• admissions,  Transferring

    WILL I GET IN?!?!

    April 15, 2014

    WILL THEY ACCEPT ME AT ST. GEORGE (FROM UTM) IF I HAVE A 3.1-3.2 GPA? TELL ME PLz. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE?

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

    hey there,

    ARE YOU HAVING A STROKE? DO YOU NEED EMERGENCY CARE BECAUSE I CAN SEE YOU ARE SHOUTING QUITE URGENTLY.

    dude, if you’re gonna type in all caps, i’m pretty much obliged to make fun of you. just a little bit. just ’cause it sounds like you’re shouting to a stranger over the internet, and you don’t need to be doing that, you know? so i gotta poke fun. but don’t you worry, i answer everyone’s questions; you don’t need to shout to be heard.

    alright, your question. are you talking about transferring? ’cause that’ll depend on the program/stream you applied to. whatever it is, whether you’re accepted will depend on whether you completed the?program requirements and your previous averages. you can take a look at the anticipated grade range of accepted students for fall 2014 and the average averages of students accepted in 2010 to gauge where you stand. your application to transfer will basically be treated like an application from grade 12 to uoft, so those numbers still apply to you.

    also, if you need to convert your GPA to a percentage, you can use this. i don’t have any more specific knowledge than that, unfortunately. i wish i did.

    i hope that’ll help you stop yelling so much. it’s bad for your larynx, y’know.

    best,

    aska

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  • subject POST

    from POSt to POSt

    April 15, 2014

    I want to change from Health studies to Sociology which is still under social sciences. Do i just have to change my Subject post? To add any other majors and minors that are not under social sciences, do i just change the subject post? Thanks.

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

    hey there,

    well, the process is different depending on what type of subject POSt you enrol in, but since the Sociology specialist, major and minor are all type 2L subject POSts, I’m going to talk about the process of enrolling in a 2L subject POSt.

    so what you’ve gotta do is go into ROSI, enter the code related to your desired POSt, and request the POSt. then your status will be ‘requested’ for a long while – until decisions are made about who’s in the POSt and who’s not. that happens around late june/early july. at that point, your POSt status on ROSI will change from ‘requested’ to either ‘invited’ (an invitation which you can then accept) or ‘refused.’ you can take a look at the criteria they use to determine acceptance into the program here.

    if you are refused, you may have a chance to apply again during the second request period, which is between july 2nd and august 31st.

    also, if you want to get out of Health Studies, you’ll have to drop it on ROSI, same way you added it.

    peace out,

    aska

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  • courses

    silly pigeon

    April 15, 2014

    Hi,

    I was just wondering if you knew when the Fall 2014-Winter 2015 timetable for UTSG is going to be released? It probably sounds kind of impatient to be asking this early, but when the Summer 2014 timetable was released I think one of the pages said something about the Fall schedule being released at the end of March…

    Thanks for your help =D

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

    hey there,

    it’s up!

    best,

    aska

    P.S. i initially linked to the course calendar instead of the timetable; i’ve just changed it. i guess I’M the silly pigeon now.

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  • OSAP

    an osap follow-up

    April 15, 2014

    hi, i’m returning for my second year at uoft. i’ll only be getting 2?credits this year though, so my course enrolment start time is in july. so?i was wondering am i just suppose to wait till after i enrol to apply for?osap? i want to apply for the 30% off mostly, but they tell you to apply as?early as you can. i was just wondering cause i wasn’t on osap last year. i?realize this is sort of a dumb question, like, i assume you enrol in your?courses first, enter your student number (and all the tax form stuff) on?the osap site and that’s how they get the 30% off, by actually seeing your?course load. so its needs to be done in that order. but i just thought i’d?ask, y’know?

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

    hey there,

    the main thing you have to make sure of is that you apply as early as possible before the deadline to defer payments, which is not the same date as the date you enrol for classes. you don’t need to be enrolled in your courses for the year when you apply for OSAP, just as long as you’ve enrolled in them by the time you actually have to be, y’know, taking classes.

    course enrolment isn’t really directly related to applying for OSAP – it’s something OSAP checks up on after you apply, later in the year. the important thing you need to focus on is having your application in well before the deadline to defer payments, which is August 19th at the downtown campus.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • OSAP

    what a(n) (o)sap!

    April 10, 2014

    Hi,

    I’m entering 3rd year this upcoming term and, financially, my school savings just aren’t enough. This may seem like a simpleminded question but, how does one apply for OSAP??Also, are there specific deadlines I should be aware of??How will I know if the application is successful? Will anything appear on ROSI?

    Thanks!

