askastudent - your student life specialists

choosing, fun & places, study abroad

to abroad or not to abroad

February 24, 2024
Hey Aska,

I have a bit of a dilemma.

I want to go on exchange for a semester or even a year, but I’m not sure if I’ll be able to afford it – or if I want to extend my degree by a year.

I’m double majoring in Political Science and European Affairs, and for an exchange I can see myself studying in Britain, France, Spain, or Belgium. The thing is, I’m a transfer student to UofT- I’m in second year of uni, but it’s my first year here. I started my degree at Dalhousie, didn’t like it, took a gap year, and now my friends from high school are in third year while I’m in second. I kind of feel behind, a little bit. Which I know I’m not. But, I also don’t want to be spending six years getting my Bachelor’s when it’s already going to be at least 5 total. It’s also not ideal financially, especially as I plan on getting a master’s.

This brings up another consideration: I plan on doing my master’s degree in Europe, so it’s not as though I won’t have the opportunity to study there in the future. However, I really want to experience the undergraduate experience abroad. Summer courses are, of course, an option, but I try to work in the summer to supplement my income.

I’ve applied to a summer abroad course, knock on wood that I get in, but I still wonder whether I should put aside a semester or a year to study abroad – or maybe to do an internship or work term placement.

Time and money are precious, but I also value education, and want to make the most of this time of my life.

Let me know what your thoughts are.

I’m just kind of rambling and wanted some guidance and someone to bounce ideas off of.

Thanks

hey there,
1. my take on exchange
hm. this is indeed a dilemma if i ever did see one. so you’re double majoring in poli sci and european studies. it absolutely makes sense for you to go abroad to europe for your studies—it would be super beneficial for you to have that exposure and world experience. and to be so real, i absolutely support you for really wanting to have that undergrad abroad experience, especially in europe! it just sounds fun and cool lol.

but i feel you, bro. i’m kind of in a similar boat, weighing the decision to take a longer time to complete my degree to enjoy it more, while trying to stay grounded with the financial practicality of it. not to mention the nagging feeling of being behind all my friends, and also maybe wanting to take a masters, which would add more years to this situation.

but the good news is, a LOT of people go through this same thing, and i’m learning that it is so normal to take 5 or 6 years for undergrad. like, so normal. in my opinion, it’s better to get the most you can out of your degree and flush it out for what it’s worth rather than just rush to complete it faster—assuming it’s financially viable for you. because being in undergrad gives you so many opportunities and chances to gain experience, and try new things, in every way you could think of!

i’ve never done it myself, but my best friend went on exchange for a semester last summer. my take away from that was that going on exchange during undergrad is a fun, (chaotic), life-changing experience that really broadens your perspective on the world. so, like, these websites aren’t lying to you. it truly is a valuable use of your time and money.

but if you’re weighing it against getting an internship or work term placement, i mean, you can always get those a couple years down the road, right? there’s really only one period in life for you to go on exchange for undergrad. and it doesn’t have to be for a whole year, if you’re worried about that. one semester would provide you with the same experience and something is better than nothing.

2. transfer credits

my question is, will going on exchange really extend your degree by a year? maybe i’m not totally understanding your situation right, but you can transfer your credits earned so that your time spend abroad counts directly towards your degree. however, it’s true that it would depend on your program requirements and what is offered at the host institution you’re applying to. so i would highly recommend checking out transfer explorer to find out what courses you’ll be able to get transfer credits for.

(according to my holy grail, the artsci website, you can transfer a max of 2.5 credits per term for fall and winter, and a max of 2.0 for the full summer session. that’s the same amount of credits you would take in your normal year at u of t.)

