No more assignments.

I have finally completed my dissertation and submitted it about 3 weeks ago. Overall I feel that I have completed it to the best of my ability. Two days after that I did my presentation based on my school experience in front of the staff members, my supervisor and approximately 10 other students. Before starting my presentation, I felt really nervous, because I thought that I might finish too early. All the presentations were supposed to last for 15 minutes. 10 minutes delivery and 5 minutes for questions, from the floor. We all got marked for the ability to ask interesting questions tour peers and we also had to answer our questions successfully after we completed our presentations.

Nowadays I’m busy with work and on my days off I just go to my cousins house to mingle with them, this weekend just gone, I was staying over at my cousin sisters house. I had a really nice time playing with her son and just hanging around.  I went around the evening time on Saturday, so we couldn't really go out. 

However the morning after we went out to the park considering it was a lovely day. On the way back to her house we all had some ice – cream. Overall I had a really enjoyable weekend. 

Exam season and coursework submission!

I have just submitted my placement presentation last night which counts towards 20% of my final grade :) I am quite pleased with my final draft of the presentation. I have to deliver the presentation next Friday 26^th April at 2pm. I am quite looking forward to delivering the presentation as I can reflect on my experience on carrying out the placement.

I also have to submit my placement report which needs to be between 3000–4000 words long next Wednesday 24^th April. So far I have completed 2/3 of the report and I am just looking forward to completing it. My written report counts towards 50% of my grade for the UAS module.

The final piece of assessment is the logbook which makes up for 30% of that module. This is my favourite part of the assessment as it requires me to reflect on my weekly experience of working at Wanstead High School. I enjoy writing the logbooks as I have to write a bit every week and so I don’t need to do all the written work all at once.

Overall, it has been a busy month with so many assignments to complete. I am very much looking forward to completing all my coursework’s and enjoying the sunshine. 

Institute of Mathematics at London Exhibition Centre

Today I was working at the London Excel Exhibition centre at custom house. I was working as a student ambassador; however I was representing the IMA (Institute of Mathematics and Its Applications.

There were lots of activities which we all had to be in charge of and showcase to our visitors. The activity which I was in charge of was called the ‘Travelling Salesman’. My activity involved a map of 14 different cities around the UK and a piece of string approximately 1 metre long. The aim of the game was to fit the string across all 14 different cities, making sure that they touch all the cities without overlapping. The city which a person can start with is the city which they have to end up in, by the end. This game works from starting at any one of the 14 different cities, and not just a specific one.

In the beginning, it was difficult for me to solve the puzzle, but as some time passed by I eventually got the hang of it and was able to solve it. This also motivated me to help the visitors in solving the puzzle and also asking them about how they think this game is relevant to mathematics.

Overall, the day as a whole was quite long, however it was very enjoyable as I got to meet and speak to lots of different people. Another thing which was quite interesting was that the activities which I was in charge of attracted a large audience and lots of people participated.  From this I have learnt that mathematics is an extremely exciting and interesting subject, but I do also realise that it should be presented in a creative way so as to attract a wider audience

Half term is over

Studying the module UAS (University Ambassador Scheme) which means doing placement in my chosen secondary school, means that I am up to date with pre-University timetable such as the school timetable. This week which has just passed was the half-term for all school and college/sixth – form students.

Overall not much activity has taken place over the past few weeks. I submitted my Mathematics in Society coursework a couple of weeks ago and I am still awaiting the results. I aim to get a god mark on this coursework as it took me a very long time to do and I can honestly say that I did put a lot of thought and effort into my writing.  As a result of this I am very much looking forward to knowing what mark I got.

We just recently had an Open Day on 23^rd February. Despite the chilly weather, it was a great success. Attending an Open Day provides an opportunity for prospective students to view the campus and accommodation services. Also they can attend taster sessions and ask the academics any questions they have regarding the programme they wish to study. They can ask the University Ambassadors any questions they have regarding accommodation, University social life and any other non – academic questions which may come to mind.  Our next Open Day is Saturday 13^th April, from 10am to 3pm. It is open on all three campuses; Avery Hill, Greenwich and Medway, for all the programmes offered at the University of Greenwich. So for all our readers, who may have missed this Open Day which has just passed, I would strongly advise you to attend the next Open Day. To book, you can give us a call on 0208 331 9000.

