Ed.M. Virtual Student Chat

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Hello everyone doing a quick audio check so if you can hear this. Can you please let me know in the chat box will get starting a couple more minutes, it looks like people are still making their way into the session, so wonderful. It looks like we a lot of you are having.

Success in hearing me for those that may be struggling or seeing the actual PowerPoint. That's up. Currently, I advise that you. Refresh your browser. We recommend either Google Chrome or fire. Fox so try doing that logging back in and like I said, We'll get started with you thanks.

Hi I'm doing one more test. I just came back online. I see a few comments saying, You can't hear us. We did have the microphone on mute so if you can hear me. Please let me know one more time will get started wonderful.

So I see a lot of people coming in from the US also internationally icy representation from Meihekou, Vietnam.

Let's see where else China.

So good morning, Good afternoon, good evening from wherever you are. Thank you for joining us and spending. The next hour, with us. I know we have some wonderful guests here in the room with me that I'm excited to kind of have them share a little bit of their experience and so as we get started. Welcome to the EDM virtual on student life chat. This next hour. So we're really going to focus on the student life experience here at HTC. We do have for current students and so I'm going to kind of defer allowed the admissions financial aid applications.

So later time we do have several resources on our website. We have virtual's that have been recorded in our available again on the website as well. On December 3rd. We will have a Masters virtual that will give application tips and advice that will also have a student panel, but I think today. Just you are lucky to have more wonderful students who it is about the end of the semester, so they do have finals coming up. But they're willing to share their time and experience with us so to get us started.

Here's the agenda for the next hour will start out with introductions like I said there's 4 students here with me as well as a colleague and then we'll go over through an overview of the office of Student Affairs and then wrap up the session with our student panel with question and answer time. Thank you for all those that submitted questions before hand an will get started. So my name is Bonom. Yes, I am an assistant director of admissions here, I used the pronoun, she, her hers.

And I'm also um recent graduate of the education policy in a managed program as well.

Hello everyone my name is here, I use, he him. His I have been at the Ed School for going on 12 years now. I'm also wanna lomov the learning and teaching program.

Hi I'm Delaney I use uh she, her hers and I am in the International Education Policy Program Everybody. It's nice to watch reconnect. I'm Alicia Miranda, an I'm in the learning and teaching program here religiously.

Hi everyone, Uhm Dagon Rassini, I'm also in the iep program and it's great to be in connected to all today.

Hello everyone my name is Chris Ray Debbie. I'm part of the TE program.

And it's nice to meet you all.

Wonderful thank you. Anne now will pass it on to Kevin to giving overview of student affairs in the resources here at HSC excellent. Thank you so much. Carla so the first thing I want to do is just start with a general overview of what the office of student affairs does you'll see on your screen here. There are a there's a slide with 9 different kind of hexagons of the areas that we work in just know that these are not the only things that we do, we like to see ourselves as kind of the first point of contact for many students for any questions you might have.

Uh but as you can see on the screen there. We do some one to one student support and referral. Uhm we coordinate orientation, commencement sort of bookends for the student experience access and disability services so for any student who has who needs accommodations that operates through our office. We also try to do everything we can to make sure that you feel like you're part of a community so that can be communitywide event. It can be different. Educational talks just ways to make it feel like this is more than just the place where you're going to learn and going to school opportunities outside of the classroom.

Those of you who are joining us internationally. We also there's a staff member office who works specifically with international students and supporting them student organizations are going to talk about as we move to the next slide for those of you who are thinking about well where will I live? When I'm there. We do also offer some housing resources. I should mention that we do not have on campus housing, but we can certainly point you to other options for housing as you make your transition into the Greater Boston area.

Uh so couple of different ways to get involved in the HC community. This is a short list. Um really the options are as limitless as your imagination. There are a number of different ways that you can become involved. We have over.

Annually, we have over 40 student organizations that operate just here at the Graduate School of Education. There are other opportunities to get involved in student organizations at some of the other schools at the University wide level as well.

You'll see on your screen there. The annual student conferences that we host the alumni of color. Conference happens in the spring semester each year. The Student Research Conference again. That's an opportunity in the spring semester for students to present their own unique research at whatever point in time that it may be, whether it's just the start of our research paper or if it's a full fledged research project that we're working on for a number of years. The I had symposium is related to international I had means international higher education and disabilities. This symposium that we offer around students with disabilities.

And kind of what the landscape looks like for them in the educational in the educational field and then high. The pitch competition high business student organization that is interested in social entrepreneurship and kind of startups and it's a really blossoming organization here on campus. They have grown exponentially in the past few years as a really great organization to become part of if you are interested in starting your own venture or if you're thinking of ways to get involved in social.

No ship in other ways as well.