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

    hey there,

    i really wish you’d specified which term you were going into. does ‘upcoming’ mean the summer or fall 2014? *diva sigh* accuracy, people…

    ‘s ok, i’m over it now. so, if you’re taking courses in the summer, you’ve missed the march 31st deadline to apply for osap and defer payments. you’ll now need to go physically to enrolment services and fill out a deferral form – that is, if you’re not able to pay for the courses in full by april 24th.

    if you’re talking about fall 2014, then you’ve got lots of time left to apply, but you should still do so as soon as possible. the application opens in may, but the sooner you apply after that, the sooner you will be assessed* and the sooner you will be all ready to defer your payments** in august. there’s no real deadline for osap; just make sure to have it done a couple weeks before the date you need to defer payments to the school, which is august 19th.

    as for applying, it’s fairly straightforward. it’s done online, and utm has released a really great step-by-step powerpoint about how to do it if you haven’t before (but obviously just don’t put UTM as the school you’re attending if you’re downtown or at UTSG).

    OSAP typically communicates with you by e-mail when anything significant happens, good or bad, so just keep an eye out there for information about your application. but don’t worry too much about verifying if you’ve done it right; if you just go through the steps and fill everything out as the website prompts you to, you should be fine.

    i don’t think anything happens on ROSI when you apply; you just go to ROSI to defer your fees after you’ve applied for OSAP.

    i hope that all made sense. please e-mail me if you run into any problems!

    best,

    aska

    * assessed = i.e. for financial need, which determines the amount of funds released to you.

    ** deferring payments = osap gets released to you in chunks throughout the school year. ?this means that if you’re getting osap to pay your fees, you need to let the school know that it’ll take you some time to pay them, but that you understand it’s your responsibility to pay them, and that you will pay when the money is available to you. this is done on ROSI, and is called “deferring your payment.”

    P.S. by the by, it’s not a simple-minded question. believe me, i wish i’d had someone to ask about it when i first applied.

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  • admissions

    a funny joke that’s worth reading

    April 10, 2014

    Here’s the sitch I’m in grade 11 and getting high 80’s and 90’s in everything except biology (high 70) Will this affect my entrance next year? I want to apply to st george

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

    hey there,

    i doubt it, dude. your grade 12 marks are generally more important than your grade 11 marks (and by generally, i mean in every case except early admission, which is when the university sends out a handful of admission offers in december to people who applied in october/november; but don’t worry about that). you should just go by what they say here; since they’re only talking about grade 12 marks there, that’s what you should focus on.

    also, i guess it’s around the time of year when i’m going to be getting a lot of questions like this, so YO, GRADE 12’S, LISTEN UP: i don’t have much to tell you about admissions that isn’t on the admissions website already. like, i can probably share a personal anecdote or say something funny about your question, but usually, the admissions website and this document?are basically what i’ll be referring to to answer the bulk of your questions.

    now for something funny, as advertised.

    are you ready for this though. i don’t think you are.

    what do you call a really fast zombie?

    …

    ….

    a ZOOMBIE! ha!

    best,

    aska

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  • residence

    choosing a residence building

    April 10, 2014

    Hi 🙂 I received residency offers from SMC for the coming year, I was wondering out of the 4 buildings at SMC, which one is recommended? I really just want a room that has good natural light, but I can’t really find any photos of inside of the buildings.

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

    hey there,

    unfortunately i don’t know off the top of my head because i am much too lame to live downtown, but the thing that would be most helpful for you, i think, rather than trying to find pictures, is to go on a residence tour. especially now that it’s going to be nice and sunny for a while, it’ll be the perfect way to figure out exactly how you feel about each residence building.

    best,

    aska

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  • career choice

    career choice SHOWDOWN

    April 10, 2014

    Hey Aska,
    I’m in a real dilema here. I just got accepted into OISE J/I program, and I’m excited and all, but the horrible job market for teaching in Ontario is a real bummer. I also got accepted into nursing, but after a 5 year undergrad experience, I’m not too sure I want to go through another 4 years. Nursing is great but the shift work and immense stress is also troubling. Plus OISE is cutting half its program and extending the program from 1 year to 2 years starting in 2015. I’m at a lost here, and I’m really not sure where to go next year. Please offer me some advice ='(

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    it seems to me you’ve already done some research on this. you probably know more about the job market for teachers in Ontario than i do, and you probably know more about nursing. i could dig up some statistics for you that might tip you one way or the other, but i feel like you can do that on your own, so i’ll just try to change your perspective a bit.

    to me, whether you do 2 years or 4 in school is not the main concern. either way, in under a half a decade, you’ll be finished with school, and ready to spend at least forty years on one career. since that amount of time massively eclipses the time you’ll spend in school, i think you need to focus on that. the question, then – which i will continue ramming down all your throats ’til you’re sick of it – is what you’ll enjoy more.

