One of the first photos I took during my sophomore year. I returned to campus determined to make the most of my time at Columbia—and what a year ahead! Photo credit: Alan Chen.
The time has come—and maybe even passed. You registered for a course during shopping week that leaves you disappointed every M/W, that makes you grind your teeth, or that fills you with deep regret over your course selection. And unfortunately, you are now stuck in the course, with little recourse. But look, we’ve all been there—and even if it seems like you have little to learn in the class, you might still have a few things to learn from the class. In the following blog post, I want to detail a few reflections on the classes that I haven’t been too fond of and the classes that I have fawned over.
- When scouting out new departments, don’t feel obligated to begin with intro-level classes.
When I first began my time at Columbia, I only knew to start with introductory classes. Fearful that I might have neither the foundation nor the correct intuition to succeed in more advanced classes, I restricted myself to the domain of 1000-level coursework in political science, economics, and math.
