A balance between class and exploring!
22 Janvier 2023
As I continue my time here in Paris, I am met with more culture, history, and art. Although I love learning, I do not tend to find that the best place to do so is in a classroom. Instead learning through experiences and explorations is how I find learning to be most wholesome. The balance between classes at IESEG and Paris exploration is certainly hard to balance. Classes at IESEG are a little different than the typical university. Students have the option to choose intensive or extensive classes. Intensive classes are classes where for 4 days out of a singular week, Monday through Thursday, students will have a lecture from 8:00 am to 12:30 pm. After the four days, the class will be entirely over, a singular credit will be given and students would be tested on the class content during the following week on Tuesday. The other class option given is an extensive class that would be 2 hours and 50 minutes a lecture, twice a week, and would last the entirety of the semester. I chose to do both, splitting my classes between three intensives (collectively 3 credits), and 4 extensive classes.
Being a couple of weeks in, with two intensives scheduled in the last few weeks, paired with my 4 extensive classes has been very hard to maintain. Some days I find myself at school for a full 12 hours, with a short lunch break. I know that the hard work I put into these classes will reflect in my grades but for these intensives, I have to remind myself that I only have a couple of days to get all the class content so I definitely need to remain focused and disciplined in class. After being in two intensives, I think I may prefer the class scheduling and structure back at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in comparison to these. Although yes, the classes are condensed and finish faster, the rapid pace paired with the lengthy lectures is hard to grapple with.
My finalized class roster is Corporate Financial Reporting & Business Environments, Digital Transformation: Digital Disruptions in Our Societies and Economies, Fantasy, Madness, and Monsters: Polaris Voyages Glittering and Dark Through Tales, Art, and Places, Paris for Intellectual Wanderers: A thousand Years of French Culture in the Arts, Literature, History, and Gardens, Strategy and Organization of Innovation, Why Culture Matters, and Working Effectively in Intercultural Teams.
School so far is going great and I am slowly acclimating to this new schedule and setup!
Below are a few of my favorite sites this week as I continued to balance my Paris wandering explorations with classes!
