Choices...

Hi,

After a week of doing nothing more educational than visiting the occasional museum, I am now getting stuck into a week of introductory lectures, aimed at helping us to choose our Options. Yesterday was all about the "Infection and Immunity" Option. We had lectures on what the I&I Option will cover, how it will be taught, and the preparation that is neccessary for it. There was also a question and answer session with current 3rd years doing I&I. This Option is described by 3rd year students as the best organised, although the others may catch up this year since it will only be the second year of the new FHS course. I&I was the most popular Option last year, with 50 out of a total of about 150 students taking it. If any more had chosen I&I the numbers would have to have been capped and not everyone would have got their first choice.

I am probably not going to choose I&I, although I am waiting to see all the other introductions before I make a final decision. Today was the introduction to the "Genes and Development" Option. As well as an overview lecture, we had a lecture on muscular dystrophy, a "developmental zoo" where various experimental animal embryos were introduced to us, and a Computer Aided Learning session on finding genetics information on the internet. Numbers attending had dwindled significantly since yesterday, but I thought the Option was dedinitely worth considering.

As well as choosing an Option, I am also in the process of choosing my Research Project. I have contacted potential supervisiors for projects that I am interested in, so that I can meet them and discuss the projects. I will have to choose up to 5 projects to put down in order of preference, but there is no guarantee that I will get any of my chosen projects, since most only have one place available. At the moment I am considering projects on heart embryology, stuttering, dyslexia, deep brain stimulation in multiple sclerosis, and sound localisation using one ear. The dyslexia project is library based, whereas all the others are lab based - I probably want to do a lab based project but thought I'd keep my options open!

Results and introductions

Hello!

Today was results day. However, we weren't told when our results would be put up in the exam schools, other than "probably today". After several failed attempts to go and find them it was 11 o'clock and time for an introductory talk on the FHS course. So, despite being suspicious of a ploy to encourage everyone to go to the talk by delaying the results until afterwards, we went to discover what the next 4 terms have in store for us. I'll give you a quick overview of what happens in the last term of 2nd year and in 3rd year for Oxford medics.

The FHS are examined in 5 parts. There is a synoptic exam paper and a more detailed paper on a chosen option, for example neuroscience or genes and development. Lectures throught the course prepare students for these exams. The third paper examines critical reading, data analysis and experimental design. There is also an extended essay, submitted before the exams, on themes from the taught course but not necessarily from the option chosen for papers 1 and 2. Alternatively, students may take an exam paper in experimental psychology. Then fifth and final component is a research project, which may be either library-based or lab-based, on a topic of your choice.

At the moment I am just starting to think about the topics that would interest me for my research project. I have a long list of suggested topics to look at before contacting potential supervisors and making a shortlist of my top four choices.

So after having all that explained to me, with plenty of handouts to make sure I don't forget anything, it was time for lunch and then another trip to the exam schools to search for the elusive results. Failing any of the seven papers we sat at the end of last term would mean taking resits at the end of this term. Fortunately I passed my exams with a distinction, and everyone from my college did well. That should leave us with plently of time this term for enjoying the sunshine as well as beginning the FHS course. This afternoon I started that with reading in the parks before another punting trip.

back again

Hi!

I came back to Oxford on Sunday after the Easter holidays. Term doesn't actually start until next Monday, although I have a talk about the FHS (Final Honours School) this Friday. I haven't got any work to do at the moment because I had exams at the end of last term. The FHS course, which I'll be starting this term, is four terms long so they were effectively end-of-year exams. I found out yesterday that I don't have a viva (an oral exam given to students with borderline fails to give them a chance to redeem themselves without doing resits) and I'll get my results on Friday.

Until then I have nothing to do except enjoy Oxford so this afternoon I went punting and had a picnic. Fortunately the forecast rain didn't materialise and we had a lovely time. I went punting once last year but I should have more time for things like that this term because of the lack of exams and less work pressure. The first four weeks contain introductory lectures and a foundation course to help us choose and prepare for the options which we start to do research projects on in the final four weeks of term. This term is known for being very relaxed for second year medics! So I'm off to spend some more time enjoying the start of it!

Bye!