{"id":16848,"date":"2016-04-19T14:20:42","date_gmt":"2016-04-19T18:20:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/askastudent.utoronto.ca\/?p=16848"},"modified":"2019-07-20T20:45:54","modified_gmt":"2019-07-21T00:45:54","slug":"when-youre-at-uoft-and-youre-blossoming-like-a-flower","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/askastudent.utoronto.ca\/?p=16848","title":{"rendered":"when you’re at uoft and you’re blossoming like a flower"},"content":{"rendered":"

Heya Aska!<\/p>\n

So I\u2019ve navigated successfully through the Daniels site and gotten myself\u00a0an offer for Architectural Studies! Yay! Since I\u2019m most likely going to\u00a0accept, I got a few questions for you!<\/p>\n

1) How big is the Daniels faculty? Around how many undergraduates get\u00a0accepted each year? I\u2019ve tried looking but I can\u2019t really find a solid\u00a0number and I really want to know approximately how big my class sizes might\u00a0be!<\/p>\n

2) Which residence is most popular for Arch students to live in? I don\u2019t\u00a0live in Canada so I can\u2019t come to residence tours to see what it\u2019s like and\u00a0feel the vibe\u2026<\/p>\n

3) (A more general question but) How can a super shy introvert like me get\u00a0involved in dorm life, making friends, life around the campus etc. etc? I\u00a0really want to work on improving myself as a person but at the same time it\u00a0takes a lot of effort to shove me out of my shell :\/<\/p>\n

Thank you so much! I always love reading your responses!<\/p>\n

\u2013 A smoll high schooler from across the globe<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

hey there,<\/p>\n

1. \u00a0 the reason you won\u2019t find any numbers on this is because it\u2019s not\u00a0really<\/em>practical information in the way that you probably think it is. it\u2019s true that Daniels is a faculty separate from the faculty of arts & science, but\u00a0since the undergraduate division only offers one specialist (v<\/a>isual studies<\/a>), most Daniels students are also taking a program\u00a0(or two) in the faculty of arts & science<\/a>. that means you\u2019ll be taking courses with artsci kids, which means that the class size kind of just depends on the class.<\/p>\n

most first-year classes are pretty massive; i\u2019m talking several hundred students, sometimes close to a thousand. if you take a more obscure class or a second-year course, it may whittle down to under a hundred. i don\u2019t mean to imply that there isn\u2019t a separate culture and hub of community and resources at Daniels \u2013 because there is. it\u2019s just that there\u2019ll be a lot more crossover than you think.<\/p>\n

2. \u00a0 again, because architecture is so small, i don\u2019t know that there\u2019s a specific residence for architecture students. there is certainly a\u00a0vibe<\/em>, as you put it, to each college residence (plus Chestnut), which is very hard to articulate. since that vibe is so ephemeral, i think it makes the most sense to make a decision based on concrete things, especially if you can\u2019t come to campus for a tour.<\/p>\n

\"bad<\/a><\/p>\n

sometimes, a residence\u00a0tour can help you get a feel of where you\u2019d prefer to live<\/em><\/p>\n

some questions you may want to ask yourself include: do you prefer dorm- or suite-style? what\u2019s your price range? where is the residence located in relation to your classes, libraries, and other amenities? would you rather live in a tall, modern building like Woodsworth<\/a>, or an old, castle-esque building, like those at Victoria<\/a> and St. Mike\u2019s<\/a>? do any of the residences or colleges run an activity or program\u00a0that particularly interests you? these things can all help you make a decision<\/a>.<\/p>\n

3. \u00a0 i\u2019ve used a handy little schematic (pictured below) to demonstrate this question. what it\u2019s illustrating is that there is a good way to push yourself, and a bad way. if you can push yourself just a smidge past your comfort zone, you enter into your challenge zone. in the challenge zone, you gain skills and confidence by trying new things that\u00a0are challenging<\/em> but still\u00a0doable<\/em>. if you regularly enter your challenge zone, it starts to expand.\u00a0those things that were previously found challenging become part of your comfort zone. and voila \u2013 growth!<\/p>\n

however, if you push yourself too hard and end up\u00a0in situations where you\u2019re very uncomfortable, you may find yourself in the panic zone. in the panic zone, you feel completely unequipped to handle the\u00a0situation at hand, and you begin to panic. after getting yourself out of the situation, you feel nothing except a greater aversion to that type of situation.<\/p>\n

the key to getting out of your shell, i think, is engaging your challenge zone as much as possible, but not pushing yourself into your panic zone. maybe the thought of living with a roommate causes you to panic, but you can challenge yourself to meet\u00a0everyone on your floor before the end of the\u00a0first semester.\u00a0baby steps, and you\u2019ll get there.<\/p>\n

