Author Archives: bdclark

By: Stephen Ji

Time has fooled all of us with seemingly endless lectures on rainy Mondays and long Tim Horton’s lines. Low and behold, we are all just a number of weeks until we have to move out, and for some of us, clean up our rooms for the second time this year. Having been through this stage in first year I can tell you that it feels very much the same, and there is nothing I wish more than to stow away my books and notes to collect dust for 4 months after walking out of that last final. It is this time of the year that motivation reaches an all time low. As such, it is important to not lose that drive that has kept us going so far, to not forget about all the endless hours we’ve dedicated to our studies, and to go out into the summer days on a high note and fond memories. Here are some personal tips to stay motivated throughout the last days of class and finals season.

Put things in perspective: Whether it’s a class you’re not doing so hot in, or finding the energy to finish those last few chapters of readings, taking time to reflect on the larger picture will help collect thoughts. What are your goals? What are you passionate about? How will what you’re doing now benefit your pursuits? These are just a few of the questions that we can ask ourselves to hopefully get organized and stay focused.
 
Take care of YOU: We’ve all heard the “Oh I’m going to grab a monster real quick, not sleeping tonight” two times too many. Granted, sometimes extenuating circumstances call for such drastic actions, simply “catching up” or changing your sleep schedule is not beneficial in the long term. Therefore, getting a consistent sleep every night is key to taking care of yourself, and I don’t think there’s a better way to staying motivated than feeling like a rock star every morning.
 
Set Goals: We’ve all been there. “Do I study more for this final or the other? “ In the ideal academic situation, we’ve already been studying for both for 2 weeks. But as we all know, things don’t always go according to plan. This is not to say being in the ideal situation is not possible, it is completely possible, and all it takes is some good goal setting. Goal setting also comes in handy when you’re in a pinch, and what I’ve found helpful is to refer to the syllabus learning goals, writing down the key points you don’t understand, and then planning a way to tackle each within a certain period of time; keeping in mind you won’t have enough time to go into detail for all points.
 
The 1% rule: If you ask me, the 1% rule is the secret behind all the above tips. It combines putting things in perspective by setting goals so in turn you can take care of yourself. Here is the breakdown, it works by cumulative growth, which means you’re improving a small amount every day, or a couple of days, so that in the long term, you end up making substantial leaps. Take something as simple as sleeping earlier. If you can manage to sleep 1 minute earlier every day, in a month you’ll be sleeping half hour earlier, in 2 months, a whole hour earlier. The 1% rule helps you set goals that are reasonable. It can be adapted to fit anything you like, so give it a try and stay motivated.
 
Lastly, although looking to other people for motivation can help to inspire new ideas, it is ultimately up to you to find it in yourself to stay motivated and find that inner drive. Try new studying habits. Find what works for you. Don’t let small hiccups along the way slow you down. Most of all, it’s not the mistakes we make that define us, but what we choose to do about it that does. So, here’s an awesome last weeks, let’s all go out on a high note. And as they say, if you can survive first year, you can survive anything.

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By: Victoria Lansdown and the A-Team Committee

While UBC offers many diverse courses for you explore your academic interests, there are other ways to make the most of your university learning experience. You’re bound to find an opportunity that suits your personal and professional development needs outside of the classroom. Whether you’re looking for a part-time/full-time job or just looking for a new experience, there are many educational experiences available to enrich your learning and growth. What are these particular experiences? Here are three specifically tied to work experience:

