The End

As my semester abroad comes to an end and classes begin to whine down, i can finally have time to appreciate the time I've had here. Management classes at Strasbourg University, as a political science major, were difficult and uninteresting at first. Now, at the end of term, I realize that it is not only making me a well rounded college graduate but also has become interesting. Not only have the classes been interesting but I have loved my new French buddies and friends I've made here.
After weeks of relaxing and taking a "laisse faire" approach to school, it has finally caught up with me. Most of my classes have decided to bombard two random weeks in November with assignments, projects, and tests that cease to exist during the first part of the semester and during finals week. As the assignments begin to pile, I begin to realize that this one assignment, project or test will practically determine my grade in the class. I have never had a class before where a single task counts as much as ninety percent of the grade in the course. Naturally, I'm terrified. This system is very different from the American grading system I am used to. I'm used to having attendance not only count as part of my grade but also as extra credit in some classes. Daily assignments and quizzes cushion the majority of the test grades and tests are given every eight weeks or six weeks or so. Ecole de management only has one task that determines your FINAL grade. Not only is this one obstacle to overcome but the most difficult part of the assignments is when it comes to group work. I found it difficult to coordinate with others' schedule since the Chateau is a long bus ride away from both school and the city center, where most other students live.