Are we we also have a student council that operates to kind of be the voice of students to the administration. It's a representative body so each program is represented within that Student Council. The Equity Fellows program operates as a course and also a fellows program. There's a course component to it, but there's a really great opportunity to get more involved in the community as well. I mentioned universitywide student groups and the last thing listed on the screen. Here is the Askwith forums. Those are our schools speaker series so they'll be speakers from.

All different areas within the educational field that will talk about kind of their expertise in there certain areas. Big names an lesser known names as well, who will come to provide some really great insight into different areas of Education.

So I spoke about how one of the things that we that we are charged with in the office student affairs is creating community and So what you'll see here is a list of some of the different community had programs that have been offered. I want to just make a note that this is a short list of 12 different events that have happened in the past. This is by no means one a guarantee that these will happen again or to the limit to what we can do as I mentioned the limit is it's really kind of as limitless as your imagination. So if you come to the Ed School and you think I really wish we could do X.

Uh we are happy to work with you to make sure that X can be a reality. Uhm so don't treat this as an exclusive list. But as something that is just kind of a jumping off point of things that we've done in the past.

As you think about your experience here at school. It's only 9 months. So our students will talk shortly about how we were just having a conversation that they're already just about halfway through their time here and it feels like for some of them that they were just in your shoes listening to this on the other side of the microphone. So what I'm trying to say is that it goes very quickly so you need to think strategically about what you want to get out of the experience and the sooner. You can think about that the better That being said, I don't want you to stress about it right now.

There will be plenty of time to think about what you want to get at the experience as you begin to embark on the experience but don't think just about the courses that are available to you think about what you want to do Co. Curricular Lee personally. Where do you? Where do you want to be after you've gotten your degree from the Ed School start thinking about those things 'cause. Those will help the kind of shape your experience longer here.

Didn't know about Harvard and about the Ed school and Harvard in general is that it is extremely resource. Rich I don't necessarily just mean financially but just with the name of what Harvard can bring so there are a number of kind of world renowned speakers across a number of different fields that you'll have the opportunity to hear from whether it be through cross registration or through attending lectures at other schools. Some seminars film screenings any of those things. It's just those are really great chances to become part of the larger hardware community.

And not just be here at the Ed School would be a part of the University as well.

I also do want to mention that while there is the fall term and the spring term. There's also what we call J term or January term here at HTC method opportunity for you to take some courses do some professional development during the month of January between our fall and spring semesters. It's a time where you can take a course that is condensed and it's intense and you're getting credit so that you can take fewer credits in the Springs. You can concentrate on that on that job search or at the time for you to go home and relax.

Uh it, it really is. There's no expectation that you will either be here on campus or not be here on campus. It's totally left up to each individual student, but it's a great opportunity of students to decide that they want to have more learning learning opportunities during the January month.

I do also before you move into our student panel. I want to mention some of the resources and support that are available to you here at the University. I as I mentioned Harvard is resource rich and so this is a sampling list of all of different supports that would be available to you as a student here at the at school. I'm not going to read them aloud to you, but just know that.

There are support.

Are you in any number of of realms whether it be personal support professional support emotional support? Whatever you may need there are supports available for you here. It's in some instances, it's a matter of seeking out those supports and in other instances. Those supports are going to be built right into your experience so just keep that in mind as you think about your time here and what you want that to look like that. There are many different both offices. An individuals who are looking to make sure that this is that you are leaving here.

It was successful.

OK enough for Maine, the real reason you're all here is to hear from the current students about how their first was at 3 months now have gone so thinking about your time here. The first thing we've already kind of gone around the table and introduced ourselves just in terms of names and what program are in, but I'm hoping that you all can maybe speak a little bit about one where you're from where you call home whatever that may look like and to what you were doing immediately prior to enrolling at HGC. I know that some of you may have kind of.

A long laundry list of experiences prior to being here, so if we can just focus on what you were doing immediately prior to coming to enroll at HTC.

OK, I'll start I'm Delaney. Again, I grew up in Minnesota. I don't like it there. If you don't like to call at home. It's too cold for me. But before enrolling here. I was teaching English while living abroad and I was actually teaching English online an I was located in Mexico.

Uh my name is Alisha's to meet you again. I am from India and just prior to enrolling at AGC. I used to work as an assistant school leader, which is the position of vice principle ad in under resourced school back in India.

Hi Trisha, Uh.

I'm from India but I've been in New York for the last 6 years before coming here was a software engineer at Atlantic company called amplify education. It's a New York.

A man I'm digging right before this, I was actually at Yale University. Although I try to keep that quiet around here, but I was working for a program that helps low income students from the African continent apply for universities worldwide.