3. finances

if your issue is financial constraints, there are scholarship opportunities for going on exchange. you can apply for learning abroad scholarships from the centre for international experience, as well as ones through your faculty/program. they also have a list of country cost estimates to help you vibe out how expensive this will be. and if you’re currently receiving OSAP, you can continue receiving it while learning abroad.

i also see that you try to work in the summer for income. this does put a little block in our road. one option you could consider is taking up a small work-study job at u of t during the fall/winter semesters that has flexible/fewer hours. i know that this isn’t an option for some people depending on where their workload is on the dying-surviving-thriving spectrum.

but work-study jobs at uni know that you are also a student and take that into account in what they demand of your time—it’s called a work-study for a reason! this is a much safer option with healthier boundaries for students, rather than getting a part time job somewhere else, and would give you a little stream of income to help. you would just have to make sure you find one that’s more chill.

anyways, that was lot of thinking for me. time to take a nap.

i hope this helped, and that the ideas bounced off me to your satisfaction. good luck with everything, sending the best vibes your way!!

over and out,

aska
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life science, neuroscience, research

the vibes are good, methinks

February 23, 2024

Hello! Got accepted into life sciences ’24. What are the research opportunities like, how hard are the courses if I’m planning on neuroscience and how’s the general atmosphere (competition, friendliness etc)?

Thank you 🙂

hey there,

welcome and congrats!!

research opportunities

so, asking what the research opportunities are like is like asking where the uoft library is. there are so many in so many different directions, and it really depends on what you’re looking for.

personally, i would say that the research opportunities for neuroscience are very good—from what i’ve heard and general vibes. disclaimer, i am not a neuroscience student. however, i am in another life sci program and there’s a lot of overlap/similarity between life sci programs.

once you get here, there are always events and panels going on (if you know where to look) where you can learn about research opportunities and future pathways for your program. i would recommend checking out the u of t undergrad research students’ association, @uoftursa on instagram, since they post about great opportunities and events on there. also check out this site about research opportunities program courses to take in your upper years. it’s never too early for you to be looking into this stuff, but do keep in mind that research is something people start getting into after their second year.

i would say the best way to hear about opportunities in my experience is from being on the mailing list for your program—you’ll get on this when you get into your program after first year. i currently receive an email every few days about research/experience/scholarship opportunities to do with my program.

also, one of my friends is a neuroscience major, and she has said you can also get into research just by getting to know your profs and asking them if they have any opportunities for students. for example, they might be working on a research project and could use an assistant. however, this is a bit iffy and less common, and i honestly don’t know how she managed to do this.

courses

you can see all the courses you’ll have to take for the neuroscience major listed on this handy dandy arts & sciences website. (i open these pages too often but i do appreciate how convenient it is all laid out like this!!!! big fan.)

though i’m not a neuroscience student, i have taken some of the same general first year courses required for the neuroscience major. specifically, out of the courses listed for neurosci, i took mat135, chm135, and bio120. i’d say in comparison to high school, these courses go through material very fast, condensing a lot of content into each lecture. though some of first year is kind of review, they assume you remember everything you learned in high school and pile new concepts on with the same sort of speed.

my main message to you though is to not be overwhelmed or scared going into your first year life sci courses. everyone around me was literally scaring me so much, telling me it was super rough and difficult, but i don’t think it’s as bad as its reputation makes it seem? the hardest part is just staying on top of the amount of content each week, and not falling behind. like, it’s less about stuff not making sense but more about the amount of stuff and being able to balance all your courses.

general atmosphere

i would say that the competition isn’t too bad in life sci. people are just trying to get through the courses, and nobody’s out to get you or trying to step on you to get ahead (like in rotman). however, in terms of friendliness, it really depends how hard you try to make friends. people mostly keep to themselves, but if you are friendly, you’ll find friendly people! hit ’em with an “it’s so cold today” or a “it’s too early for this” and you’ll be fine.

good luck with everything!

over and out,

aska

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GPA, non degree

so you wanna increase your GPA

February 14, 2024

Hi, I have graduated from Syria and moved to Canada, I would like to so an MBA and I match all the criteria but my GPA is low due to the war situation in Syria, I’m wondering if you know how can I increase my GPA with some programs at UFT so I can get an acceptance for MPA?

hey there,

so you wanna increase your gpa! ok, so the main way that people increase their gpa for grad school is to take courses as a non-degree student.