Working as a Maths Ambassador on the Isle of Sheppey

Last Thursday, I was working as a student ambassador at the Isle of Sheppey at the Isle of Sheppey Academy. The isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England in the Thames Estuary, some 46 miles (74 km) to the east of London.

My role was to support two Further Maths Support Programme co-coordinators in delivering presentations to year 10 and 11 students from the Academy, encouraging them to study Mathematics up to the age of 18 by studying A Levels in Mathematics and Further Mathematics.  My role was to deliver a 5 minute talk about the degree I am  studying which is BSc Hons Mathematics, what my degree entails and where I hope to go after the completion of my undergraduate degree. I also outlined the differences between school/ college life and university life. The main difference which I strongly emphasized was the need for more independent study at undergraduate level.

There were lots of useful hints and tips with regards to what the major topics of mathematics students should be confident in. Some of these topics are; algebra, understanding and the use of trigonometry, standard angles and their ratios, Pythagorean triples, Language – identity, equation, expression, ratio, root, solution, asymptote. 

One of the major points which was stressed throughout the duration of the presentation was that students who are interested in studying Mathematics and Further Mathematics at A Level was that they should continue to keep practicing throughout the summer holidays. Of course this is not what most students expect to hear, spending their summer holidays studying maths, however, for those keen students who are eager to do well and gain top grades on their A Levels and gain admission into University it is essential.

One of the reasons mathematics is so useful in the modern world is that the amount of technology we are using is increasing all the time.  New technology relies on a lot of mathematics. In computing and mobile technology for example, programming requires mathematically proficient people. Games depend on using A level maths idea to create realistic artificial environments. Mobile networks involve the application of techniques introduced in Decision maths.

Unfortunately the supply in the UK of good mathematicians is not enough to keep pace with the demand by employers, - hence there are plenty of career opportunities for mathematically able young people.

Back from Bangladesh

Hey, my dear reader’s I’m back from my home country and what have I come back to? Bad weather. Well truthfully, it wasn't much better back home. It was very cold and chilly, just without the rain and snow.

So during my holidays I had lots of fun. I went back for my cousin’s wedding, as I mentioned in my previous blog prior to leaving for my trip. There were three major parties. Ceremonies throughout the two weeks I was there, all of which took place after the New Year. 

On the 2^nd of Jan was the mehndi party, which is a traditional party which can take place a few days before or even the day before the wedding. All three events were held in the evening at or after 7pm. The bride (my cousins) wore bright yellow and all her friends and I wore purple. I believe it was a good contrast. The evening was enjoyable overall. Relaxing with the family and taking pictures with my cousin.  There was also a yummy cake that we fed the bride and she fed us, and at the end of the evening the cake was cut up and distributed among the guests who attended the party.

On the 4^th of Jan (coinciding with my brother’s birthday) was the day of the wedding, again it was an evening programme. This time everyone wore different colours and the bride wore red – similar to chilly red colour. I wore hot pink and my mum wore royal blue. This time I guess the event was more emotional compared to the mehndi party as we were giving the bride away at the end of the night. However before the sad moment arrived, we all did have great fun.

On the 8^th January was the walima party and this time we had to travel to Dhaka from Sylhet where the ceremony was taking place. The walima party is from the groom’s side where as the wedding party is from the bride’s side. Considering it takes between 4 to 6 hours by car to get to Dhaka, we all had to wake up quite early. This time it involved an overnight stay at a hotel in Dhaka as it would be too tiring to get there, attend the ceremony and then come back to Sylhet all in one day. The ceremony was once again took place in the evening. The day after the programme, everyone went back to Sylhet and the bride and groom came back to stay with us for a few days.

Overall it was a really good holiday and I enjoyed it very much.

One more week to go

Yay! It’s only one more week to go before I fly out to Bangladesh with my Mum. I fly out on Wednesday 26^th December. I’m so excited. This year I am going to attend my cousin sister’s wedding ceremony. Last year I went over there for my cousin brother’s wedding (her elder brother). It was a really interesting and exciting experience, so I am definitely looking forward to going back this winter holidays too.

I still haven’t started packing yet, as I still have lots to do in terms of my University studies over the next two days. Tomorrow I have my Mathematics in Society lecture at 10am in the morning. Uff, I really dislike early morning lectures. Considering I’m not a morning person, I think afternoon lectures suit me best. Well I am more alert and awake anyways.

