The first week at work, and first full week at my new flat, has been great. I can tell I'm going to be spoiled living here, I won't want anything less when I find a new place at the end of the summer. I had a flatwarming party last night, mostly with friends from university, which was excellent. Good food, good drink, good banter. Not to mention good cookies. I'm probably a bit too proud of them, I should stop mentioning them...
Despite the longer commute than I expected, work has been good and I can tell will continue to be even more enjoyable. After a couple of days being my quiet self, I finally had lunch with my team, met some people from other teams, and was invited out to a couple of different weekly outings. They're all great people. There are even a few guys on an exchange from Japan in our team! I may not have a lot of time to be social in the evenings when I get home, but at least I can be social at work.
The work itself is a bit slow, but it is only the first week, and I'm still learning all the new technologies. I think by tomorrow though, I'll be able to start working on something more concrete. I'll have to skip the details (which may be uninteresting to a lot of you anyway), but suffice to say, the end products the company produces are pretty impressive!
On the long commute I've gotten a lot of reading done, so look out for another book review in the next few days (I hope). And very soon, I'll be showing my parents around Scotland, and finally graduating!
6.17.2012
6.09.2012
Post-University
My post-university life--new flat, new job, new friends--has started to take shape (though I won't officially "graduate" until the end of June). I moved out of university accommodation yesterday, and have spent today finishing unpacking and taking full advantage of my very own kitchen. I bought sesame bagels yesterday on a whim, and for lunch today had one toasted with cheese, pepperoni, and salami. I also went shopping for baking tools like measuring spoons and mixing bowls, and finally made a batch of my favorite chocolate chip cookies, for the first time in at least a year. I've mentioned these same cookies before in my blog. The recipe is from a spiral-bound book given to me when I was little called Cookie Capers. I make the "Chocolate Chip Valentine" recipe, but instead of using a heart-shaped pan, I make individual cookies. I should probably branch out and try some other recipes in the book, but this one is so tasty and I bake so infrequently, it's the only one I bother with. Maybe that will change, now that I have all this time to myself in the evenings and on weekends. And of course a lovely kitchen!
One more leisurely day tomorrow, and then I start work on Monday. I'm more excited than nervous! I have a friend who has the same commute as me and started work last week. He says the commute is fine so far, a good way to wake up in the morning and wind down in the evening. Other than that, I don't know how similar our work situations will be, since my job is only an internship. My hope is that it will be enjoyable enough that I wake up in the morning and look forward to working, and that I'll meet many new potential friends, and start creating more of a social circle for myself in the area. Only time will tell!
Also, my classmates and I have finally received our degree classifications. In the British system, this is essentially a GPA. Mine is a 2:1, or an upper second class degree. This is what most companies ask for from computing science graduates, and anything more is essentially bragging rights. It could be considered a B average, but honestly, it is much more difficult to get a B in Britain than it is in America. I'm very relieved at how well I did, since I was only on the edge of this average at the end of last year. Only the few people at the very top of the class get the degree classification higher than a 2:1, which is a 1:1, or a "first." Now I just have to wait for my grades for the individual classes to be released, which have only been delayed because of a technical problem that's lasted for days. My classmates and I are all quite annoyed. But at least I know I did well overall--I can start my new job with confidence that I'm qualified!
One more leisurely day tomorrow, and then I start work on Monday. I'm more excited than nervous! I have a friend who has the same commute as me and started work last week. He says the commute is fine so far, a good way to wake up in the morning and wind down in the evening. Other than that, I don't know how similar our work situations will be, since my job is only an internship. My hope is that it will be enjoyable enough that I wake up in the morning and look forward to working, and that I'll meet many new potential friends, and start creating more of a social circle for myself in the area. Only time will tell!
Also, my classmates and I have finally received our degree classifications. In the British system, this is essentially a GPA. Mine is a 2:1, or an upper second class degree. This is what most companies ask for from computing science graduates, and anything more is essentially bragging rights. It could be considered a B average, but honestly, it is much more difficult to get a B in Britain than it is in America. I'm very relieved at how well I did, since I was only on the edge of this average at the end of last year. Only the few people at the very top of the class get the degree classification higher than a 2:1, which is a 1:1, or a "first." Now I just have to wait for my grades for the individual classes to be released, which have only been delayed because of a technical problem that's lasted for days. My classmates and I are all quite annoyed. But at least I know I did well overall--I can start my new job with confidence that I'm qualified!
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