to do this, you can apply to u of t as a non-degree student through ouac. in terms of admissions, they consider you based on your entire post-secondary academic record and your most recent annual gpa. and once you get in, you would be able to take arts, science, or commerce/management degree credit courses, either in-person or online!

in terms of getting an MBA (master of business administration), i’m not sure if you want to apply to u of t or another school? but i can give you a link for a page about the requirements at u of t.

here, it outlines several requirements about grades, work experience, english proficiency, and the like. for example, you need a final year average of at least mid-B from a recognized university, and a minimum gpa of 3.0 in the final year of your bachelor’s degree.

it also might be useful for you to look into this page about international degree equivalencies, as well as this transcript guide for the MBA at u of t.

that might be a lot of stuff, but it is also stuff for later!

so i would first focus on getting your gpa up. idk why i’m looking so far ahead, someone stop me.

but anyways, if you had more specific questions about getting in as a non-degree student, you can get in touch with enrolment services. and if you want more resources, here is a page about applying in general, and here is woodsworth college’s really great guide to being a non-degree student.

i hope this helps, good luck with everything. and happy valentine’s day! i might have no plans, but i do have a sweet date with a midterm pretty soon! life is so fun.

over and out,

aska

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computer science, minor

if you got into cs, you ate (the competition up)

January 22, 2024

hi aska! I am a 1st year in rotman interested in pursuing a cs minor. I read something on reddit about asking the cs department to grant a minor after completing the required courses, and was wondering if it is possible to get a cs minor without being officially enrolled in the stream? (as I know there is an official application process that’s very competitive)

hey there,

i guess it’s that time of the year when everyone rethinks their choice of programs, huh? it seems like that’s all anyone can talk about these days (the time of year is everyday, All Semester Round! it never ends!)

anyways. take a look at the cs page on the artsci calendar. you’ll see that it is possible to get a cs minor without being officially enrolled in the admission stream. however, it’s true that it is very competitive. i personally have no experience in applying for the cs programs, but the general vibe i’ve gotten is that it’s hard to get into, and hard to stay in — in terms of the coursework. but for getting in, it really depends on how the competition is your year. eat or get eaten i guess?

those in the cs admission stream have different enrolment requirements compared to those in different admission streams:

people already in the cs admission stream have guaranteed admission into the minor, as long as they meet minimum grade requirements: they need a 70% in CSC110Y1 and a 70% in CSC111H1.

meanwhile, to my understanding, those not in the cs admission stream (you) have to fill out a 250 word supplemental application where you answer three questions to tell them about your non-academic skills, like leadership and the like. in terms of prerequisites, the minimum grade changes depending on how many people are applying that year, but grades below 70% will not be considered for admission. the course prerequisites are also different, being CSC148H1, and either CSC165H1 or CSC240H1.

just note that the cs minor is available only in the first enrolment request period, so apply between march 1, 2024 and april 26, 2024.

i hope this helps, good luck, dear future cs student! you’ll be brilliant!

over and out,

aska

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admissions, human resources, management, UTSC

is the human relations program in the room with us?

January 13, 2024

Hello, I hope you’re doing well!!

I am currently a 3rd year student at University of Toronto, Scarborough and wanted to start applying to uoft for my younger sister who is currently in 12th grade.

She has not taken mathematics but wanted to Human Relations or Marketing and as far as I know getting directly into the program for the same is not possible since maths is a requirement. Is there a way she can get in undeclared and finish pre requisites in first year and then apply for her selected program by 2nd year?

Also are there any programs that do not require maths as a prerequisite? If yes would you be able to guide me to the list of the same.