On Friday, I have my placement at Wanstead High School, however considering it will be a half-day for the students, seeing as it’s the end of term, I will only have to participate in two lessons, and I still have to plan a starter activity for my Year 9 class. Over the past several weeks I have been lo0oking forward to carrying out my placement at Wanstead High School. The staff and students are all friendly and helpful, so I think so far my placement is going successfully, and this experience also makes me look forward to being a full-time teacher, sometime in the future.

It’s quite a short blog this week, but there’s not much else to say. Who knows? I may have some exciting stories with regards to my adventures in Bangladesh to tell you about after the New Year. So till then my readers, keep reading J

Busy!

Last week was quite a busy week for me as I had work for the first four days – Monday to Thursday, and then of course I had my placement at Wanstead High School on Friday. 

Work on Tuesday and Thursday was most interesting. On both days I was working on the Greenwich campus. Interviews were held on both days in the Computing and Mathematical Sciences Department. On Tuesday, the film and television interviews were taking place so the majority of students attending the interviews were predicted to achieve AAB or above for their A Level examinations which they are due to complete by the end of June 2013. My main role was to help answer any general questions they had with regards to university life, accommodation, etc.

On the Thursday, prospective maths students and other film students were being interviewed. Although I started work at a later time of 1:30 on Thursday (compared to Tuesday, when I started at 11:45pm) due to the fact that my lecture finished at 1pm, I enjoyed Thursday’s work much more. Perhaps it was because the prospective students were being interviewed for the subject I am currently studying. It was nice to talk to these students about the modules that were going to be studied in the first and second years of the Mathematics degree. They also had other questions with regards to extra–curricular activities within the Maths Department. I was able to talk about the student Maths Society which is a society that comprises of 7-10 maths students that organise various events and trips for all the maths students studying at the university. Past events which have taken place are- Ice- Skating, Trips to Thorpe Park, Christmas Balls as well as many others. I was also able to advise the prospective students that they have to be in their second year of study to be part of the Maths Society team.

Other things which they could do include being a second year mentor to the first year students – helping the first years settle in during the first few weeks of University life. Taking part in these extra–curricular activities is really impressive for the CV, and it shows employers that you’re capable not only academically but socially as well, which is always a bonus, especially working within a team environment.

My placement working at Wanstead High School

For the past six weeks or so I have been doing a placement at Wanstead High School. I go to the School every Friday to help out and sometimes do some starter lessons with the year 7, 8 and 9 class. Although this placement is part of my final year undergraduate programme, I believe that it is relevant experience for me to become a secondary school teacher. Doing this placement also gives me the added benefit of strengthening my PGCE application.  One of the requirements of a PGCE programme is to secure a minimum of 10 full, working days in a classroom setting, and so by doing the placement at Wanstead High School, I wou8ld be fulfilling this criteria.

Aside from doing the placement and attending my other maths courses, I also need to focus on writing up my personal statement, in my opinion, writing personal statements can be quite tricky, as sometimes there can be so much to write about, however I need to only think about the relevant points which would interest the admission tutors, reading my application.

The most important characteristics to have, to be a successful school teacher is to be motivating, a good listener and patience. Of course there are many other character traits which are also just as necessary, such as good organisational skills, communication and practical.

I aim to submit my PGCE application by early December, so hopefully I can hear back from some universities to attend an interview. Practicing interview techniques is also important, as I want to make a good impression and show that I am a keen and serious learner, and I am eager to do well, if I were to be successful in securing a place on the PGCE Secondary Education programme.

Maths at Uni

Maths at university can be fun and interesting, but that’s only if you’re determined to work hard and be successful in your studies. It is more in depth and covers a much broader range of topics. My best piece of advice would be to study A Level Further Maths. It’s really useful, as some of the topics are repeated, especially within the first term.

Top tips to be successful for the exams would be to practice maths regularly. Try and do some maths every day even for at least an hour or two (if you can manage it). Practising maths regularly, helps keep your brain sharp and you find it easier to remember important formulae, and methods of solving mathematical problems.

Studying maths daily means that you complete the topics quickly leaving you more time to tackle past exam papers. It is best to do past papers under exam papers, without using the textbook. Doing past papers gives a good idea of the topics which you are most confident in and other topics, which you may need to, go back and revise again. By doing lots of past papers you can improve your understanding of maths, and overall improve you’re a Level grades.