    if you really want to be a teacher, then having to travel to another country to teach shouldn’t be enough to put you off that career. of course, moving is demanding, and trying to do your job in a culture (and sometimes a language) you are unfamiliar with is incredibly hard. shift work is also hard, especially in such a physically and mentally demanding job as nursing. but, like, life is hard, you know? jobs are hard. i have the best job imaginable, and sometimes even i wake up tired and don’t want to commute for two hours to get to it, and sometimes i mess up at work and i feel stressed out about my mistake for the rest of the day. it happens.

    no matter what you do, your job is going to come with roadblocks. but the career you pick needs to be something that you love enough that you are willing to push through the roadblocks. and yeah, i think those roadblocks should be part of the consideration: are you willing to move province or country if you can’t find a job teaching in ontario* are you willing to work long shifts at strange hours? but also, consider what it is you really want to spend your life doing. i know that’s easier said than done, especially when there’s no way for you to test-run the job, so to speak, in a volunteer or internship position.** but that’s the thing that should ultimately determine your decision, i think.

    sorry i can’t give more help than that. hopefully this gives you something to chew on, at least.

    best,

    aska

    * by the way, i understand that it is super tough landing a teaching job in toronto, but it’s not impossible, especially if you start applying for tutoring jobs and stuff now to build your resume.

    **though if you?can get a volunteer position at a school or hospital, i’d highly recommend it; that’ll definitely well-inform your decision.

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  • 12 distinct credits

    aska learns how to succinctly explain the 12 distinct credits rule (whoo!)

    April 8, 2014

    whats the rule on courses that qualify for both your majors? do they count for both?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    the rule is called the ‘12 distinct credits‘ rule. a quick (but not foolproof!) way of calculating the number of credits that you can share between majors is to add together the number of credits that both majors require, and then subtract 12.0: the remainder is the number of credits which can be applied to both majors.

    however, it can be pretty tricky to keep track of this yourself, so feel free to check with your registrar’s office to make sure you’re following this rule properly. degree explorer also does a good job of monitoring it as well.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • courses

    missing an interview

    April 8, 2014

    Hi,
    Okay I’m going to be honest I’m pretty sure I messed up. I wanted to take?Chinese and you have to go to an interview, but a last minute home
    emergency thing happened, I had to skip out on the rest of the day,?including the interview and couldn’t get anywhere near an internet?connection or a keyboard until a good 6 hours later. I emailed the?coordinator and said I was sorry and it was all my fault, but I still want?to be able to take Chinese even if it means next next year, how fucked am I?in terms of, “the coordinator thinks you’re a douche”. I don’t know how to?navigate this situation, I don’t know if this will affect me badly, or if?it will seriously hurt my chance of getting into the class. I’m dumb I?know, but HOW dumb and HOW much trouble am I in. I really needed this class?for my EAS major and now I’m panicked and dejected and I’m afraid I should?never go near the department again and learn Chinese from the internet.
    – please i need some advice/help

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

    hey there,

    ok, firstly – calm down. e-mailing the coordinator was the best possible thing you could do. i don’t know how the coordinator will handle the situation, and i don’t know enough about the program to even begin to speculate, so i’m not going to. the one solid piece of information i could find about these interviews is this:

    “Those who are enrolled for a course or waitlist on ROSI who fail to follow the instructions and attend the interview/placement test for their course (if applicable) will be automatically removed by the department. Alternative interview or test times are not available.”

    however, don’t take that as gospel. if the coordinator e-mails you back, you may be able to work something out. if not, hey, there’s always the next enrolment period.

    i hope it works out,

    aska

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  • Toronto

    just give up now

    April 8, 2014

    Hi, I have a simple question. How to survive winters in Toronto? Any tips?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    here’s a tip: abandon all your pride. just do it. because if you don’t, you’ll convince yourself that there’s a chance that you can get through the winter in little boots and cute, tiny jackets. you’ll believe you can get through the winter alive and still look cute as heck.

    well, i tell you what’s gonna happen if you choose to believe that: you’ll spend 5 months slipping and sliding around on the ice, cursing the wind that blows right through your jacket and leaking water from your nose that freezes on impact with the air. at that point, you won’t care that you look cute. you’ll hate yourself for looking cute.

    so, in the name of your own sanity, just accept that you’re going to spend the better part of the school year looking like a fleecy manatee. buy warm, columbia jackets. buy real boots. buy a hat that fully covers your ears – cute little beanies that hang off the back of your head ain’t gonna cut it. buy real mits and a thick scarf.

    if you’re going to be commuting to school – or even for the walk between your residence building to class – you should have a playlist on your phone/music player of songs you actually, currently like. otherwise, you’ll drive yourself insane taking off your gloves every three minutes to skip to the next song you can tolerate in your library.