Thanks

hey there,

ok, i have a couple questions. first: what campus is your sister hoping to apply to? and, second… are you lonely, buddy? i think you had a freudian slip there. did you mean human resources or international relations?? ~~if you wanted human relations, uoft is not the place for you.~~ it’s fine, don’t worry about it, this is not the time to unpack all that. i’m going to assume you meant human resources since a human relations program doesn’t exist.

anyways, this isn’t about you, it’s about your sister. so here is some info on the st. george campus (UTSG) since that’s where my expertise lies.

at UTSG, you don’t apply directly into programs of study, but instead into admission categories. all arts and science programs are categorized into these groups as a way to identify your general area of study. each admission category has the same admission requirements for all the programs within it. so for example, the industrial relations and human resources program is under the admission category of social sciences, which only requires high school level english. on the other hand, the marketing program would be under rotman commerce (basically uoft’s business school) where you can take a focus in marketing by enrolling in their management specialist program. but for this, she would still need high school level calculus.

so basically, if she wanted to enrol into the human resources major at UTSG, she wouldn’t need high school level calculus! and even if she did, at UTSG, students apply directly into their specific program of study after first year. and after she’s in a program, it’s pretty simple and common to switch later on if she changes her mind!

but as for uoft scarborough (UTSC), the program application process is a bit more complicated. what i would recommend is having your sister connect with the UTSC recruitment team to see what the options are. unlike at st. george where students are admitted into very broad admission categories, students at UTSC are admitted into narrower fields and have the option to apply to co-op streams, which can complicate things if they want to make a change later into their studies. overall, while at st. george you only have to complete prerequisites or achieve a certain average to apply for a program, at UTSC there might be other restrictions on switching after being admitted.

i’ve heard that the recruitment team at UTSC is always happy to help, so you can’t lose anything by reaching out to them! they’re experts on this and will be able to tell your sister about her options.

on another note, there is a UTSC summer mathematics preparedness course that can be used as a prerequisite for MATA29, MATA30, or MATA32. this could be helpful for your sister!

and finally, let’s get to your last point. there is no existing list of all the programs that don’t require math as a prerequisite, but someone let me know if you want me to actively make one.

for now, here is a list of all the programs at UTSC, sorted by admission category. it seems like the only management program that doesn’t require a math prerequisite is global leadership. but you’ll also see that there are plenty of social science/humanities programs that don’t require math! for general arts and sciences, here is a list of admission categories, where you can click further to see lists of programs per admission category. and here is also a complete list of all the programs in arts and sciences.

good luck to your sister with her application and decision making!!

over and out,

aska

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failing, prereqs, repeating course

prereqs do be wrecking

December 19, 2023

desperately need some help. i kinda did really bad in 3/5 of my courses. i passed my bird courses but the 3/5 that I’m pretty sure I failed….kinda need them. I’m taking the part 2 of those classes next quarter. and I’m taking extra required courses in the summer….what do I do…

i saw this thing on reddit that the part 2 of classes, I might be kicked out if I did bad first semester. do I take those courses again second semester? can’t I take those in the summer…or do I take my part two classes next year. I’m scared for my life I’m sorry for the long question

hey there,

first of all, do not be sorry, my dude. this is not a long question at all.

just to be clear on the situation: you may have failed courses that you need as prerequisites for your classes next quarter and over the summer?

what i’d do is double-check if there’s a certain grade threshold you need to meet in these courses to fulfill your prerequisite requirements. if there isn’t a grade threshold, you don’t need to worry about being kicked out for doing poorly in those prerequisite classes. you just need to make sure you pass the courses.

if there is a grade threshold you need to meet and you don’t meet it, or if you fail the courses, then you unfortunately won’t be able to take the “part 2” courses you have scheduled, nor will you be able to take anything else that has the same prerequisites. the likelihood is that someone in the department will check whether you have the prereqs at some point in the semester, and if they find out that you don’t have them, you can be removed from those courses at any time.

so if you don’t fill your prerequisites this semester, it may be best to focus on filling them next semester, and taking your “part 2” courses in the summer instead.

also, remember not to trust everything on reddit! it’s a good starting point but we see well-meaning misinformation on there all the time. the best thing to do is usually to hit up your registrar. it’s definitely best to ask them what to do since they help people in your exact situation all the time.

i hope everything turns out okay, sending love and encouragement! this sounds really stressful too, so if you ever need extra support, here is a resource that might be helpful.