Thank you so much that's such a wonderful, kind of breath of experience that you've all had prior to coming here thinking now of making the decision to leave the position. You are in and to come to HGC. There are any number of Education schools out there across across the world and I'm wondering what was it about HTC that made you say you know what? That's the place for me? I need to be at the Harvard Grad School of Education?

And you can see if you were coming in joining us from yeah. I'm going to start with you sure was that's cool that when I looked right at the website. I just had that knowing feeling. It's sort of like when you walk on campus to a place for the first time and you just are kind of overcome by the sensation of I have to be here. I have to go here. It just makes sense so for me. It's sort of the program at the international education policy program that I'm currently in with Laney at it was sort of like this.

Title of my password experiences together in a very neat way. and I think just the breath. Of course, is that one can take here as Kevin was saying that the recent amount of resources that are here and just knowing that there would be a lot of opportunities to take my career in many different directions. I think for me. That was most appealing part about HTC over all the other schools that I've looked into.

One of the other things is just.

If you do get into Harvard. What are you going to do say no to Harvard. It is like? What we all do is like look at the rankings and know that you're going to see how it number one all over the world.

But aside from that which is all things that I'm sure you guys are going to do. But aside from that I would say take a look at the curriculum is in the edtech space. The two leading programs at least in the USS Stanford cell DT and they are quite different and you should Orient yourself to what you think is the best looking at the curriculum looking at the program is really going to help you make your decision.

Uh and something that helped me was the process of writing my statement of purpose because you make at least 17 to 18, edits on it, you really understand what you're getting into in terms of the causes that you want to do so.

Although the name attracted me towards the website. My personal decision. Making was influenced by the amount of work that I did on my statement of purpose, which made me more sure of here. This is something that I want to do.

And for me, um, I attended a couple of these virtual events. Both before I was while I was applying and then after I was accepted and something that came up a lot in these kind of discussions was the networks as was already mentioned that having resources available to you is really important, and being able to network with different people having access to different events that happen daily here on campus has been really helpful for me. The other program. I was looking at, I didn't get that same sense that I would have the same kind of connections.

Thank you, also watching you all in some way mentioned kind of what it was that drew the hardware was looking at the website or attending one of these types of sessions, or just a Harvard name in general. I'm wondering if you might be able to speak now to now that you're here and current students. What is something that is not what you expected it to be it's not the kind of what you got from the virtual sessions or the websites just going to open that up, maybe filling will start with you OK.

Guess I should have expected this that doing any graduate program is going to be very reading intense. I don't know why I didn't think it was going to be a problem with having, I graduated in 2014 and so it has been a number of years since I've been in academia, so getting back into a student mindset was something that was a little bit challenging at the beginning of the semester for me, but now I know how to manage my work better and I'm doing OK with that I think for me.

Reason I imagine this to be a very intimidating environment and then the more I uh the more time I spend here. I just feel like.

That is more in me, but says that here you belong here and that was something that surprised me initially where we speak about imposter syndrome, a lot in at GNC and that's true, it really kicks in. You know, but but then with the support and the environment and there is so much warmth and collaboration around here that while I was expecting to be intimidated. I really wasn't I'm not.

So one of the most surprising things for me and Kevin can attach tapon that it is.

Really what infinite resources really mean when you're actually prevented like just simple things like when you may be at a CEO of a company from my Harvard Email ID. They actually respond. They've never done before in my life and it's it's mostly about.

It is what you make it an you really can make it. Whatever you want and it really does have infinite financial resources professional resources like whatever you can dream up you can do here.

Uhm I guess I would just add on similar to delays point I was. I graduated in 3 years ago and it's getting back to that mindset of studying and taking tests and doing problem sets was a big uphill curve for me, but I was not expecting the sort of reception by other students to engage in those problems together and work through solutions and the really this idea of collaborative learning that is so embedded in the HC community is something that has really been a pleasant surprise.

Thank you. I want to go to shift now to try and stop you. I'm going to ask the impossible question of what a typical day. It looks like I understand fully that there is no such thing as a typical day for an HTC student, but think about how you balance the workload, delaying you mentioned it's reading intensive the piece sets that they can had mentioned like? How do you how do you balance all of that while still also presumably having a life outside of just being a student and I know I'm taking a leak there as an assumption that you have a life outside of a student.

But if you could just talk a little bit about what that balance and looks like an at least we haven't started with you yet.

Well, a difficult day is uh. I think you can really expect to just be learning. All the time and honestly that's what I enjoy most about my time here. It's just like even after classes. You're talking to someone outside and there are dinners, where you're learning all the time or well, what I do to maintain a balance is are just try and go to the gym as much as I can so it really helps me sort of routine to win it at the end of the day.

Uh and well with regard to a social life, I think I've said goodbye but uh well.