My final piece of advice is to try and get it right from the beginning. Don’t depend on retaking the module again at a later time. Retaking modules again and again just adds more pressure and increases the workload, as you have to do well in the modules you are currently studying and also the modules you retake. Another reason not to be dependent on retakes is that students don’t get an opportunity to retake modules as easily as to when doing retakes in college. So of course, it’s a really good idea to get used to it, students who study hard and thoroughly at college life, find the transition from college or sixth form to university much easier and smoother.

Good Weekend!

I would say that I had quite a good weekend. It was Eid-Ul-Adha on Friday, which was really nice. My family and I didn’t go out or anything, as both my parents had work and my brother had university classes. So my family was busy overall, just as if it was a normal day.

Overall, we just had a peaceful and relaxing afternoon and evening, with us all just watching TV and just generally chatting together

Oh yeah and the time changed on Sunday. I read some of my messages on my Facebook account, and a lot of my friends were awake before 7am. I had to check the date to make sure it was Sunday, and not Monday, otherwise that would mean that I would have been late for work, which is a big ‘no no’. But waking up on Sundays before 7am seems so pointless for me. I guess I am one of those people who prefer my sleep, rather than watching TV or doing something else, whatever it is people do early mornings on a weekend. Although, saying that, I guess it is good practice for the weekdays, so we can get used to the time change.

On Sunday, my aunt and uncle came over to my house. My aunt is my dad’s sister. It was quite a long visit and for some reason I wasn’t feeling so sociable. I have seen them quite often over the last two months, so their visit wasn’t so exciting or special. My uncle is going back to Bangladesh on Wednesday, so that was his last visit before he goes back to his home country. I didn’t mind them coming to my house or anything, but I guess I was having one of those days, where I just wasn’t feeling so chipper.  

Bundle of Joy and potential winter wedding

Last Sunday we received news that my cousin had a baby boy. Aaw he looks absolutely

adorable. My uncle sent me pictures via text. My cousin and his family live in Bangladesh and the last time we saw each other was last December when he got married. Oh those were such exciting times.

We may be going back to Bangladesh for this Christmas holidays again, as his younger sister is due to get married on the last week of December of first week of January. We are very close to their family as their mum and my mum are sisters. Nothing has been confirmed yet, but as the weeks pass by, things seem more and more likely.

Yesterday was quite busy as one my uncle, aunt and his whole family came over for a lunch invite. We hadn’t seen them much since they got married back in February, so it was nice getting to know each other since the wedding day. We were supposed to go to my cousin’s house yesterday also for lunch as the whole family were going to meet up and just have lunch together, but we were unable to attend as my uncle and his family. It’s not too bad as Eid is coming up this Friday and even though most of us will be studying or working, we have the weekend to catch up with each other and next term is half term for all kids(except Uni students). Although saying that my brother has reading week next term, which is sort of like half-term, but I guess with lots of reading and other assignments to complete throughout the week.

So it seems like I have lots of things to look forward to and I can’t wait for the next 2 and half months to go by.

Busy weekend

This upcoming weekend is going to be quite busy for me and my family as we are holding a dinner party on Saturday night for my dad’s colleague and his family. I haven’t seen them in quite some time so I guess the atmosphere is going to be different compared to just having family or cousins over for an afternoon.

On Sunday, I’ve got a wedding party to attend. We are from the bride’s side and it’s my dad’s cousin’s daughter who is going to get married. I am very much looking forward to that as it’s been approximately a month or so since I last attended a wedding. Weddings are generally a good opportunity to socialise and talk to lots of different people.

Last month, I attended my cousin’s wedding. I was from the groom’s side. It was a really fun and interesting event and once again a brilliant chance to meet cousins and just generally spend time with them. The day was great in general. All the cousins along with the groom got to sit in the limo on the journey towards the wedding venue, and some cousins got to come back on the journey home.

Overall, the day was really enjoyable and fun. At the end of the day the wedding ceremony went smoothly and all my cousins and I gained a wonderful sister-in-law.

