Giving meaning to "Studying" Abroad

I will start my blog post the same way Mr. Jimmy Hamill started his...

So, I never thought I'd say this but I REALLY miss SJU registration. Now I know what you are thinking... "Kathleen, clearly you don't remember how absolutely atrocious SJU registration is" the thing is I do remember the waking up at 8am to register for classes only to realize I have no internet connection and my pin number has mysteriously disappeared. I know the pain of seeing that "X" appear at the top of your screen saying the class that you have to take in order to graduate is filled. The sad thing is, that registration system is decades ahead of the registration system here at NUIG. Each department here has their own method to registering students and none of them are entirely clear on what that method is. It was a stressful process to say the least.

After 2 weeks of stressing about choosing classes I have finally chosen the five classes that will be giving meaning to the term "Studying" abroad. Luckily I will only be using up one elective here at NUIG and even though the classes seem as though they may be rather painfully boring at times I have faith that I will find a way to make it through one way or another. So, the classes I will be taking are:

1) Saints and Sinners of the Celtic World (for Theology)- Now I have a soft spot in my heart for this class since it was the only one that was easy to register for. All I had to do was write down on my registration form that I want to take this class and BOOM I’m in! That simple fact will hopefully help me to get past the fact that for the first three classes the professor gave virtually the same lecture. The positive in that is I can tell you what the earliest recorded date in Irish history is… go ahead ask… 431! If that is the only question on the final exam I’ll ace the class for sure!

2) Philosophy of Science- This class seems as though it will be a tad more interesting than the previous course. The professor is British so I will be able to spot the differences between an Irish Brogue and a British accent much more easily after this class. No worries, I am planning on learning about Philosophy of Science and Epistemology as well. So far I have learned that the letters of the alphabet can become a scary and horrifying thing when used in a complex logic question but I’m planning to move past the initial fear and once again be at ease when I hear the letters “S” and “P”.

3) Northern Ireland: The Politics of a Divided Society- This will more than likely be my favorite class. I never really knew much about the history of Ireland and while I did know Northern Ireland was separate from the rest of Ireland, I never really knew why. The history of Ireland is so fascinating to me and I honestly do not understand why they don’t teach it more in the U.S. so I’m really excited to learn about the Northern Ireland conflict. To make it even better, the professor who teaches the course actually grew up in Northern Ireland during the violence so I don’t think I could get a better account of the events than from someone who lived through some of the events.

4) Romanticism- This is a huge class that is taught by two different teachers. It’s so weird being in a class with around 150 students in it and having one teacher on Tuesdays and a different one on Thursdays but it is a cool change of pace. The class isn’t the most interesting but it isn’t awful so I’ll manage.

5) Environments and Landforms- Now I had looked forward to my “science free” junior year for a long time so the fact that I have decided to use an elective on a science course is making me think Ireland has made me go insane. The good thing is that even though this counts as a “natural science” at SJU, it’s really just a geography class about preserving national parks and it sounds really interesting so I’ll suck it up.

Now that you have all heard about my classes ad nauseum I’ll be sure to make my next post all about my Scotland adventure this weekend… yes that is right I’m going to Scotland for the weekend… I love being in Europe!