Learning the Ropes
As of today, I am about to finish my fourth week of classes. My course load is 14 credits per week, which is less than the usual 16 I took back at Northeastern. However, three of my five classes are conducted entirely in Japanese, which is still rather difficult to adjust to considering I’m still learning the language. However, the professors usually distribute handouts to help the students understand what is going on, so that helps.
In my opinion, classes here at Oberlin University are conducted fairly similar to those at Northeastern—the professor lectures, and then the class is either split into groups for discussions or given time to complete an in-class assignment. Classes typically have around 20 students, but it varies from class to class. For example, my Japanese language class has around 10 students, my pop culture class has 40 students, and my modern history class has 4 students.
But the biggest surprise for me was that only one student can be enrolled in a course and the course will still not be cancelled. In my culture class, as of now, I am the only student in it. Initially, there were 4 students enrolled in it, including myself. But the two Japanese students taking the class were intimidated by the fact that the class was in English, and the other American student had dropped the class. So now, I am the only student in that class. Basically, that class is a 3-hour discussion with the professor. But I actually enjoy it because I could ask her anything without having to worry about boring and/or annoying the other students; I can learn at my own pace without worrying about the learning of other students. Also, I can learn about Japanese culture and receive a more in-depth explanation than I would in a regular-sized class.
Two of the five courses I am currently taking require a textbook. For my Japanese class, I purchased the textbook from the school bookstore, and it cost a little over 2000 yen, or $20. As for my Modern History class, I was able to order an older edition of the book for $6, which is quite a bargain compared to the $50 for the newest edition. The older edition had the exact same material as the newer one, with the exception of the last couple of chapters. For those particular readings, I plan on asking a friend at Northeastern to check out the book at the library and email me a photocopy of the chapters I need to read.
I usually went through the same process when I had classes at Northeastern—I would scour the internet for cheaper or older copies of the required textbooks, and if I couldn’t find anything, or if the textbook was more expensive online, then I would either rent or purchase it from Northeastern’s bookstore.