1. Co-Op
   Co-op often provides jobs that are geared toward professional, actual careers (global assets manager, marketing, etc.). Full-time work experience, upper-level jobs available. Some benefits of participating in co-op include exploring your career options, while gaining paid, professional work experience and a network of contacts, as well as the resources to gain job search skills such as techniques for writing effective resumes and cover letters and one-on-one interview preparation. About 90% of Canadian co-op grads receive job offers within 1 month after graduation. Notably, this program requires an admission academic average of 70% or greater and your specific faculty has additional requirements. Be sure to check them out online while preparing to apply.
2. Work Learn
   The Work Learn program supports and subsidizes meaningful work experiences at UBC. There are many different kinds of Work Learn positions, most of which are part-time administrative roles. Examples include Aboriginal Admissions Research Assistant, Project Assistant to the Division of Inner City Medicine, Oral Microbiology Project Assistant. A few benefits of fulfilling a Work-Learn Position includes the opportunity to work in a professional environment while achieving your own learning goals, and building skills to expand your professional network. Part-time positions are possible to fulfill as a student in the summer or fall.
3. Arts Internship Program
   The Arts Internship Program enables undergraduate Faculty of Arts students to develop their skills and expand their resume with part-time, unpaid positions that offer meaningful, career-related experience within their communities. Internships integrate academic learning with development through professional experiences and help students to expand their knowledge, experience, contact base and chances of future career success. Internships are 8-12 hours per week and 4-8 months in duration. Internships are unpaid professional placements in non-profit organizations, social enterprises and art organizations. Unlike Co-Op, this internship program is open to anyone and does not have an academic average requirement.

Take advantage of these incredible enrichment opportunities to gain a new experience and prepare yourself for a job after university. In addition, these experiences will help you grow as an individual to become open and conscientious about learning and developing. Check out these different opportunities today to start planning your next steps toward a better future.

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By: Kamil Khan

As the year comes to an end, you’re probably wondering what to do over the summer. While there are jobs and volunteering opportunities to think about, it’s important to remember that Vancouver has some amazing activities for you to check out for fun. Keeping active by exploring the city and outdoors will help you have a summer you’ll never forget. Here are the top 5 FREE things to do in Vancouver this summer so you can lose a bit of control without taking your student budget with you.

• Free Vancouver Summer Festivals
  Summer’s free festivals have live music, roving performers, street fairs, and more. Search for Vancouver festivals and events at hellobc.com for a constantly updated list.
• Vancouver Fireworks – Celebration of Lights Fireworks
  The quintessential Vancouver summer experience is the Celebration of Lights international fireworks festival. This festival is three nights of incredible fireworks displays on July 26, July 30, and August 2, 2014.
• Free Ballroom Dancing in Robson Square
  Organized by DanceSport BC, the Robson Square Summer Dance Series offers ballroom dance lessons every Friday at 8pm, show dances at 9pm and 10pm, and a chance to dance the night away under the Robson Square dome, in downtown Vancouver on June 27 – August 29, 2014.
• Free Vancouver Outdoor Movies
  Outdoor movies are a summer tradition in Vancouver, with several different venues offering free outdoor movies throughout July and August. Show times start at dusk (around 9pm). Find locations at http://www.freshaircinema.ca
• Free Vancouver Water Parks for Kids
  When you get tired of Vancouver’s gorgeous beaches, check out one of Vancouver’s free summer water parks, such as Granville Island Water Park & Variety Kids Water Park at Stanley Park open from May 17 – September 1, 2014.

Take advantage of some of these incredible opportunities to have an amazing summer if you’re staying in Vancouver. While you have four (or more) years to be a UBC student, the sooner you get started on this list, the better!

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By: Ben Clark

A few small raindrops start to patter one by one on the hood of my rain jacket. I hope the rain will wash the blueberry stains from my jeans, but I doubt it. My legs burn from the climb, and Thierry appears behind me as he crests over the steep, rocky step just below the summit.

–

It’s November, and I’m standing on top of Coliseum Mountain, one of 10 mountains taller than 1000 meters contained in Lynn Headwaters Regional Park. Lynn is the largest regional park in the Lower Mainland, and her rivers have been used by miners, loggers, hunters, farmers, and fishermen for over a century.