Same side, uhm the like because there's so much learning happening here that the learning is happening with you, having a social life as well and and.

To the uh I keep one day at the end of the week to just be by myself and uh get ready for the next week.

So for me, it really is one of the best advice is that I got in one of the similar session. When I was a prospective student here is you have to learn to live with formal because there is like something happening always and it's never one thing at one place, they'll be like 10 things are 10 places that you want to go through, yeah, so you just have to accept that. You cannot so you have to really learn to like pick your battles.

And.

Social life, I don't I I don't know why but I don't think it is that hard to have like there is enough space for you to have a good time at the end of the day.

Yeah, I would also add that up for their formal was very real and I read before coming here that someone said that you can do everything at Harvard. But you cannot do everything and I just think that it's so important to really identify what it is that you want to do and then given a week or de prioritize that I've personally become a very good organizer with my calendar. I hand write in my calendar. All the events. I want to and reasonably can get too.

On campus or off campus each day or every week and that helps me sort of paint the better picture of OK? What am I going to do this week. That's an activity related thing versus an event versus study time versus class time and so just being organized. I think is really key.

I agree that being organized is really important. I uhm I'm an early bird. So I do like to wake up early that's when I do my exercise and I work 'cause. I'm still teaching on line. So Luckily that schedule has allowed me to do that early in the day and then my classes are generally done by the afternoon. That's just how my schedule worked out this semester, so the rest of my day is pretty much spent on preparing for the next class is meeting with groups for different group assignments and I really do try to leave my evenings more free a because I'm tired and I want to go to sleep.

But I think it is also important to relax and give yourself time to reflect on everything that you've learned for the day for the week and I try to leave that open and not go to sleep really stressed.

Do freshman year, this next question, I ask you be a little bit more self. Reflective now think about what has been the most challenging for you, it may be course related. It may be social life related. It could be in any realm. and I should say share only wish to share but what has been the most challenging for you and if you've made strides to overcome that challenge what has assisted you in overcoming the challenge.

I I'm not going to put anyone on the spot whenever someone is ready, please jump in on this one.

So one of the first challenges that you're going to face over here is there are way too many awesome courses that want to take.

An it like I've seen like everybody just going to like every class preview that you can go to and then being like super confused. I want to take abcdefg, but not going to have time and they just I know, people who started this semester with like 8 courses and then like get burned out too quickly and then cut down to 3 go up to 4 and all that so that happened to me as well so one of the most effective ways that I will.

Able to control that and find the right courses for me was to keep asking myself like what do I want to?

Get at the end of it like where do I see myself at the end of all this.

And charting a trajectory to that through mycosis has been the most effective way for me to like select horses.

I would I would say there are 2 challenges that I faced one. Academica one professional with academic is that I came from a very small liberal arts college and so being in class sizes. Back then, which were about 25 Max to now being classes that are sometimes 150 people is a very different dynamic that I've had to learn how to sort of how to navigate but again going back to my other point before working in groups and collaborating with others sort of having that be hive mind is really fruitful.

The second challenge that I think I faced is that coming into a program that's only one year, you come into it. Sort of with this direction of OK, you need to take these courses to get to your next step. And you running your personal statement. This is what I'm hoping to do, but a challenge. I think has been sort of push back on the idea of what it is that you want to do and through my courses in through my conversations interactions has sort of opened another Pandora box of interest and curiosity that I'm willing to explore so it's a good challenge, I think.

Um for me a challenge every single class that I've had has had some kind of group component and I I said it English literature as an undergrad, which is a very solid Terry discipline. You don't do a lot of group work. So I have been working more with groups that I have in the past and I've been actually really good like Eigen said because you get to learn a lot from your classmates and a lot of good perspectives. So I'm not unhappy about that? What makes a really challenging like you just heard all those have very busy schedules so trying to schedule everyone at one time.

Has been a difficult in a lot of instances, so having a calendar and having like emailing everyone like here to calendar invite that just keeps everyone reminded when we're meeting and make sure that everyone can be there, I cannot. I'm completely ago, the calendar statement like it's essentially what has been most challenging for me is having grown up in a different or system or some of the assignments that are.

That I have had to submit here are extremely new to me. So so you're not in a you're not feeling the same way as maybe some of your classmates are because they've done this before, and so just navigating through that challenge can be quite difficult but.

What helped was uh as Kevin mentioned earlier the support systems that are already existing like officers with the professors you know just going and speaking with them will really help. You just change your mindset towards the situation and also the external support that existed in well in my case. I used the writing center as a resource and and it has helped me navigate through these challenges.

Thank you all for opening up and kind of being self, reflective invulnerable for that question. I appreciate that Chris I want to pick up on one of your answers about.

