My writings here and at The Other 95% have been a bit sparer and less in depth this last month, as I have been dealing with both medical issues and the impact of those medical issues on my schedule. In the end I missed almost three weeks of classes total. I finally feel like I am catching up with everything since the surgeries. Fortunately at this point I can report that I have caught up with all classes except that I have one rewrite and one writing assignment to turn in.
It has been a long run but thanks to my family (Tammy,Johann, Mom, Dad, and Grandpa were all totally helpful and supportive, each in their own way!) and friends support, and my professors’ understanding, it has been doable! Some classes have been easier than others to catch up in because of differences in the subject, my affinity for the subject and the work load involved. Easiest has been an anthropology course, though it meets only once a week, it is focused on archeology of primarily of Paleoindian through Mesoindian sites. While I missed three classes, I made it out to the field trip and was able to catch right up since I have long had an interest in the subject.
The economics class was a bit of a different story. This class is a fast moving class in a subject I am not terribly interested in and only passingly familiar with. It has enough jargon and technical details that I had to work at catching up since the second class I was able to attend was a review for the first exam! There were also three quizzes to make up. Fortunately this class has no homework or projects assigned. The professor was very kind and allowed me to schedule a different exam date if I needed to. While it was quite generous, I decided to go for it and take the exam, based on the review session, and get all three quizzes in as well. I figured if I spent most of the weekend cramming for it, I would be studying for the exam and all three quizzes simultaneously. More important that would have me caught up in at least one class. Fortunately it worked out well, I made a couple of stupid mistakes on the quizes, but I got an A on the exam.
Missing classes in a math course is never a great idea. Missing almost the first third of the semester is crazy. Of all my classes this was the one I was most worried about. Fortunately when I talked to the Professor before the second surgery and explained the situation he was extremely understanding. The exam I missed could be made up any time within reason. He expressed that my recovery and good health should be the focus, but he did not feel I needed to drop the course. Of course he did submit an F for the mid-term progress report which freaked me the hell out. I have since made up the exam and did relatively well on it. (His is one of those classes that getting a 39 on the exam is a C, I managed a B+)
The main class this semester from within my major is a writing course on Marine Geology and Geochemistry. This one involves five major writing projects and a professor who gives very hard exams. (I passed his class last semester with the second highest grade of the class… raw it was a 70! Talk about stressful!!) He and I worked out a modified schedule for the writing assignments which allowed me to write the first one without the effects of mind altering drugs (I think he realized it would be less painful for him too.) I am finishing the re-write on that and the second paper this weekend.
My Ethical Issues in Science course is a seminar course and the professor is one I have had for many classes and have worked for as a student researcher. He knows my abilities and allowed me to make up the writing assignments as long as I kept up in the readings and participated actively when I was able to be in class. Fortunately in that class I am completely caught up. (Of course I do have to catch up on some of the work I am doing for him)
A second seminar class (issues in Marine Protected Area I had to drop, there was just no way I could maintain a 17 credit load under the circumstances. It would have been an awesome class but it was only 2 credits and did not meet any degree requirements. I may take this class later as an independent study as MPA’s are a serious interest and this class covers them in great detail.
The only reason I have made it through is that I was painfully up front with each of my professors and worked out a reasonable schedule that would allow me to catch up without melting down. I also prioritized the classes, looking at the ones I felt I could let slip if I needed to (Anthro, Econ and Ethics) and the ones I really needed to spend the greatest effort. The marine geology is in my major so good performance there is more important. The math class I knew would take the most effort to catch up, so it too was a focus.
The timing of everything was pretty bad, and it has left me behind in the grad school application process, and seriously behind on a project I am working on with two of the professors. They understand and have been totally supportive, but it needs to get done in a a fairly tight time frame now because of typical funding availability issues.
Again I have to thank my family, friends and professors for being so supportive and understanding. I have had almost no time for anything except studying and classes. It has been crazy, but after doing that, Tammy and I figure grad school will not be quite so bad, except it’s for a solid two to six years.