I’ve been hiking with my friends Thierry and Paul in and around the North Shore for about 2 years now, but evidence of a much older history is all around us. One can frequently find scraps of metal and ceramic left by loggers in the second half of the 19^th century, and other explorers claim to have found man-made markings around the park that predate the logging camps by hundreds of years.

The area shows evidence of an even more interesting geological history also. Most of the rocks in the park are light colored granite that takes on a greenish tint lower in the valleys where the years have been hard on it. Dark, mysterious, porous rocks are frequently seen in the higher elevations, placed sporadically in what is otherwise an exclusively granitic mountain chain. I’ve been searching all over, and still haven’t been able to find small-scale evidence of glaciation, which seems to run contrary to the cirque-like shape of the valley’s northern reaches.

The North Shore (and the BC coast range in general) is known for being one of the most remote and inaccessible mountain ranges on the planet. In the year 1947, a plane crashed just North of Mt. Seymour on Mt. Elsay, one ridge East of Lynn Valley. The crash site wasn’t discovered until 47 years later in 1994, and its location is only 14 kilometers from Metro Vancouver, a city of millions. The delay in the aircraft’s discovery was largely attributed to the inaccessibility of the terrain.

–

As I clamber up and over some of the steep, white, alpine rock outcroppings close to the summit of Coliseum Mountain, it becomes apparent that Thierry and I won’t make it back to the valley floor before the oncoming storm engulfs the mountain. I’m worried that once it starts raining today, it won’t stop until March.

We make our way down the muddy trail over the course of 4 wet, cold hours. Thierry and I talk about love, death, philosophy, and Thierry’s complicated relationship with his father. I don’t know it now, but when I ask Thierry 3 days later what he liked most about this adventure he’ll say he most enjoyed bonding over our conversation. The mountains are a place where we go to connect with a part of something bigger: taller mountains, older history, and occasionally the chance to feel strong when we succeed. We’ve left our tiny piece of history in the park, but it doesn’t end here.

I write this in hopes of inspiring others to contribute to the rich history of Vancouver’s North Shore Mountains. I hope we can continue to write an exciting story for them, and keep track of the tales already behind us. These mountains are some of Canada’s finest, and they’re right in our back yards, even accessible by public transit. Use the nice weather this spring to see what they have to offer, and give something back to the mountains by cherishing them.

Thierry and Paul on Mt.Seymour

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By: Emma MacFarlane

A stranger approached me at a music festival as I stood in the heart of a massive tent that housed approximately two thousand people. “Check this out,” he said. “If you pay attention you can tell when people have left the back of the tent, because the air gets a tiny bit cooler.” He claimed that he had noticed how the influx and efflux of people into the tent changed the temperature of the air within. I was skeptical about his ability to actually notice the change in temperature, but I was simultaneously intrigued, because the thought had never occurred to me in the first place. I hadn’t considered looking at the tent that way, as almost a biological entity in itself, as an ecosystem that the crowd naturally altered.

His simple statement was something that I mulled over in the days to come. How did somebody come to have a perspective like that? I had been so fixated on the music and staring at the shoulders of the people in front of me that I hadn’t considered an aerial view, a larger effect. I wondered what it takes to step outside oneself and see the bigger picture. I wondered what it would look like if I tried looking at my own life a little bit differently.

Take this: you do poorly on a midterm. In the moment, it seems devastating. You studied so hard- it just doesn’t seem logical that your mark doesn’t echo that. Take this: your dream job calls you back and says “sorry, not this time around”. In the moment, it seems devastating. You prepared so thoroughly for your interview, and you know deep down you’d be a great candidate. We all face moments like this, and in the moment, these setbacks present themselves as enormous mountains that loom over us, that look impossible to climb. But try looking at it from a new point of view. From above, you don’t notice a mountain’s depth.

It’s important to take a step back sometimes and to look at the challenges in your own life from a novel perspective. Instead of seeing each event as a life-altering success or an enormous failure, think of each event as one person: together, they flow in and out of your life, changing the temperature of your course. Thinking of things this way helps me manage my own successes and setbacks, working steadily towards my goals and taking even my small accomplishments in stride while recognizing that no matter what, everything I have been through is a little part of what I have shaped into myself.