Thinking about courses and where do I see myself at the end of this and digging you mentioned kind of how you've opened up this. Pandora's box now of well. Maybe I'm interested in these other 29 things thinking about where HGC fits so how does it fit into the trajectory of your career and then kind of dig into your point have things changed since you ever been writing that statement. A personal statement and thinking. Here's what I'm going to do while I'm there now that you're here.

If you can revisit that have things changed. That's a question for all of you not just you dating but Chris will start with you since you kind of.

Let me into this question right so it did help like I did come here with like a strict intention of what I want to get out of the course and an idea of where I see myself at the end of the course, so that did affect which goes I take which activities. I thought he can which organizations like go with and all that so ways in which it has helped so for me personally like I am hoping to do something abroad.

Right from the USS so the Harvard tag itself, it is of particular value because it is very identifiable.

Secondly, the connections that you can make here. They are super useful like you will meet successful people from all over the world.

As your student cohort and as faculty Ms like visiting people are coming from all over the world. So those kind of things do tie in to where I want to be.

And it's also like the kind of information that you want to get out of your courses kind of dictated by this, if you want to go abroad then maybe you take less courses that are US centric and you take more courses that are international and like Harvard has so many courses that you can specialize in whatever you want so having that Gold is like one of the best ice. I got from an alumni here and that has really helped.

Mean navigate the system very well.

Yeah, the point I was making about how things have changed. You know, I came into this thinking Oh God. I think PhD could be a good idea an now. I'm thinking and I swore off a teaching but now I'm actually very interested in teaching as a profession and less so interested in working a PhD but that's just a personal preference and choice and I think that through the conversations. I've had policy is also really of interest to me, so I've just.

I think what I think the catch is that you come into this. The setting with this idea, but you shouldn't have to be so tide to it, and let it dictate everything you want to do it should be. You should give yourself some room for flexibility as well. 'cause things can change.

Come for me, I came in with not as much of a strict like I am going to do X when I graduate so that has been a little bit more challenging right percent like it is good to go in with a focus and I 100% endorse that statement because it would make my life. A lot easier, but I just did my classes. I've heard a lot of really interesting directions that I think I would like to go and coming into this program. I knew I wanted to develop some more hard skills because I felt that was what I was lacking in so the courses. I'm taking are more practical. I'm learning how to write policy memos how to do statistical analysis, which doesn't.

Sound very interesting, but I can already see how it's going to be really important. If I decide to go into certain routes. So yeah, you can come with a focus definitely do that. But if you don't don't worry about it, too much. There are plenty of opportunities for you to explore an narrow down your focus once you're here.

Yeah, well in my queue, So what I wanted to gain from it has not really changed the past three months. I want to eventually be in the area of school leadership so the causes that I'm doing are aligned towards that and and I wouldn't say I mean, so far. Fortunately, it hasn't changed. I really would not want it to change. This then I go now. But I'm glad that the causes that I'm doing so far have validated.

Oh my intention of coming here.

Excellent thank you. I'm going to pivot now a little bit outside of the classroom and think about how you build community for yourselves here. If you become involved with student organizations or if you've done things at different research centers around campus, not related to your coursework how you kind of made friends if you will as kind of.

Almost immature as that sounds how do you make friends here but that's the question is how do you make friends? How did you build community? What are the things that you're doing that are not directly related to your courses that have really kind of helped to shape your experience here at least you're going to go well with me. I'm I'm an extrovert so I just look up opportunities where I can meet new people and in my case, I decided to.

Or stand for the election in the Howard Logic Council. So Christian is on it as well. And that was a Ave for me to meet more people and Kevin earlier in the talk. You mentioned about the University where certain groups. So I'm the Wise General student groups, so with my position. I had the opportunity to meet so many muscle groups across the University not just edgy so that's something I made up.

Come alive for myself in front this evening. We have the first Top University while shooting look summit. So I'm looking forward to it.

So for me, it's so I'm not somebody who is very good at going out and making friends, but Despite that, I have way too many friends over that is a true testimony to the.

Very nature of the people at a hug. See and all across Harvard. Did you come in with this impression that everybody is going to wear a suit and tie and real snobby, but they're really not that it is a wonderful bunch of people and it always helps to have like a student organization. So we started the graduate Indian Student Association. There's so many avenues like Leisha said. I joined with her. the Harvard Graduate Council. There's so many avenues for you to like meet people.

And the classroom settings are such that are so big they encourage you to actually talk to other people and meet other people and like every other person is like Super Fascinating.

And you just naturally engage with them out of curiosity, and it is like a wonderful place to make friends. It is not as intimidating as I thought it would be.