over and out,

aska

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CR/NCR, grad school

here are the 2 crumbs i found while searching for grad school policies

December 19, 2023

hi, i have 4 courses right now and i really want to CR a course (i will pass thankfully). however, i don’t know how a CR will be considered by law schools, med schools and grad schools. if i don’t CR, i end with a C and while i know uoft med school drops your lowest 2 FCEs and uoft law school only looks at your best overall 3 years of undergraduate study, i don’t know their policy on CR on a transcript. i’d really like to avoid keeping the C if i can. please let me know. thank you.

hey there,

so it seems like you’re asking whether a CR on your transcript will impact your admission into grad schools. the thing is, each law school, med school, and grad school program may have a separate policy on this. so i think the best thing you can do is just reach out to the places you’re interested in and see what they say.

this is such a valid question, by the way. you probably scoured the internet trying to find an answer and came up empty handed, because so did i.

i did however, find a couple crumbs:

some places have FAQs where they may or may not answer this question. first, uoft med school and uoft law school FAQs both do mention CR/NCR grades, though only in the context of covid-19’s impacts in 2020. second, the law school has a page last updated in 2021 that says they consider a CR grade to be a successfully completed course, and that they “will not hold CR grades against an applicant”. but, keep in mind this in regards to academic grades during 2019-2020, so it might not be relevant anymore.

so you could absolutely contact admissions directly about this, and follow up about whether this is still true. their email is on that page, and i don’t think it would hurt to ask!

i’m sorry i don’t have a better answer, but i do think it’s best if you contact the grad schools directly. programs do change their policies, so i don’t want to tell you something wrong, especially with decisions that impact your future.

anyways, i hope everything works out for you, sending lots of encouragement!!

over and out,

aska

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admissions, applying for U of T, extracurricular

everyone is always doing too much. like, do less pls?

December 6, 2023

Hiii! Out of curiosity, does UofT value extracurricular during their undergraduate admission? Here’s the thing, my consular told us that extracurricular is super important so I believed him and really focused on that. After doing some research UofT become dream school of my life but I heard UofT don’t ask for extracurricular. This makes me super stressful since I devoted so much time into those things & Im a BC student, not a Ontario. With an avg of mid 80 is there anything I can do to+the odd

hey there,

so, it kind of depends on what admission category you’re applying for. for general arts and sciences, uoft does not look at your extracurriculars during undergrad admissions. you pretty much just send in your transcript through OUAC when you apply, so that’s all they look at when considering your admission. but if you’re applying to rotman, they require a supplemental application that goes beyond your grades. (rotman is always doing so much).

on that topic, sometimes i feel like everyone is always doing too much. like, please. no. what do you mean you’re involved in clubs and councils and intramurals and have a 20hr job and are taking 5 courses and are still sleeping at night? did you steal hermione’s time-turner? where are you hiding the room full of people getting your work done for you?

anyways, ignore my exam-week-induced rant. if you’re from BC, i think your consular was telling you that extracurriculars are very important because they are, at least for most schools in BC. ubc admissions rest very heavily on extracurriculars, because of a personal profile that some say is more important than your grade average.

every school prioritizes grades and extracurriculars differently, so your consular wasn’t lying. their advice just wasn’t universally applicable. because while extracurriculars are make-or-break for ubc admissions, they aren’t like that at uoft. here, extracurriculars are mostly just important when filling our your awards profile, which is how you would apply for scholarships going into your first year.

something to note is that uoft will mostly just look at your top 6 academic grade 12 grades to compute your admission average. and with an average of mid 80s, i honestly think your odds are pretty fine. most art and sciences programs require top 6 averages of mid to high 80s.

good luck with admissions, shoot another question if you’re still confused!

over and out,

aska

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bored, computer science, economics

condolences to everyone taking eco101

December 6, 2023
Hey, I’m a first year in the CS stream but I’m also taking ECO101 and ECO102 with the goal of double majoring in computer science and economics. My CS classes are going well and I’m really enjoying them, but I find ECO101 mind-numbingly boring. I enjoyed my macroeconomics class in high school, but this class feels like a dull yet somehow confusing version of basic algebra. Will the econ experience get more interesting after first year, or should I give it up now and find something else?