Successes and failures both happen, but everything balances out and creates who you are, and that is something that is truly amazing. Look at all the successes that fill your tent: they should be a great source of pride and inner warmth. There’s only one thing left for you to remember to do: go enjoy the music.

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By: Rebekah Glum

Things to consider when choosing roommates

• How many people are you okay living with? Does the idea of constantly having 5 of your best friends around appeal to you? Or is lots of personal space, and one person to drink tea and watch Netflix with on cozy days more your jam?
• What is important to you in a household? Make sure to consider everything, from how often you think is appropriate to clean the washroom, to whether you are okay with sharing milk and eggs.

Things to talk about once you’ve decided who to live with

• One of the most important things is to have a system for addressing any issues that come up. It’s very unlikely that there won’t be some tension, and the best way to make sure that tension doesn’t change into a deal breaker is to have a way to address it. Some good ideas: have a weekly roommate check-in; have a rule that if you don’t bring tension up, you let it go once a couple days/couple weeks have gone by; or have a code word for when you need to have a roommate talk.
• Write a roommate contract. Anyone who lived in a double room knows what I’m talking about. You can find examples online, and this can cover everything from a cleaning schedule, guest policies, and more. Bonus points if you have household quiet hours!

Places to look for housing

• Craigslist
• Kijiji
• AMS Rentsline
• Padmapper

Also, make sure to check out the poster in Commonsblock about finding off-campus housing.

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By: Joe Stevens

Good luck!

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A recap from February Prof-Talks by: Maahin Ahmed and the A-Team.

Different disciplines have varying standards for what a good academic paper is, and given the variety of courses that we can take in our undergrad, especially in first year, writing a good paper for each course can be a daunting task. Professor Griffin, who has done a fair bit of both writing and marking, says that four things tend to make a good paper stand out: thesis, arguments, methodically cited sources, and acknowledgement of a counter argument.

A very common problem for students when writing papers is that they don’t state their stance or thesis clearly. Professor Griffin says that stating a clear, narrow and debatable thesis in the beginning of a paper is important for two reasons. Firstly, as a writer it is easy to drift away from our topic while we write, but having a thesis statement in the beginning can be a good reference point for us to refer back to see if the content of our paper is relevant to the topic. Secondly, from the viewpoint of a reader, a clear thesis sets the paper up for debate. One way to formulate a good thesis is to start with a research question. A good research question would be one that is broad enough that it requires an argumentative and analytical response; yet it should be narrow enough to be answered within a given word limit.

Once we have a clear, narrow and debatable thesis, the second and third components of planning a paper go hand in hand. That is to say, we list our main arguments in favour of our thesis, and methodically cite our primary and secondary sources as evidence to support our arguments. To cite our sources methodically means two things: firstly, our sources should be relevant to our arguments; secondly we should make sure that we explain our choice of any source we choose to cite.

Finally, in Professor Griffin’s opinion, acknowledging alternative views or counter arguments to our own argument is something that distinguishes a great paper from a good paper. Showing an awareness of plausible arguments contrary to our own shows that a person is intellectually awake—not ignorant of other opinions.

Having organized our thoughts properly, we are all set for writing a great paper!

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By: Maximilien Azorin

For reading week, some residents of Vanier took the opportunity to go home. Not only did they enjoyed finding their good old bed or the video games they didn’t manage to bring to Vanier, they were more importantly CRAVING for a home-made meal that only mamas and grandmas know the secret!

Everybody in Vanier knows that eating is one of the most important parts of the life of a student after, well, school! Some well deserved sushi after a long day of intense studying are always a great (and cheap!) way to reward yourself! But how can you ask your palate to make you feel better when you’re eating the same food day after day?