Uhm I would say that just throw your throw shot in the dark and see what if it sticks. So I've came to HTC and some type of all the classes and activities that are doing sports are really important for me and so, if I saw an I knew nobody else who played softball here and so I signed up for a city League an like actually ironically put on the team with all Harvard Law students, but I played a great season with them and.

Every Tuesday were playing and then every Sunday. I play basketball court nearby with a couple buddies from my program. And so that in itself is a community as well. And so I think just it's about finding what you're interested in and then just going out and doing it.

I'm going to be lame and say that all my friends are my classmates, we but like everyone is so willing to keep talking outside of class but of course, you want to stress so like lunches and dinners and I've gone with my classmates like again. I also play sports and so I don't play here at HD by play ultimate. Frisbee, an I actually met a couple of like Harvard elated people. Actually, a professor that plays Frisbee and so you're still going to interact with lots of people in the community. Even if you go outside of campus.

I have 2 more questions. I want to ask one is directly at the academics and one is.

Not at all related academics all start with another oil related academics of that weren't being about where you live kind of what the housing search look like for you all how you made. Your decision of where you would end up living if you could just kind of talk a little bit about what that looks like for you, thinking about making that transition to the character creator Boston area and then we're gonna start with you. On this one OK. I'm living off campus. I'm in Arlington, which is just about a 20 minute bus ride outside of.

Cambridge and I was like I said, I was in Mexico. So it was a little bit scary to be trying to look for housing when you're outside the country and you don't have an ability to go visit the Department in person. So it was a little bit of a leap, but I did a lot of searching on line to define different locations. I have and I looked at the different areas that were going to buy as well as looking at. You know in Summerville or Cambridge, where I know a lot of my classmates to live and it was important for me to look at the transportation 'cause I wasn't going to have a car so I have a bike.

But during the winter, I knew I didn't want to take the bike out so much, though I was looking a lot of public transportation in making sure that it was accessible to get me on campus.

Well, in my case or had two priorities are one was the approximately 2 NGC and I needed it to be cost effective so I'm living on campus at GS as residence halls and it works well for me because it's about it 8 minute walk from from college and and it's uh since it's the Doms. It's extremely cost effective and they, I can't cook so they have a meal plan, so wonderful.

So for me, it was, it's not easy. It's not easy, finding a place outside of campus and it's it is expensive. Boston is expensive it and like Laney said. If you're coming from the outside. It's so hard to find a place you're just looking online and hoping them out there to scan you and all that So what are the things that helped me was actually one of my cohorts here she?

Offered to like actually go to places and just look at the House me, she would send me videos and all that so that is not somebody that I knew ever before. We just met on one of these virtual events and I just asked for help. And she was more than happy to oblige and one of the things that you want to look at is you are going to spend a lot of your time at HCC proximity is going to be crucial for you connectivity if not proximity at least.

Looking at the different bus routes that trains whatever can get you to Harvard. The soonest is going to help and you're going to want to consider 'cause like I know that the on campus. Housing is closer, but off campus housing tends to be a little bit cheaper, so if you can just write up a bunch of your friends that you meet online today. Or during the next meeting. Then you can all just go in and take an apartment. It's usually cheaper there but you.

Would have to know how to cook right? Yeah. I also is looking for a place that was close by like Christian, saying things are expensive here and things go very quickly so starting early actually was I had a very big.

Every summer and I was going to be traveling and I wanted to get it done sooner. So I actually stroke of Luck got it and may off campus housing that was just kind of dumb luck that it happened that way. But general advice is just to start early because you can make your whole summer much easier if you get out of the way.

Pick and I mentioned that I had a academic specific questions. So if you could each just talk, for one minute about what your favorite course, thus far has been knowing full well that we are 3 months into the first semester and it's a small sample set but if you could just talk about what that favorite course has been kind of why it's your favorite horse and and what the makeup of the course looks like and will start with the egg and then work our way right man. It's tough to pick in fact, you're not listening.

No preferences I'm going to have to say that so there's these things that HTC called modules, which are just half semester courses. There half credits and I'm taking one that's a new module this year called power and history and schools looking at colonialism in closing colonialism in Africa and it's a fantastic course readings are it's probably like the class that I read.

Every single sentence forward towards I'm just consumed in it. I love the discussions that are happening. It's really intellectually stimulating. I'm hopeful that it will be around next year. For those who are accepted and we want to take it because it's just a fantastic course.

So for me, I'm just going to go with that all my clothes on my favorite cause. I'm just going to go with the clothes that I took this morning. The Class I had this morning. So it's a class by Monica Higgins. It's called leadership entrepreneurship and learning.

So is it is one of those classes that you have to actually get into so it's not that you can just control. This like a lucky draw system so if you are lucky enough to get into the course. It is a beautiful post by a wonderful knowledgeable professors you get so many things out of it and one of my favorite things is that I've always heard of the Harvard case study method and it is the first course that I had that experience with and it is an amazing experience like you really put yourself into the.

