Use this page to list things you wish you knew before you arrived in Cambridge. You can list your thoughts, or write a journal entry about the pro's/con's of your experience, obstacles you've had to overcome, etc.
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Tony Blair
- no one warned me about the "english breakfast"... beans on toast, etc. Bring lots of immodium.
- my freaking internet doesn't work so there's no way i can edit the page on the wiki that i am currently editing.
Dawn Wheeler
- (hope you don't mind that this is random ...)
- So the first thing that surprised me was the free alcohol at official dinners ... just one of those things that doesn't happen at MIT
- My first impression of the University itself was that it was hopelessly disorganized, just because it's so decentralized. It was really annoying that the answer to (almost) all our questions in the first days were "It depends on your college (and I'm not in your college so I don't know)". Now that I've been here, I guess the University actually functions alright even though it is mired in "this is how it's been for the past 800 years."
- Living in one of the outlying colleges isn't that bad ... I get to see more of Cambridge. I know some people still haven't ventured up to New Hall yet ...
- Yeah, Cambridge isn't "no work," which I think is what we all heard before coming here. It's practically no work, compared to MIT, but there's still work to do, and doing it by myself takes much longer.
- I thought it wouldn't be that hard to keep working together on stuff like we do at MIT, but it is definitely more of an effort. First, we all have supervisions at different times, so we don't have work "due" at the same time. Second, it's pretty difficult to find a place to work collaboratively here. The colleges don't have lounges or common areas (except for the bars, which is not ideal for studying), and we're supposed to be quiet in the library.
- I wish I knew to bring mechanical pencils from the States - at least I haven't found ones here that don't have lead that breaks every three words. And peanut butter - they don't know how to make peanut butter here.
- For planning school supplies, I wish I knew that all the lecturers hand out notes with gaps to fill in - we don't really need notebooks (at least in my engineering classes).
- Apparently all the lecturers change in the middle of the term ... that was another surprise for me.
Matt Zedler
Churchill College
Mechanical Engineering
Cambridge is similar to MIT in almost as many ways as it is different. Let me explain what I mean by that. When I first came over from the States, I thought the UK would be almost no different, but there are a lot of different things that do take getting used to. These include:
- The LOCATION - CU is in the countryside. There are cows at King's College for crying out loud! Granted, Cambidge itself is a little college town, but it really doesn;t compare to Boston. Has a nice touristy area in the middle of town, but this means prices are higher than at stores towards the outskirts. Going just ten minutes out of town will bring you to sheep-laden pastures, green fields, etc.
- The WEATHER - Rain, sun, wind, cold; the UK has it all. And it has all of it within 5 minutes, without any way to predict what is coming next. Get a good umbrella and heavy jacket.
- The EDUCATION - Lectures are very similar to MIT, though notes are given and all one has to do is fill in blanks. Supervisions are much different than recitations and much more like office hours. Can be useful, but more often than not find the supervisors dismissing the questions I ask by saying "Its in the Cribs" or "You should know that from last year." Examples papers are comparable in difficulty in length to problem sets at MIT, but there is so much less collaboration here. A lot more is expected of the individual here.
- The PEOPLE - Can be quite great when you get to know them, but seem to be more reserved (Except when intoxicated) than in the States. Also have found a few to work with on examples papers, but it is much more difficult than at MIT (And also less useful). Very work-driven during the week, but also know how to have fun.
- The SOCIAL LIFE - All right, going to be brutally honest here. It does revolve around alcohol in the form of pubs, clubs, and room parties. While this may be frustrating at first, one does find other ways to socialize, including sport, movies, plays, and just going to a room party with a bunch of drunk people. Finding that the MIT students tend to cluster because they enjoy doing more touristy / less typical collegiate things (ie travel).
All in all, I am learning a lot about myself and what I can and can not handle here in Cambridge. Frankly, I think I have slightly overloaded myself, what with four engineering modules, an SPS module, a fourth-year project, and two sports, but I am enjoying it for the most part. Feeling like the Cambridge system will steam roll me with the Tripos in the soring, but this seems to be a common thread among MIT students. Have travelled around in the UK and will be travelling for a significant portion of the Christmas break.
One thing that I will mention is that I was depressed for a few weeks here in Cambridge. Think coming over and trying to merge into the third year is harder to do than I expected. Everyone has friends established already, and I felt like the world back at MIT was going on without me. Also felt far behind on a lot of the material for class. Feeling has changed, but I would like to point out that depression is something I think MIT students have to watch for and be prepared for...
Can't believe lectures are over....