hey there,

well, i don’t think you’re alone in this. ‘mind-numbingly boring’ definitely fits into the genre of things i’ve heard about eco101. you’re not a uoft student if you haven’t overheard people complaining about econ courses or had to listen to a friend complain all term.

but fr that course is difficult so you have all my sympathy.

i’m sorry that i’m not an econ student (this apology is directed both to you and my mom), so i can’t really tell you anything from my own experience with econ courses. but
1. i’ve heard that eco101 is not representative of the econ you learn in the future, and
2. i can tell you that pretty much every single program gets more interesting after first year!
because in general, courses that are required as a prerequisite for a program are going to be on the more boring and/or difficult side of the spectrum. like those huge courses upwards of a few hundred people that people have to take. these tend to cover really broad material and foundational stuff, which is always going to be boring, especially if a course is a requirement for multiple different competitive programs—like eco101.

and when i say boring/difficult, i mean this in comparison to smaller, more specialized courses that you’ll be able to take farther down the road. a good tip someone once gave me is that the more specific and niche the description of a course is, the more enjoyable and interesting it will be — and the opposite is also true! just to be completely transparent though, there won’t be a huge change from first to second year, since you’ll still have to take required courses. but once you hit third year, you’ll be given room to choose between a list of possible courses to count towards your major, and these tend to be much more interesting!

it’s also hard to tell you whether you’ll find upper year econ courses interesting simply because everyone finds different topics interesting. even if i was an econ student in fourth year with all the econ wisdom i’ve acquired, i’m not sure i would be that helpful. like, there are so many econ students out there who probably did find that the courses got more interesting after first year! but then there are also others who didn’t.

i think the best i can do for now is direct you towards econ students who might be able to give you their own answers! the only way i can think to do this is through econ student groups, so here is what i found:

the uoft economics club can be found at econuoft (at) gmail (dot) com, or @econ_uoft on instagram. i’m sure they’ll answer an email or dm, most student groups are really friendly and responsive on their various social media accounts! i think peer mentorship programs could also be a great resource for getting advice on this. i couldn’t find one at uoft specifically for econ students, but there are college specific mentorship programs in clnx’s mentorship catalogue, which you can look into.

anyways, despite all this, i’m glad you’re enjoying your cs classes, and i hope everything works out for you!

(if any econ students happen to read this post, it would be great if you could drop some tidbits of your advice)

over and out,

aska
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choosing, programs, switching

this person’s got some major problems

November 9, 2023
hi aska,

I already changed up my major a few times (you might remember me based on some info, i settled on Cellular and Molecular Bio) and now im in 2nd year catching up on CHM135, 136, BIO130, and MAT135, and BIO270 (and i have no room for 136 this year, so I’ll either take it in the summer or another year). I was considering dropping my other major (PoliSci) down to a minor and picking up chemistry as another minor depending on how well I do in CHM135 (the registrar said I’d just have to apply for the PoliSci minor in the second session before march) and hopefully switching to a chemistry double major. The only problems are

1) I’ve already taken 2 credits worth of PoliSci classes and I’m currently enrolled in another credits worth.

2) My parents REALLY want me to graduate in 4 years.
So should I risk it for the Chemistry major (with the potential for wasted classes — my breadth is already complete) or just do a double minor, or keep everything the way it is?

hey there,

so it seems like your main problem here is figuring out if you can fit these programs into a four year degree, if you switch into them now. let’s start off with what seems like your ideal choice: to major in cellular and molecular bio, major in chem, and minor in poli sci. to graduate, you’ll choose a program combination from the following options (i’m sure you already know this, but just in case anyone doesn’t know this):
1. a specialist
2. a major and two minors
3. two majors
but these are just the minimum requirements, and some people choose to do more! so if you were to do two majors and a minor, the two majors will satisfy your graduation requirement, and the minor will just be an extra program.

when taking a double major and a minor, you’ll want to try taking courses that will count towards two of your majors. a poli sci minor requires 4.0 credits to complete, a chem major requires 8.0 credits to complete, and a cmb major requires 8.0 credits to complete. this means that you need to complete 20.0 credits over all your programs. cmb and chem have some overlapping courses, which will help. for you, most of the first year chm and mat courses are the same between a chem major and cmb major. for example, you can use mat 135 and chm 135 for both your chem and cmb majors.