Choose of leaders from across the world and she asks insightful questions about Oh what would you do in this scenario? Why would you do it and she really teaches you like?

Big things that you would take for granted, Lee and explain it more why we do take that for granted, and she really gives you like teaches you lessons that you will grapple with like things like there is essentially no right decision in leadership and management. Everything that you choose is going to be wrong. In some way I'm going to be right. In some way so stuff like that. They're all invaluable lessons that you're going to take away well in my case.

2 courses are coming to mind when I was a module as a dating dating was mentioning.

It's called the art of communication for educators by Professor McCarthy was it wasn't module so got over earlier last month very interesting cause with regard to the readings and the videos that we were watching very practical because we had to go and give 3 speeches and the professor and the teaching fellow gave feedback on each of those features and very specific feedback on which we could work on and.

It really brought the class together as a community as well. 'cause we were only talking about personal stuff and stuff that really matter to us and professor make sure that the environment was one which was psychologically safe for everybody. So it was a great module and another benefit that a GSA offers is the cross registration. So I'm doing a course right now at MIT, which is also a module and that it's called improvisational leadership and.

It's amusing that flash because we do so much theater improvement if I were to watch myself in that class I code is happening with this good but it's it's been such a great experience.

My favorite course I've taken this semester is called transforming education through emerging technology. It's flipping professor Kristie D and what I really like about this sources that it's talking about how the the school system and learning ways that we teach even have to really change to prepare students for the 21st century and that's something that I've seen while I've been teaching abroad that people are learning in this very antiquated way, including myself throughout high school and so this course was really help me think about different ways that we can.

I'm trying to challenge that and in different ways that not just technology. But like even teaching practices can be changed to help prepare learners around the world? what I really like about this course is that the professor really practices. What he preaches so it's not just that were like sitting and listening to a lecture which would be the traditional way of learning, but we are engaging with our peers. We get to hear from guest speakers almost every class, which is really interesting to see how different professionals are approaching these problems and their innovative solutions are to them.

So that's my one period class also give a shout out to the module that I did, which is part of the 10 need and fellowship and it was very cool that they bring professionals on 2. HD teacher very short course, but I found it really interesting the one that I did.

Excellent thank you so I'm going to check in with power now to see if there might be any other questions that you all have posed for us, yeah, so there's quite a few questions of people who are interested about different specific cohorts and such so maybe if you can kind of talk a little bit about your own car. I know there's 3 represented here. If you include myself. There is a fourth one. I can talk about that a little bit more 'cause. I know my program was is one of the largest ones. But if you can talk a little bit about your cool her kind of things that you guys do together. The text of course, is sizes of class, the size of your Koran.

Just what makes it unique to your specific program inside too.

So every part of the TE program. There's like 70 people. That yeah is technology innovation in education. There's people from all over the world of come from computer science background dancer dancer violinist. So the end is of course, plenty of teachers and entrepreneurs and everything. You don't need people from all across from all disciplines.

And the be, I would argue is way too close knit group, so we always refer to ourselves community and we have, like an Instagram page. You have a Facebook page. We get together. All the time we actually take photos of this one guy Phil hashtag. It's in spotting it is like a real community.

Thing that we have with the coho Ted Welder, a program director is like.

Be best person to bring and rally the entire cohort together. She's been amazing and we have events. We have outings. We have lunches dinners. We have alumni from that I program who come in and talk to us at this so many opportunities to engage with the cohort and you really do like like anybody introduces themselves as time you can always hear all the time members shouting at that is the wonderful feeling like they really do.

Have that sense of community with your performance.

Oh well, I'm in the learning and teaching program and of course, is extremely flexible, which means that I'm we don't have to do any causes together so because there is nothing really bringing us to nothing, academic that is bringing us together, we don't really see each other as much so we try to organize. Informal settings where we can meet so every Wednesdays trivia and who is our program instructors well organizes.

Halloween luncheon and things like that where we're coming together, so I think those are the places where I feel the feeling of cohort. I just made myself proxy T because I have a lot of time and and another thing is the benefit of the program is that because there are no required courses. You can really make what you want out of?

At the program uh and uh, yeah, I've heard that the program is changing. After this year. So we probably will have some required causes starting twenty twenty one so if you are a candidate who's really looking for that flexibility in learning and teaching maybe this is your yard apply.

OK, um, so digging and I are both in the Iep International Education Policy program and ours. I feel is one of the most diverse in terms of backgrounds. People internationally and what they have been doing before So what I really like about our cohort is that people have all different interests. And we're all kind of Tide together in that we're interested in either working internationally or working with people around the world, but everybody does have very diverse interests in terms of the community here on campus. What's up is a huge thing.

