recognizing it.

    however, just to save yourself some time, it might be best to talk to your OffReg* as soon as possible and see whether they think you’re likely to get the credit.

    cheers,

    aska

    * see? i’m learning.

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  • first year,  St. George,  UTM

    indecisive sam

    May 4, 2015

    Hi! So I am a grade 12 student who applied and got accepted to UofTsg for life sciences and UTM for chemical and physical sciences both with the same (rather high) entrance scholarship. In both grade 11 and 12 I took AP bio, chem, physics, and maths and I really enjoyed and excelled in all of these courses (to give you an idea, my current average is in the high 90s with my science and math courses having the highest marks). In grade 11, chem was probably my favourite science however this year my interest has shifted toward biology. I know for sure that as of now, I don’t want to go to med school to become a doctor but I would really enjoy pursuing something in a similar field such biochemistry or pharmacy–however, I am totally undecided and definitely open for change! I basically love science in general and I have yet to find out what I can do with that.
    I have heard so many rumours about UofTsg life sciences being a GPA killer and I’m scared that going there will basically ruin my chances of getting into grad school …or anywhere for that matter. On top of that, many of my peers also preach that UofT is NOT the way to go for an undergrad especially if you’re getting in to the sciences as they have had family/friends who have had terrible experiences there. If it wasn’t for this horrifying image I’m getting of UofTsg I would most likely decide to go there. But now I’m thinking that UTM might provide an atmosphere that is better suited for me if I am still trying to find my path … But of course I have no idea what the experience at either campus in either program would be like. I love both of the campuses for what they have to offer, and both programs seem to tend to my interests, so the only other factor to base my choice on is something I have yet to experience for myself. This entire decision-making process is driving me insane I have no idea what to do!! Some insight from someone who has first-hand experience would be greatly appreciated 🙂

    Thanks for bearing with my rant,
    Indecisive Sam

    ———————————————

    hey there Indecisive Sam,

    first things first: i know this wasn’t really a question, but you’re not going to fail all your courses in first year. if you have an average in the high 90s, and you continue to work as hard as you did this year, you should be okay.

    definitely, first year will be harder than grade 12, but it won’t be impossible. a big part of the difficulty is that you’re trying to adjust to all these lifestyle changes while keeping up with your school work. first year is a challenge, but it’s not rigged. you can succeed if you’re passionate about what you’re studying, and you put in the work (and you don’t have a nervous breakdown halfway through the year. remember, eating and sleeping is not optional).

    now that that’s out of the way: unfortunately, i can’t tell you whether to go to UTSG or UTM. i can’t even give an authentic, personal account of both campuses, because i’ve never been to UTM. what i can tell you is that i love the downtown campus. i love that it’s in the city, and i love that it’s big enough that you can dip in and out of different small communities within the university. i love the old buildings (yep, i got sucked in by that old shtick).

    however, a lot of people find the downtown campus very isolating. they don’t feel like they belong anywhere. a lot of the faculty of arts & science colleges have long and storied traditions that are wonderful, but can make you feel like an outsider if you don’t fall in easily with them.

    some other things you might want to consider when deciding on a campus include: which residence you like better (if you’ll be living on res), what scholarships each campus may be offering you, and what extra-curricular or experiential opportunities each campus may offer in your field of interest (internships, clubs, etc.).

    finally, i know this is a super frustrating thing to hear because it’s not – at all concrete, but sometimes just spending a bit more time on campus (both at UTSG and UTM) can be helpful. sometimes you get a gut feeling about these things.

    and if there’s no gut feeling, stop into the regal beagle for drinks and poutine while you’re at the downtown campus so your trip isn’t a complete waste.

    best,

    aska

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