however, keep in mind the 12 distinct credits requirement. this would only apply to your two majors, since the minor is extra. between your two majors, there are 16.0 credits, so you can overlap a maximum of 4.0 credits.

and then there’s your other option—to major in cmb, and have 2 minors in poli sci and chem. this would include a total of 16.0 credits to complete. again here, you can overlap a maximum of 4.0 credits. i think this kinda seems simpler, but if you want to major in chem, i say try your best to make it happen! you only have one chance at an undergrad degree ~~(and it’s kinda miserable~~), so you might as well come out of it with programs that you want to have.
if you have 2 years left after this one, it’s hard to tell what option will work. it honestly could be possible to do a double major and minor, but i literally can’t tell without knowing what courses you’ve already taken, and if taking summer school is possible for you. i really think you should take some time and plan out each option for yourself. i would recommend mapping things out on degree explorer, and counting exactly how many FCE’s you need, while making sure you have 12 distinct FCE’s. (this can be confusing, which is why i am gifting you a 12 distinct credits worksheet).

finally, in terms of your first problem, you say that you’ve already taken 2 credits of poli sci courses and are enrolled in 1 credit. tbh, i’m unsure what the problem is here? if you wanted to drop the poli sci major down to a minor, i don’t think you would be wasting courses, since it still would require 4.0 credits to complete? unless the courses you took aren’t counted for the minor.

again, i will always point y’all to your college registrar for these kinds of complicated, multiple pathway questions! i am unfortunately not a psychic or fortune teller. but man, i wish i was.

but for real, i hope this was helpful either way, and literally send another ask if it wasn’t.

over and out,

aska
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admissions, psychology

throwback thursday: a stressed high school student

November 9, 2023

helloo, i’m a gr 11 highschool student and i’m so stressed out abt uni applications 🙁 my question is, if i apply for early admissions (they only review gr11 marks for this i think) at uoft and don’t get in, will i still be able to reapply during general admissions that’ll include my gr 12 midterm marks? also, how likely is it for me to get accepted into uoft’s psych program if i do bad in gr 11 math and perhaps english? like around low to mid 80s. but my other grades are in the 90s (T^T)

hey there,

another prospective psych student? if i had a nickel for every psych student i got on here this month, i would… have two nickels.

i can almost feel the gr 11 student stress emanating off my screen. i was definitely there once, so don’t worry, i can help!

to answer your question, if you don’t make early admissions, you actually don’t have to do anything else to be reconsidered as your new grades become available. so long as you keep your application up to date as grades come out, there’s no need for you to reapply. and by “keep it up to date”, i remember having to upload my most recent transcript to OUAC as new grades came out (i think you’ll have to do this for early admissions, too).

so don’t worry, you have more than one chance! uoft will wait for additional results to become available from your grade 12 courses, and will make decisions based on that.

i see you mentioned your english and math marks. something to keep in mind is that psych requirements vary across the three campuses — UTM and UTSC will look at your grades in biology 12, calculus 12, and english 12, but the st. george campus only looks at the grades of calculus 12 and english 12. you can see an explanation of this in my previous post.

if you’re really worried about your grade 11 results, i can tell you that uoft puts more emphasis on grade 12 results when they look at your application. and honestly, if you only have two grades in the 80s, with the rest in the 90s, i think you’ll be fine! especially since these are grade 11 courses. however, i know it’s hard to not stress over your grades, no matter how well you’re doing, and especially at this stage of your life.

i hope this was helpful and that it relieved a bit of your stress! but if you’re still feeling nervous about this, i would tell you to reach out to a recruitment officer—they know everything about admissions (not that i don’t know everything, i swear i do).