New Beginnings

Once again another month has passed and we are in the middle of September. Thankfully the weather is bright and beautiful today which is always positive news. So, after anticipating my brother’s exciting news, he has now received his results for 2 A* in Mathematics and Biology and 2 grade A’s in Chemistry thus securing his place at the University College of London to study MEng Biochemical Engineering a 4 year full-time degree with intercalated masters. He will commence his study from 24^th September. He is thrilled to be accepted into such a prestigious institution to study the programme of study of his choice.

As for my youngest brother, he will now proceed to his final year of A Levels with his subject choice of Economics, English Literature and History. As much as my eldest brother (eldest in terms of age compared to my youngest brother, not necessarily older than me) is into Sciences and my youngest brother is into Humanities. I suppose he is looking forward to completing his final year of college and then proceeding onto University. Although if you ask him what programme of study he wants to go into at undergraduate level, he has no idea. Hopefully he can sort his ideas out soon enough as he has approximately 4 months till he needs to submit his UCAS applications to different institutions for which ever programme he wishes to study. So far, he knows that he wants to study a degree related to his A Level courses. I have suggested that he could do a combined degree, for example Economics and History or English Literature and History. If he does decide to go ahead with a combined degree then I would advise him to study a joint honours with a 50-50 combination rather than 75-25 as he is equally good in both Economics and History and he enjoys both those subjects, however for all I know, he may just end up studying a single honours degree in BA Hons English Literature. Well whatever he decides to study, I will support him all the way. 

Time flies by

Wow times passing by really quickly and we are nearing the middle of August. I’m so so excited for next Thursday which is… A Level results day. Yaayyy. Both my brother’s results will be released on that day. My oldest brother’s A Level Results and my youngest brothers AS Level results will be released on this day. Yes as you can probably tell by now, they are quite similar in age; there is only a 15 month age difference between them. I think my mom and I are more nervous for their results, than they actually are. Hopefully this means that they feel they have performed well in the examinations and will both receive brilliant results.

My cousins are also due to receive their final results this year. One of my cousins will receive her AS results on the 16th August and two of my other cousins will receive their GCSE results on 23rd August. So overall, there is quite a bit of pressure in all four families for the youngsters to perform well. Obviously the better grades they achieve in their A/AS Level and GCSE Examinations will mean that they can apply for good courses in college and University. The higher grades they achieve will open up more opportunities for them. 

In terms of other news, my closest friend text me the other day wanting to meet up and just generally catch up. We haven’t seen each other for nearly eight weeks now. So she suggested we link up after Ramadhan is over, that way we could probably go out for a meal together. My friend has text me and left some Facebook messages over the past two weeks so I guess she misses me. I do miss her too, but I'm busy with work nowadays, and I mostly spend my weekends sleeping, so I don’t have so much time catching up with friends, unless they text/message me first. It’s kind of one sided I know, but after another 6 weeks or so, I should be a little bit more free. After Ramadhan is over, I won’t need to sleep so much during the daytime in the weekends, so perhaps my friends and I can catch up then. 

Ramadhan

It’s the 11^th day of Ramadhan, and I feel as if this blessed month is fading away fast. The first day of Ramadhan is determined by the sighting of the moon the night before. Originally, my family and I thought that the first day would be Saturday; this would have been great news for me as I could have had the whole weekend to get used to it, and then start work on Monday. However, on Thursday night, I received 2 texts from my friends confirming that Ramadhan would start on Friday.  Consequently this meant that I would have to start my evening prayers earlier than usual because I have to pray Tarawih(special prayers that Muslims pray during the 29/30 days of Ramadhan, in between the evening prayers). This can take some time – some people take 45 minutes and some take 1 hour to complete the evening prayers during Ramadhan, so it’s best advised to complete it early (the whole prayer should be complete before midnight)

This weekend I had quite a lot of family over, due to this I couldn’t catch up on my much needed sleep as I would have liked. I thought it would be a bit strange and awkward for people to visit other people’s houses during Ramadhan, considering everyone would be fasting, so we can’t offer them any refreshments, etc. They were unwilling to stay until Iftar(the meal used to break our fast) as we break it at sunset, which is close to 9pm nowadays, and my relatives left at like 6pm because they wanted to break their fasts, in their own homes, which was understandable.

