I am really happy with the way my classes went this semester. Coming into college, I expected classes to be similar to high school, because I suppose that's all I've experienced recently. However, there are a good amount of differences. Classes here at UMD are significantly faster paced than they were in high school, and there are more expectations of students. In high school, I was warned that in college there would be a lot of hard deadlines, and no credit for late work, but I have not found that to be true for most professors. I have a couple classes where the deadlines are undebatable unless there's a good excuse, but most professors are lenient and want to help students move along with their work, even if it is later than the original due date. As for course delivery, I also expected it to be similar to high school, where every class is the same. Here, though, some classes are lectures and others are discussions. Both types make up one course, but they have completely different purposes. I actually find it quite helpful to have discussions, because it is a good time to review material from class, and ask questions to make sure I understand the content. The lectures are also useful in their own right, although I do find them hard sometimes because there is limited time to ask questions if you are confused. But for the most part, I really like the way most classes are structured with both lecture and discussion times.
Coming into CPSG, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect, both in terms of the content of the course and in terms of the purpose of the program overall. I have found the lecture topics this semester to be fascinating, and quite relevant and applicable to the modern world. I didn't expect to cover information like the processes of the University Student Judiciary, and standard punishments for violations of the Code of Academic Integrity and Code of Student Conduct, but that was one of my favorite classes the whole semester. I also really enjoy learning about the history of the planet, geologic time periods, how the nature of the world has changed over time, and predictions for changes in the future as well. Those were the units that I enjoyed the most from the material of this first semester course in the scholars program. Originally, I didn't know there would be activity outside of the classroom as part of the program. While it was slightly annoying to have to schedule these events in my own time, most of them were actually very enjoyable and I learned a lot from them. I especially enjoyed the trip to Washington, D.C., where we went to the National Museum of Natural History to see and learn about multiple exhibits.
I am very happy with the flexibility that comes with living as a university student. I currently live off campus, but I bike to my classes every day, so I am not too far from the university. In high school, I didn't really know what to expect in college, but I knew that I would have a lot more freedom, with more opportunities to build my own schedule. For the most part, I have found that to be true. As work from classes built up during the semester, though, I found that I had to spend a significant portion of my free time working in various places around campus, in order to keep up. Unfortunately, that prevented me from consistently participating in any clubs for much of this semester. In future semesters, I hope to manage my time better so I can be a regular member of one or more clubs, aside from just completing my homework. I am really enjoying the social life here - in such a massive university, there are so many smaller communities to be a part of. One example for me is the Jewish community here on campus, which has numerous fun events to attend every week.
Advice I would give to future SGC students would be to make the most of your time here at UMD. First of all, do not take the SGC program for granted. While it only feels like a small one credit course, in truth, it is a much larger experience spanning two years, involving many activities outside of the classroom each semester. The content is extremely useful and relevant, and the professors really care about your success. Outside of just SGC, there are hundreds of opportunities to take advantage of - no matter your interests, there will always be some matching club, research position, or internship to pursue. It is also important to maintain a healthy balance of work and fun. Join a club for one of your hobbies, not just for something career related. I would suggest trying out as many things as possible in order to get a feel for what you want to do in the future, and to discover what truly catches your interest the most.