over and out,

aska

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aska 2 Comments
admissions, applying for U of T, psychology

don’t psych yourself out, you’re okay

October 30, 2023

Hi! I’m currently a grade 12 student who is about to apply to university. I was looking at the St. George campus for psychology requirements and it says that Grade 12 Biology is one of them. The thing is…my current biology mark is in the 60s. So I was wondering whether the requirement means that it’ll be included in my top 6? Or whether they are just looking or it? Or how does it really work…

hey there,

ah, a senior doing college admissions. i hope you’re taking care of yourself, that can be a stressful time. but i come delivering good news! your biology mark does not necessarily have to be included in the top 6 grades that are used to calculate your admission average.

here is why:

when applying to uoft, you’re really just applying to admission streams rather than a specific program. basically all the programs are categorized into these six admission streams, and that will be what you select on OUAC when you fill out your application. these streams are: computer science, humanities, life sciences, mathematical & physical sciences, rotman commerce, and social sciences.

here is a chart that breaks down the required high school courses by stream. you’ll see that psychology falls into the life science stream, which only requires english and calculus. i know that it’s a bit confusing because this site says psychology requires english, calculus, and bio. but in this case, bio is not required for entry to the stream. therefore, it does not need to be one of the six marks used in your grade calculation.

so if you have a seventh course that has a better mark, then that would be used to calculate your admission average instead of your biology mark. i hope this helps and that everything goes well for you!

over and out,

aska

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aska 2 Comments
academic offense, plagiarism

in a sticky citation situation

October 26, 2023

Hello there. Sorry for bothering you, but I’m concerned about a completed assignment. I turned in an assignment for my history class two weeks ago. I fully cited the text I received information from, but ouriginal says it’s 41% plagiarized. I looked at where the plagiarism is supposed to be, and it’s mostly just the provided template. For example, there are specific instructions on the template, and rather than delete them, I left them on the page. If I remove all the template stuff, it becomes 20%. However, the quotes I cited were also flagged, and now it’s because my in-text citations were incorrect. As of now, no TA or Prof has reached out to me to alert me of plagiarizing, but I still feel nervous about the whole situation. If I discussed or tried to explain this to my TA and professor, what could happen, and is this something I should be heavily concerned about?

hey there,

okay, feeling nervous about this is so valid. citations are hard to get right and there are so many ways of doing them that it can get really frustrating!

in terms of just how concerned you should be, i feel like i would need a bit more context: just how incorrect were your in-text citations? because normally, plagiarism cases that go forward will be obvious, and not small, simple mistakes like getting a couple parentheses wrong. also — what year are you in? this definitely changes how strict the prof would be.

if you’re a first year, most profs tend to be pretty understanding about citation mistakes. it’s very common in first year for people to do their in-text citations wrong — from what i’ve seen, the prof normally just docks marks at worst, and at best gives the class a talk about exactly what mistakes were made and what they want to see in the future. especially since we’re in the first semester of the year, profs will tend to teach you about citations rather than punishing you for innocent mistakes. unless you’re literally blatantly not citing things and not-so-innocently plagiarizing lol.

i don’t think you should panic, because citation mistakes are pretty tame and you’ll avoid consequences like suspension. in the case that your prof flags you, and if the assignment was less than 10% of your grade, you would probably just get a zero on it, according to key consequences. the best thing you can do in this case is admit to the offence, or else it just keeps getting forwarded to higher divisions and consequences. in the best case, you can get away with just a “written reprimand” from the dean.

the UTM website on plagiarism says that you should talk to your instructor about your uncertainty citing your sources, because if they approach you first your case could be forwarded to the office of the dean. i’m assuming this implies that if you bring it up first, your prof might be more understanding? but it’s kinda unclear, so idk.

overall, what i know is that people make citation mistakes all the time! no prof or TA is out to get their students, and they aren’t trying to give people zeros or report them to the department. it really just depends on how strict your instructor is on these kinds of things. overall, according to the code of behavior on academic matters, it’s just up to the prof whether or not you get in trouble, as action is only taken if they decide you’ve committed an academic offence.

i think it would be helpful to talk to an academic advisor at your registrar. this is worth a try since they can’t use anything you say against you, and they’ve seen tons of cases like this. anyways, i really hope everything works out for you!

over and out,

aska

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aska 1 Comment