    warm tea or coffee can make even the most blizzardy day a little better, especially in the morning. yeah, you might burn your tongue, but you’re a torontonian now. you’re hardcore. some fried taste buds before class won’t shake you.

    if you’re gonna be living in residence, buy some portable heaters. notice i made ‘heaters’ plural.

    and finally: try and enjoy it! if you’ve never had a winter in Toronto or even Canada, your first one is going to be a little magical, no matter how much you despise the cold (and believe me, i despise the cold). build a snowman with some friends. go skating in nathan phillips square. walk along the harbourfront while it’s snowing. enjoy the christmas lights along bloor street. hold hands with a crush in the name of ‘warmth.’ and try to remember: spring will come back eventually.

    i hope that was helpful!

    best,

    aska

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  • grades,  UTM

    professional writing? pah. I’M a professional writer. totes.

    April 4, 2014

    Hello! I’m a first-year student from UTM and plan to minor in Professional Writing and Communication.. However, I’m not satisfied with what I’m getting right now in WRI203 (basically the intro course) (my midterm is a 77 which is defs okay, but I’m VERY sure that’s gonna plummet in the end). Is it really going to be detrimental for me to repeat a course in the future? Thanks!

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    well here’s the thing: if you pass the course, you actually can’t repeat it unless it’s required for the subject POSt you want to get into and you didn’t get the required mark the first time around. now, WRI203 is a prereq for the minor, so you’re good there, but unless you get under 70% in the class, you can’t retake it. that might seem like bad news, but on the other hand, you’re guaranteed to get into the subject POSt as long as you get above a 70%, since it’s a type 2 POSt!

    if you happen to get lower than 70% and decide to repeat it to get into the subject POSt, i don’t think that should be very detrimental at all. i assume you’re asking about grad school when you say “IN THE FUTURE,” but grad school isn’t the same as like, someone who wants to get into med school and has an LWD on their transcript.

    repeated courses are not an awfully big deal – the only effect will be on your GPA. but most grad schools don’t even consider first year when calculating the GPA of an applicant, so i think you’ll be alright. as for jobs and stuff, one course is not even worth thinking about for the employer, don’t you worry.

    best,

    aska

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  • subject POST

    oh you kids and your ultimately detrimental, high standards

    April 4, 2014

    Hi aska!

    I’m a first-year student at UT and planning to do a specialist in actuarial science. (“Students must take MAT137Y? and obtain a minimum grade of 65 and ECO100Y and obtain a minimum grade of 70 in order enrol in the specialist or major program in actuarial science. Enrolment in the actuarial program generally occurs between 1st and 2nd year after the two required courses have been completed with the minimum required marks.”)

    Including one course i took last summer(MAT138H1S), if I pass all the course this year, I will have 4.0 in total( PHY131H1F, MAT137Y, ECO100Y, MAT223H1S, CSC108H1S).

    I totally screwed my first-year, I feel depressed every day and night. I m not making excuses, i should have handled it better.? I might not able to obtain the minimum grades, both mat137 and eco100,? i only have a 63 for MAT137, and a 59 for Eco100.

    The worst scenario: I failed my eco100, am i gonna get kicked out?

    The second worst scenario, I passed my eco100 and mat137 with poorly grades, am i allowed to retake them next year in order to get in the actuarial science program?

    Thanks.

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

    hey there,

    firstly, don’t be so hard on yourself. you don’t know how many e-mails i get from first year students in variations of your position. whether the program/university wasn’t what they were expecting, they weren’t ready academically, or they just couldn’t put their heart into it, it’s all legitimate. so don’t beat yourself up about it, k? i mean, calculus almost sent me off a tower in first year, so.*

    if you fail ECO100, you won’t get kicked out of school, if that’s what you’re asking (is that what you’re asking?). you won’t even get put on probation unless you finish first year with under a 1.50 GPA, so don’t stress about it.

    since ECO100 and MAT137 are requirements for the actuarial science subject POSt, you can retake them next year – they’ll be designated ‘extra’ courses and won’t count towards your degree or CGPA, but they’ll be considered for admission to the POSt when you apply (go to 2. under “Extra” Courses: 100-series, Repeating and Excluded Courses).

    good luck my friend,

    aska

    *fun story about my calc 2 prof: he was the most beautiful man i’ve ever seen in real life. he was in his mid-thirties, he had a penchant for wearing plaid shirts with his sleeves rolled up halfway and – get this – he had tattoo sleeves on both arms. and they didn’t look stupid, either, if you get what i mean. he also had studs in his ears and beautiful, brown eyes. he taught calculus at 8:30 in the morning three times a week, but guess what? i always went. those tat sleeves were probably a big part of why i got a good mark in that class.

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