The amazing folks from the Place Vanier Residence Association fortunately saw this coming and were, as usual, on top of their game to welcome everyone back from reading week on Sunday evening, gathering house councils and offering free food from all over the world! CRAVING Italian, French, Korean or Mexican? All of these nationalities had a stand in the commonsblock offering delicious (sometimes even hand-made by your lovely RAs) dishes! A great way to welcome everyone back from vacation!

But what about the rest of the year, when you’re fed up with the chicken strips you have been eating in the past months at the Vanier caf? Well, eat something new! Every day the Vanier dining hall is putting in incredible efforts to renew their array of food, so that they can offer as diverse food as possible! By the way, they really hope you’ll be keen to try everything! More importantly, the Vanier food committee opened once again to hear all of the feedback YOU have for the food in Vanier – and they want to hear it!

So, as the French say, Bon appétit bien-sûr!

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By: Maahin Ahmed

It was almost noon and the traffic on the Main Mall was dense. Thousands of students shuffled between classrooms—some of them rushing to opposite corners of the campus, some brushing past in a flash as they swiftly crisscrossed their way around the crowd on skateboards, and yet others juggling their coffees, breakfasts, and cellphones as they walked to their first class of the day. The girl in the red scarf shoved her notes and books into her backpack, pulled the hood of her jacket over her head to avoid eye contact with anyone, and hurried out of the classroom to join the herd. Bits of overheard conversations, parts of the lectures from the day, and her own thoughts constituted a cacophony inside her head.

Her gaze fixed on the ground, she walked with quick, short steps and made sure to stay exactly within the straight lined pattern of the tiles that lined the pathway. The straight lined pattern was akin to how she had always understood life—orderly, with clearly defined rules and norms that everyone accepted and no one questioned. The straight lines on the pathway felt like the right way to follow; just the way she had always known the right path in life. Indeed she drew a fair bit of adulation from friends and family for her sense of clarity and judiciousness. She based her judgment of right and wrong on the unquestionable social, cultural and religious beliefs that she had grown up with. Conformity to preconceived beliefs was, somewhat paradoxically, empowering for her—following the rules made her feel in control of her life. It was as if the rules helped her retain her sanity by protecting her from daunting thoughts like finding a purpose in life or finding a meaning in existence. In other words the rules that she lived by had become an end in themselves rather than a means to an end. It is not surprising then that walking along that straight lined pattern was inexplicably comforting.

She continued to walk along the straight line, trying to ignore the now almost deafening voices in her head that told her otherwise. What she did not realize, as she plugged her ears to disassociate with the voices inside her head, was that when life has a lesson to teach, it does so in peculiar ways. Just such a lesson was waiting for her a few strides down the infallible straight line of tiles. The pattern of the pathway changed, the straight line of tiles disappeared, and instead the tiles were now set in place in a disorderly manner. The disappearance of the straight lines only increased her frustration—it seemed to signal the impending victory of those malicious inner voices that had been telling her to abandon the straight line all this time.

Perplexed and deeply uncomfortable though she was, she imagined her straight line of tiles within that disorder and continued to walk on it. Nonetheless, the physical absence of the straight line of tiles meant that she could not fix her gaze on the ground anymore. Hesitantly, she looked up and around; she started taking in her surroundings. Somewhat unconsciously the pace of her steps was beginnings to decelerate, and she observed the herd that she was a part of. The crowd, the motley crew that it was, was comprised of people of all colours and creed. She thought of all the different shapes and sizes of noses, ears, hands and feet that she caught a glimpse of, as people hurried past her. She was trying to consolidate her thoughts about the heterogeneity of the people around her, and the confusion and discord that inevitably accompanied that heterogeneity. At the same time, she could also feel a mysterious sense of harmony in the crowd—something that everyone had in common held everything in place. At this point she realized that individuals in the crowd were walking in several straight lines, some parallel, others intersecting, and each individual had their own imagined straight line—a unique version of the right path.

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