On Sunday my cousins came. This was a pleasant surprise. As my cousin brother is due to get married on 26^th August, they bought all the wedding dresses for the bride earlier in the day and they bought them to my house to show me and my family. I thought that this was a very sweet gesture. All together, they bought one lehenga and 5 sarees. They now need to send it over to the bride so that she can buy all her accessories, jewellery and shoes to match each outfit. My cousins parents who currently live in Bangladesh are due to come over to the UK a week or so before the wedding and they plan on living here for 6 months. My cousin’s mum and my dad are siblings, so we are quite close to each other in terms of family relationships.

 Overall it’s a really exciting time in our family with lots to look forward to.

Birthday Meal at Tayyabs

Well it’s been a few weeks since I’ve last written a blog. The last four weeks seemed to have just flown by. I’ve been busy with work and just life in general.

I had my birthday on Thursday and received some great gifts from my family; an Asian dress (called Anarkali), a teddy bear and pink flower tall glass, and a glass plaque with a wonderful message from my brothers. I don’t really remember what the message was, but it was really sweet. I haven’t really touched the plaque much, after receiving it. It’s really precious to me, considering it contains a thoughtful message from my brothers. I don’t want to mess around with it too much in case it scratched or slips from my fingers and breaks. Lol. So I’ve kept it in the box on the highest shelf of my room.

So last night, I had dinner with my family at Tayyabs, in Whitechapel. This was just a little outing, for my birthday which was last Thursday. We didn’t do much on the day, because it was a weekday and my parents and I were working on that day and Friday too. On Saturday evening, my dad had work once again, so that’s why we had the meal on Sunday evening.

The food was delicious. All five of us chose different dishes (Mom, Dad, my two brothers and I) and then we had a taste of each others with naan bread. Then for dessert, we had mango lassi. It was an extremely wonderful evening out.

My youngest brother was the most anxious to come home, due to the Euro game, England versus Italy. It turns out he didn’t have much to be excited about considering Italy won the match.

In terms of other news, my brother has finally finished all of his exams. He had his last two exams on Friday. At least he’s all done now and the whole house is relaxed. For some reason, there is always a little bit of tension in my household, even if even one of us (my brothers or I) have exams. Tension in a good way, like we support each other in terms of giving each other space and stuff; not watching too much TV or playing games whilst the other one is revising. It’s like if two of us are having fun, then naturally the other one will want to join as well. So we have to keep it low key. But yeah, that’s all over now and we can all have fun.

Lots of lovely sunshine and the colour Blue

Wow! It’s another beautiful, bright and sunny day. Summer is truly here. The weekend is nearly here, and what a weekend it is. A four day weekend I could take a mini holiday couldn't I? Well I guess anyone could.

Alas it is not to be, as I have to attend a wedding this weekend with my parents.  I so wish could miss it, stay at home and maybe go to the park (which is just behind my house, by the way), less than five minute walk from my front door. Unfortunately I don’t have the excuse of studying and revision, the only thing that would have appeased my parents, especially my mum to allow me to stay at home. Luckily for my brother, he is allowed to stay home to revise, considering his exams have not even started, never mind completed. Yes, he starts his exam on 12^th June. I think he is lucky because he gets to spend the next four weekends at home. He thinks I’m lucky considering I can go out during the weekends, attend weddings/parties and catch-up with friends and cousins, etc. Everyone has a different way of looking at things. It’s only a difference of opinion. The major difference between my brother and I is that I am more of a homely person, I like to keep myself to myself. For me the perfect weekend is staying in my pyjamas, watching TV, movies and eating lots of junk food, etc. Ooh and I also love reading books. I have lots of books to read over the summer holiday. On the other hand, my brother, is more of an outdoor sporty kind of person. He likes going out and playing sports like tennis and badminton.  You could never get him to sit down to watch a game of football, tennis, cricket or whatever, but ask him to play a game, and he’ll be the first one to agree, eagerly setting everything up and splitting the group into two groups. He’s very competitive when it comes to sports, but its the fun friendly competitive.  He’s most happy surrounded by people, friends and relatives, always making them laugh and wanting them to be happy.

In terms of my reading, first off i think I’m going to start with Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini. I bought the book way back in January, but it’s just been sitting on my bookshelf, untouched and unread. So I’m really looking forward to reading that.

So this Sunday I have a wedding to attend with my parents. I plan on wearing a Turkish blue Anarkali (Indian style dress). I didn’t have many accessories to match with the dress, so my mum took me out on Monday afternoon after my final exam to Ilford shopping centre.  It’s been a few months since I’ve had to attend any family functions/ weddings, but I am definitely looking forward to it. The wedding I am attending, the bride is a relative of my mum’s, well her aunt and my mum are closely related. It’s all a bit confusing and complicated, but I think it’s just the case of meeting them in real life and getting to know them properly.

