T-Minus 58 Days and Counting

[Currently Listening: Eleanor Rigby by The Beatles]

Hello All!

This is entry numero uno (or один, по-русски)! The entire purpose of this blog is basically so I don't forget everything I do! I know people have gone overseas for long periods of time and at the end of it all they've seen so much that it seems like a blur. I hope to update this weekly, at least. Expect pictures and adventures (though I feel like I may not be able to get TOO detailed, as I imagine I'll have a fairly diverse audience here).

To be truly honest I'm terrified. I couldn't even man it up enough to go to school more than half an hour away (I know, I know, there were lots of other factors involved, blah blah) and now I'm going... many miles away (I'll have to get back to you all on the actual number). It occurs to me that I'm going to be out of the country for important birthdays and anniversaries, and that does make me sad. However, I know that if I don't take advantage of this amazing opportunity that I will regret it for the rest of my life. When else am I basically going to have an all-expense paid vacation to Europe for 5 months?? Never, that's when.

Tomorrow (Monday) I'm going to meet with my general academic advisor and then the Dean of Arts & Sciences (I hope) to discuss course transfer, etc. I found out this weekend that each class in Ireland is worth 5 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System), but those 5 ECTS per class only transfer back to 2.5 credit hours. THis means that for every SLU class I want credit for I have to take 2 of in Ireland. For example, I still need 3 credit hours of English credit for my degree at SLU. This means that I will have to take 2 English classes at NUI Galway because each class at NUI Galway is only worth the equivalent of 2.5 credit hours. We're supposed to take between 5 and 7 classes at NUI Galway. That kind of sucks, because it means I will only basically be able to transfer back 9 hours of credit toward my degree... the rest of it is going to be left over credit that doesnt really go anywhere. I'll still be a full time student because I'll be taking 6 classes over there which equals 30 ECTS or 15 credit hours, but only 9 of those hours are worth anything. This means that I have to take 2 classes over the summer at SWIC to catch up (don't freak out Mom and Dad, I'll be paying for it!) and tack on an extra class some other semester.

This is how I understand it, anyway. I will find out for sure in the next couple of days. I know I probably should have found all this stuff out BEFORE I submitted my release for housing here at SLU, but oh well. I'll work it out. I will find out all specifics, and i can still get out of this, if necessary. I hope not, though.

I will post an update soon!

Peace Out.

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