2020 - 2021
traversing the uncertain
Winter 2021
Courses Taken: CSE 311, MUSAP 218, MUSEN 304, MUSIC 201, MUSICP 321, PHYS 142
screenshot of my exam grades from PHYS 142
the details of our world
This quarter, I chose to take a physics course on electricity and magnetism. Although it was not a prerequisite for anything nor a requirement for my majors, I decided to take it out of interest in learning more about E&M in our world. I enjoyed it a lot, but it was certainly a challenging class and I didn't do as well as I wanted to grade-wise. However, even though I lowered my GPA overall, I'm still feeling great about how I took the time to explore a difficult subject area as well as proud of how much I learned through the class. In addition, I was able to strengthen my study skills throughout this quarter.
work versus play
As my piano lessons continued this quarter, I found it to be very challenging to stay motivating. There were a lot of different pieces to work on at the same time, and I felt a lot of pressure as I had to prepare for (mandatory) scholarship auditions. I struggled a lot with enjoying the artform that I've been exploring all my life versus preparing for the auditions and refining details monotonously. I ended up having a lot of emotional conversations with my professor about how I would feel incompetent in my playing and musical abilities, and we worked together to select pieces that I had fun working on so that I could feel less burnt out and regain my passion for this creative platform.
screenshot from my scholarship audition video
screenshot from my CSE 311 gradescope
proof of success
My computer science class was really rough this quarter, and I experienced a lot of imposter syndrome during it. The class was a lot more like a math class than a programming class, and its central focus was on how to write good proofs - something that I found difficult and unintriguing. I was also very stressed from all my other classes that quarter, and I had to use lots of late days - I'm very thankful they had a set number of late days available without score penalty, and it's something I'd like to request moving forward in other classes (as it was very helpful for my mental health). In general, this class was a good 'reality check' for what the bigger scope of computer science is, and even though the theoretical branch isn't something I would like to dig too deep into, it was certainly a huge opportunity to challenge myself academically. I'm still a little bit shaky on how to write proofs well, but I ended up getting a much higher score in the class than I expected and I am quite proud of that. I also really appreciate all of my friends and peers for the emotional support that they gave me throughout the course.
new sound waves
I chose to take a music techniques class this quarter to meet my music upper level electives early, and so I learned the basics of classical guitar technique. This class was super enjoyable, and I really liked examining the differences between guitar technique and violin technique as I have played violin for many years. The professor was also super respectful and understanding of his students, so it was a great experience overall. I loved being able to start learning a new instrument from scratch and adding to my bigger musical skillset, all while having fun exploring new pieces.
"Prelude in C Major" from The Christopher Parkening Guitar Method, Vol. 1