Also I still have to get round to tidying up. No improvements have been made on that area since yesterday. Oh well what can I say?  That’s what Monday and Tuesday is going to be for. 

Completed my Degree

Wow! It feels so good to say that now. Yesterday I completed my final exam; Financial Econometrics.  It was a good paper, that’s only because I went over last year’s exam paper as part of my revision. The questions that appeared on the actual exam paper were similar to last years, so there were no nasty surprises.

My closest friend had her last exam on Friday. We both had the same exam that day; Statistics. That exam was pretty difficult, not as good as my Econometrics paper. Thankfully I did achieve a really good coursework mark for Statistics, so all my marks should average out. I did tell my friend after our Thursday’s Partial Differential Equations exam, to not rub it my face the fact that she finished earlier than me. She was really good about it on Friday evening on the journey home. She was like she’ll be thinking about me over the weekend, while show goes out shopping and stuff. She was also saying that she needs to clean out her whole room, because it’s really messy with paper, books and folders everywhere. Her sister-in-law is too scared to go into her room now to use the laptop, because of the mess. Lol! How funny is that?

Actually speaking of my best friend and messy rooms, I’m no better. My books and files are everywhere around my room too. My room and desk table is scattered with paper and notes. My mum was telling me last night that I need to clean everything and tidy my room up, but I told her that considering I only finished my exam yesterday lunchtime, it’s obviously going to take me some time to sort my room out. Considering I am busy until Friday, I guess my cleaning duty will start in the weekend. Thankfully it’s going to be a very long weekend, so I’ll have plenty of time to clean my room and also to enjoy myself, doing other things except for studying. Lol! It feels so good to say that.

Family and Cousins!!

Revision classes have begun, from Monday, what with going over PDE coursework marks, comparing with friends and receiving general feedback. I have to say I am quite pleased with my mark, although looking back, it doesn't feel like I put much effort into it, considering I barely remember doing it. However, considering I submitted it more than a month ago, and I had 3 more assignments to complete since then it’s hardly too surprising, now is it?

Personally for me, I didn’t find all my third year modules hard, I would say that the PDE module was by far the easiest module I have studied throughout the whole year. Ok, maybe not so easy as I make out to be, that’s only because I think most of the major concepts which are taught in that class, just sort of click, it just makes sense to me. However that is not to say, that I will get the same mark in the final exam. I still must go over all my lecture notes and revision material for this course as well as the other modules, to ensure that I do well overall.

My timetable for the rest of the week is pretty jam packed. I’ve got a lecture on Thursday morning for 2 hours, an on Friday; I have a total of 6 hours of lecture and revision time to get through. I have 3 hours of Financial Econometrics and 3 hours of Actuarial Mathematics to get through. Oh Joy! If that’s not bad enough next week I have even more classes to get through. This week I have a total of 4 lectures however, next week I will have 5 lectures to get through. This makes sense seeing as I have 5 exams to complete this May,

On 8^th April it was my granddad’s Birthday (my mum’s dad). He lives in America with my grand mom and Aunt (mum’s sister) and Uncles (mum’s brother, and brother-in-law) and cousins. They had a super great birthday party with cake and candles, etc. My cousins uploaded the pictures on Facebook, and then tagged my brother and I on the cake. This was his way of saying that although we weren’t there to enjoy the celebrations, we were very much in every one’s thoughts. Aaw, how cute is that? I found that a very kind and thoughtful gesture. I showed my mum the pictures from Facebook, she was well emotional, but I knew she was happy at the same time at seeing her parents. How Cute!!

I literally just remembered, last week on 14^th April, it was New Year’s Day for Bangladesh. My cousins, whom live there, enjoyed the New Years day with great enthusiasm. They all dressed up in colourful saris, painted each other’s hands with henna tattoos, and went to fairs, etc. They all uploaded pictures on Facebook, just so I could see. Aaw, how cute!!

That’s one of the many things which I love about family and my cousins, it’s that whenever they are having fun, they don’t forget us and try to include us in some way, shape or form, this time in terms of uploading Facebook pictures and tagging us.