Qual
It's so funny to me that people continually write their blogs about the bad things that happen to them. It's kind of interesting that the things that provide the strongest impetus to write are the things that have such a negative connotation. Maybe I haven't seen enough blogs or maybe I'm just biased by what I've recently seen, but it feels as though individuals should take more out of the good things in life, even those small things, that make them smile or enjoy the day.
I had an amazing experience over the last couple of days writing my Qual. The qual is the Junior Qualifying Examination and each junior at Reed College has to pass the qual in his department in order to move on to write a thesis as a senior. It's a rough experience and next to the thesis is one of those academic things that you just don't talk about.
So many people came up to me this week with a look of pity in their eyes asking how I was doing and whether I was coming along nicely. It's amazing the way that people at this school have a sense of understanding about one another--the way people can come together and really understand what we're going through. We've all either been there before or we'll all be there someday, and so we do what we can to help others have the smoothest experience they possibly can.
I picked up my qual on Monday morning at 9:30 am and spent all day reading it, re-reading it, forming outlines, searching for the main argument and trying to find my point of attack. At midnight I had the same progress that I had at 8:30 and I was missing something. So I did what few people really do--I unplugged. I left my computer, pulled out my ear buds, turned off the iPod and walked across campus to get something to drink and something to eat. In this technological age, we're constantly assaulted with so many distractions that it is incredibly difficult to really get away from it and focus your mind. That was all I needed.
At 7 am, I walked home after completing two drafts with a profound confidence in my understanding of the paper, but also philosophy. I had consumed 3 starbucks double shot espressos, two red bulls, and had class to attend at 9am (which I would sleep through in favor of an extra hour of sleep for class at 10:30am).
I was discussing with a friend the whole concept of the qual on Monday night and we thought that the point of it was kind of lost. A person should be a senior in a major if he completes the classes and gets through them with a solid understanding of the subject. But by 7 am, when I walked home (Ear buds out, iPod off, and birds chirping at the rising sun), I realized that the qual has so many more uses than a pass/fail examination. I had spent nearly 24 hours philosophizing. I looked at an article that I initially agreed with and changed my mind a couple of times as I read it over and over again. I constructed an argument, challenged my own beliefs, and really pushed my own philosophical understanding.
That's what a qual is for. To give someone the experience of total devotion to a subject, whether it's a paper a test or an experiment, for just three days. Because everyone knows that the following year, it's two semesters on one subject, complete and utter marriage to a thesis, and whether it is productive or full of hate, the marriage goes on... we work through the difficulties... and come out on the other side Graduates of Reed College.
It's a good thing to write about.
I had an amazing experience over the last couple of days writing my Qual. The qual is the Junior Qualifying Examination and each junior at Reed College has to pass the qual in his department in order to move on to write a thesis as a senior. It's a rough experience and next to the thesis is one of those academic things that you just don't talk about.
So many people came up to me this week with a look of pity in their eyes asking how I was doing and whether I was coming along nicely. It's amazing the way that people at this school have a sense of understanding about one another--the way people can come together and really understand what we're going through. We've all either been there before or we'll all be there someday, and so we do what we can to help others have the smoothest experience they possibly can.
I picked up my qual on Monday morning at 9:30 am and spent all day reading it, re-reading it, forming outlines, searching for the main argument and trying to find my point of attack. At midnight I had the same progress that I had at 8:30 and I was missing something. So I did what few people really do--I unplugged. I left my computer, pulled out my ear buds, turned off the iPod and walked across campus to get something to drink and something to eat. In this technological age, we're constantly assaulted with so many distractions that it is incredibly difficult to really get away from it and focus your mind. That was all I needed.
At 7 am, I walked home after completing two drafts with a profound confidence in my understanding of the paper, but also philosophy. I had consumed 3 starbucks double shot espressos, two red bulls, and had class to attend at 9am (which I would sleep through in favor of an extra hour of sleep for class at 10:30am).
I was discussing with a friend the whole concept of the qual on Monday night and we thought that the point of it was kind of lost. A person should be a senior in a major if he completes the classes and gets through them with a solid understanding of the subject. But by 7 am, when I walked home (Ear buds out, iPod off, and birds chirping at the rising sun), I realized that the qual has so many more uses than a pass/fail examination. I had spent nearly 24 hours philosophizing. I looked at an article that I initially agreed with and changed my mind a couple of times as I read it over and over again. I constructed an argument, challenged my own beliefs, and really pushed my own philosophical understanding.
That's what a qual is for. To give someone the experience of total devotion to a subject, whether it's a paper a test or an experiment, for just three days. Because everyone knows that the following year, it's two semesters on one subject, complete and utter marriage to a thesis, and whether it is productive or full of hate, the marriage goes on... we work through the difficulties... and come out on the other side Graduates of Reed College.
It's a good thing to write about.
posted by Fish at 1:52 PM
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