We are all connected on one big group chat and everyone's always saying like come over for this event, Hey, let's.

Pick up here for drinks. Hey guys are you taking chlorophyll in a class, which most of us are all in the same classes together or similar classes. You know, we could always pitch a question like guys can. We meet and talk about this like so it's very inactive. WhatsApp group, but also in person. We are always you know, people are going out to lunch together study together in the library. So we are diverse, but very close knit group, I think.

When your fall there a few questions in terms of like selecting courses. How did 'cause you guys talked about how it was one of the most challenging aspects as you were on captain trying figure so how did you go through that process?

Please find out a little bit more.

Maybe we can get 2 people to do it.

Um so if um it's sometimes people refer to shopping period. Some people refer to as of course, preview add drop. It's all basically period of time at the beginning semester where students can go and essentially preview. The courses before actually enrolling in them and get a feel for what the semester is going to be like and so during those 2 weeks. It's it can be a lot of running around figures scheduling, making sure things fit getting the syllabi.

So it's it's I think it's good to have some sort of direction of what you want and sort of have your priorities of like I must take XYZ class and maybe ABC or can fall to the wayside or you know just sort of going through a list before you sign up to see what it is that you really want to get out of the semester. In what you want taken like Delaney was saying hard skills versus soft skills. So, just so just be mindful of that and also the fact that you can cross register as an issue is saying at places like MIT other.

Schools on campus like HPS or Kennedy School, or Business School or law school so I don't know if anyone else wants to balance them.

I know there was still year, Alumni Ambassador Program, or something like that. I signed up for it. And there was an alumni that reached out to me, So what really helped me was looked at so you can look at all. The courses right away and I just looked at some of the courses and when I talked to the alumni. I asked him for his suggestions his first hand experience about the causes. He took and like the coast. I was interested in, he actually connected me to other people who took those horses.

So that gave me a first hand experience, but definitely definitely do go further post. Previous they are going to be the most informative things and maybe I can just add one thing people realist like when you're not when you're next year. Hopefully in this position where you're looking at classes make sure that you're really honest with yourself about what your course load will be like for that semester. Some people are very ambitious and want to take 6 classes and an internship, maybe 2 and activities and they sort of get burnt out.

And there are some people who are sort of just wanting to do the minimum so that they can do more activities and more events and etc etc. So it's really about.

Again, this whole idea of knowing what you want sort of before it starts come in expecting horse just sort of knowing what you want to get out of this semester in your head.

Wonderful in with the common that Chris made about the alumni ambassadors program. I'm going to switch over to how you can connect with a CSC so our alumni ambassadors program. Hopefully my colleague who runs that program won't be too upset. But we're closing that next week, but that is a great opportunity. So I just checked it still online to fill out that form if you want to connect with a recent alumni of our programs to kind of hear a little bit of their experience what they're doing now. I know there's different ways to connect if you're curious of experiences of those that came through HTC.

With the family who are parents those that were moving internationally or had a disability or part of identifying with a certain community. So it's a really great way to connect to really ask more of those specific questions and we also try to match it with someone who is local to your area of just in case if there's an opportunity for you to meet in person. So the alumni ambassadors program. It's not listed on this slide. Just like I said that's coming down fairly soon. But if you just Google, it. You'll be able to find that and like I said it's coming down next week. So I really encourage you if you really want to take.

The opportunity for that, like I said, hopefully my colleague Dan or graduate assistant that takes care of that won't be flooded with too. Many that but we're pretty sure that rocket as many of those still going other ways. Check out our emissions blog again. We have current students. Alumni faculty, staff, who talk about their experience what they're doing and.

Some of it is academic. Others is fun things like spotting certain classmates. I've never heard that was interesting. You can also view different faculty. Directory videos to learn more about the programs. We do offer virtual tour online and follow us on Twitter as well. and I know the focus of this virtual is very specific to the student experience and I know on the chat. There's a lot of questions about applications letter of recommendations deadlines and such a lot of that information like I mentioned is on our website if you do have specific questions.

Both are admissions, email is listed here as well as mine as Paola at GS c.harvard.edu. I also want to encourage you if you have time on December 3rd. I believe it's at the same time, we will have one more virtual that will focus on the EDM programs and specific tips and strategies on how to build a strong application and again. We'll have a student chat there as well. But that would really focus on the application. So those admissions questions will be very salient there.

Thank you all for spending this last hour with us. I also want to give a big shout out to the for students who are here, taking a time from their busy schedules schedules as they're wrapping up classes and such to blind here and share their experiences with you so thank you. Guys hope to see several your applications come through and talk to you in the future have a great day, bye bye.