other general tips: get involved with extra-curriculars. not only can they\u00a0lead to opportunities (even potential jobs!) but your network of friends will expand so, so quickly. on a similar note: get a job! you may get lucky and actually become friends with your colleagues. introduce yourself to the people sitting next to you in class. if your residence has a dining hall, sit with people. maybe you can start by sitting with your don, and then gradually add people to your group. finally, hang out in your common room. that\u2019s just a general tip about residence. all you have to do is literally sit there and new potential friends will come TO YOU. it\u2019s the LAY-Z-BOY of friend-making.<\/p>\n

cheers,<\/p>\n

aska<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Heya Aska! So I\u2019ve navigated successfully through the Daniels site and gotten myself\u00a0an offer for Architectural Studies! Yay! Since I\u2019m most likely going to\u00a0accept, I got a few questions for you! 1) How big is the Daniels faculty? Around how many undergraduates get\u00a0accepted each year? I\u2019ve tried looking but I can\u2019t really find a solid\u00a0number and I really want to know approximately how big my class sizes might\u00a0be! 2) Which residence is most popular for Arch students to live in? I don\u2019t\u00a0live in Canada so I can\u2019t come to residence tours to see what it\u2019s like and\u00a0feel the vibe\u2026 3) (A more general question but) How can a super shy introvert like me get\u00a0involved in dorm life, making friends, life around the campus etc. etc? I\u00a0really want to work on improving myself as a person but at the same time it\u00a0takes a lot of effort to shove me out of my shell :\/ Thank you so much! I always love reading your responses! \u2013 A smoll high schooler from across the globe \u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014 hey there, 1. \u00a0 the reason you won\u2019t find any numbers on this is because it\u2019s not\u00a0reallypractical information in the way that you probably think it is. it\u2019s true that Daniels is a faculty separate from the faculty of arts & science, but\u00a0since the undergraduate division only offers one specialist (visual studies), most Daniels students are also taking a program\u00a0(or two) in the faculty of arts & science. that means you\u2019ll be taking courses with artsci kids, which means that the class size kind of just depends on the class. most first-year classes are pretty massive; i\u2019m talking several hundred students, sometimes close to a thousand. if you take a more obscure class or a second-year course, it may whittle down to under a hundred. i don\u2019t mean to imply that there isn\u2019t a separate culture and hub of community and resources at Daniels \u2013 because there is. it\u2019s just that there\u2019ll be a lot more crossover than you think. 2. \u00a0 again, because architecture is so small, i don\u2019t know that there\u2019s a specific residence for architecture students. there is certainly a\u00a0vibe, as you put it, to each college residence (plus Chestnut), which is very hard to articulate. since that vibe is so ephemeral, i think it makes the most sense to make a decision based on concrete things, especially if you can\u2019t come to campus for a tour. sometimes, a residence\u00a0tour can help you get a feel of where you\u2019d prefer to live some questions you may want to ask yourself include: do you prefer dorm- or suite-style? what\u2019s your price range? where is the residence located in relation to your classes, libraries, and other amenities? would you rather live in a tall, modern building like Woodsworth, or an old, castle-esque building, like those at Victoria and St. Mike\u2019s? do any of the residences or colleges run an activity or program\u00a0that particularly interests you? these things can all help you make a decision. 3. \u00a0 i\u2019ve used a handy little schematic (pictured below) to demonstrate this question. what it\u2019s illustrating is that there is a good way to push yourself, and a bad way. if you can push yourself just a smidge past your comfort zone, you enter into your challenge zone. in the challenge zone, you gain skills and confidence by trying new things that\u00a0are challenging but still\u00a0doable. if you regularly enter your challenge zone, it starts to expand.\u00a0those things that were previously found challenging become part of your comfort zone. and voila \u2013 growth! however, if you push yourself too hard and end up\u00a0in situations where you\u2019re very uncomfortable, you may find yourself in the panic zone. in the panic zone, you feel completely unequipped to handle the\u00a0situation at hand, and you begin to panic. after getting yourself out of the situation, you feel nothing except a greater aversion to that type of situation. the key to getting out of your shell, i think, is engaging your challenge zone as much as possible, but not pushing yourself into your panic zone. maybe the thought of living with a roommate causes you to panic, but you can challenge yourself to meet\u00a0everyone on your floor before the end of the\u00a0first semester.\u00a0baby steps, and you\u2019ll get there. other general tips: get involved with extra-curriculars. not only can they\u00a0lead to opportunities (even potential jobs!) but your network of friends will expand so, so quickly. on a similar note: get a job! you may get lucky and actually become friends with your colleagues. introduce yourself to the people sitting next to you in class. if your residence has a dining hall, sit with people. maybe you can start by sitting with your don, and then gradually add people to your group. finally, hang out in your common room. that\u2019s just a general tip about residence. all you have to do is literally sit there and new potential friends will come TO YOU. it\u2019s the LAY-Z-BOY of friend-making. cheers, aska<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[135,118,32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-architecture","category-first-year","category-residence"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t