My first semester at university came after a relaxing summer spent celebrating high school graduation and vacationing. I remember being nervous and excited and apprehensive all at the same time, dreaming of success but too aware of the chance of failure. I decided to begin my university experiences with subjects I had faith I would do well in; my final course list was as follows:
ENG 100 – University Writing Strategies (English)
BADM 102 – Quantitative Methods (Math)
BADM 107 – Business Law (Law)
BFIN 141 – Introductory Accounting I (Accounting)
I had taken English Literature, Accounting 11, Law 12, and Pre-Calculus 12 in my final year of high school and was feeling confident in taking similar courses. They seemed like a nice introduction to the expected upcoming struggle, relying on my skills with numbers and writing as opposed to my weaker presentation and participation skills (I was just beginning to grow beyond my childhood shyness).
English was a mandatory course for all new students and it was quite similar to work I had done previously in high school. This was nice in that it removed a lot of pressure from the classwork, but it was quick to feel monotonous again after over a year and a half of a similar experience. The writing topics were new and interesting, however, and I decided to pursue my love of fashion throughout the course. We began by writing some smaller pieces on our sites and one in class to prepare for our final paper. My initial thoughts can be seen under the ENG 100 tab at the top, as well as the final essay for that class that those helped shape.
Quantitative Methods was not at all what I had been expecting when I entered class on the first day. The course focused on ratios and interest, two topics that I had covered extensively throughout high school. I was pleasantly surprised with how quickly I picked up the work and completed assignments. I did better than I was expecting in a math course and felt much more confident with my abilities. I believe this class has been my highest grade at university based on the mark I received.
I was very concerned about Business Law at first, as I have never been strong with memorization and details. Despite my high school level course experience, I was sure there would be significantly more content and work to be done (I was certainly right about that!) and that I would struggle with the change. The course became one of my favourites quickly, including more practical work than direct memorization. While I did spend many hours memorizing the contents of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Human Rights Code, I also spent time considering how laws could apply in certain situations and looking at how the law works. The class inspired me to consider becoming a lawyer after attaining my degree.
Introductory Accounting I was the class I was most excited to enter and it certainly lived up to my hopes and expectations. I had learned the content of the first three chapters, adding up to the first midterm, in my previous course, which allowed me to adapt to the new learning environment before expanding my knowledge. We learned triple the amount of content in less than a third of the time I had in high school, but the speed kept me engaged and working hard on the assignments. I had lots of questions to work through to practice new ideas, which is how I learn best, and overall felt I thrived in the environment of that class.
My three business related classes were quite closely linked. I was glad to have followed the school’s advice and taken Math at the same time as Accounting as the content taught was exactly what I needed to succeed in the later units. Key concepts in both included calculating interest and partial payments, which was made easier to understand by having it explained in two ways at similar times in different circumstances. Accounting and Law both discussed the different types of ownership (sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporation) in depth from the separate perspectives. Both courses explained the differences, advantages, and disadvantages in unique ways to each method, as well as how it affects the business in different areas.
My first semester at Capilano University was a success and I am proud of my accomplishments and the work I put into my courses. I did not get a chance to explore extracurriculars during the semester, being focused on my classes and grades, but I gathered information to look into for my second semester and year. I was disappointed to discover many of the events hosted by Capilano were only for students nineteen and over due to alcohol as an eighteen-year-old just finished high school, but opportunities will hopefully arise in the upcoming years.