2014 Frequently Asked Questions (read this first)!

Alexandra1234567

OH YES!

When did you finish? I only finished on Monday but I'm damn bored already :tongue:

...re-activated my WoW account :frown:

(here comes the abuse)

Reply 62

Alexandra1234567

15

Oxy

When did you finish? I only finished on Monday but I'm damn bored already :tongue:

...re-activated my WoW account :frown:

(here comes the abuse)

I won't even tell you how I fill my time now!
I finished last Friday, was supreme :smile:

and now we just have the long long wait to see if we GET IN to St A's. Booooo :frown:

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Reply 63

Well done for surviving exams!

I request this in the nicest way, but please can any further chat be relocated into a more appropriate thread? There is a problem with people asking the same questions every year/month/week, so it would be nice to keep the FAQ thread and other informationny threads as consice as possible, i.e. focus on posts which answer FAQ's :o:

Thanks guys :smile:

Reply 64

Alexandra1234567

15

As you asked so nicely :smile:

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Reply 65

Oxy

ImperceptibleNinja

Well done for surviving exams!

I request this in the nicest way, but please can any further chat be relocated into a more appropriate thread? There is a problem with people asking the same questions every year/month/week, so it would be nice to keep the FAQ thread and other informationny threads as consice as possible, i.e. focus on posts which answer FAQ's :o:

Thanks guys :smile:

My fault entirely No probs :biggrin:

Reply 66

Room numbers/codes - how to deciper them!

When you get your accommodation details through, you'll be given a 'code' which tells you your room. I don't know the rules on posting your addresses, but since the whole world can see, here is how to understand them.

The code will look something like:

[letters]/[some letters then some more numbers][maybe another letter]

These 'zoom in' on your location.

- The first set of letters is your hall abbreviation, so 'AP' might stand for 'Albany Park'.
- The next letters will specify a building or floor name, so in DRA, the buildings have 2-character abbreviation codes, and in most catered halls, the floors are assigned letters. Not all codes have letters here.
- The next numbers 'zoom in' on your location further: they should give you first your flat number (if this applies) then your room number, otherwise it will just be your room number.
- If there is another letter at the end (maybe a or b), this means you are in a shared room, and it used to distinguish you from your room-mate :biggrin:

It ensure there are the correct number of codes for the number of beds, rather then the number of rooms.

Please take the patience to try to understand that, and if you have any problems, please think before posting your address all over the internet :smile:

Reply 67

Bucky!

8

Just for info, the building codes for DRA are as follows:

DN – Donaldson
TU – Tulloch
FB - Forbes
FS - Fraser
LN - Lindsay
LG - Lang
HG – Haig
HR – Herkless
SC - Scott
SH - Shairp
NI - Nisbet
HL - Haldane
DO – Dover
HA - Hamilton

Reply 68

Hello!

I have a new mission!

We keep on getting the same questions arising, and people can't find the wealth of relevant posts, because the search function is made of fail. I suggest, if there is space in Steeeeevo's first couple of posts here, we collect links to relevant posts that answer specific questions. For example, people are always asking what the town is like, but it's not very easy to get search results for that (I can't find much, and I know what I'm looking for!).

If older members can keep their eyes peeled for relevant posts answering questions that repeatedly arise, perhaps we can post them here, and birbe/blackmail Steeeeevo to present them nicely later :biggrin:

If we want to keep this thread more concise, I'm happy to have stuff PM'd to me, and can put things together in one post for now :smile:

I have enough internet access just now to keep on top of that :smile:

Edit:
What the town is like to live in, and pros/cons of the town:
Brief opinion
Why people choose St A's
On stereotypes
Reputation and oxbridge rejects
PICTURES
Bad things
Points which people like
The size of the town
Size again
The beginning of this is relevant
Another post of my opinions :p:

On Prince William:
A typical response :wink:

Heck, the search function should really be hung, drawn and quartered to put the dire thing out of its misery.

Another edit: From my now-numerous searches, threads that compare St A's with other universities are often very good for finding out more about the town and experience/atmosphere here. These threads are worth looking out for, so long as you make sure you read the right bits :biggrin:

Reply 69

Another thing... much of the information I find about stuff is ripped straight from the university website.

Here's stuff about making your module choices and structuring your degree:

Here is a basic list of all the subjects on offer.
If you need to find out more about modules, choices and general degree structure, then click on whichever is relevant, and then try looking at the following possible sections, usually listed on the left:
Current students
Prospective students
Whatever module links there are
Anything focussing on undergraduate stuff

The individual school pages do differ, but if I can use common sense to find out stuff from a page I've never looked at before, then it can't be that difficult. Anything that requires a username and password is probably not essential information for what we're looking for.

You can search through all the modules available on here. The Simple Search lets you search by subject and module level, or by module code, and the Advanced Search lets you do cleverer stuff, which the page explains.

Bear in mind that preadvising is not necessarily a final choice, and you can always discuss your options with your advisor, but they'll only have about 5-10 minutes, so you need to be clear in your mind what you're interested in, what you're keen to do, what you really want to avoid, and so on.
Preferably, you should try to apply as much common sense as possible in terms of location and timetabling - listing 3 modules on your preadvising stuff with all the lectures at 11am is plain silly, because it won't work out :p:

You should be aware of which modules are essential to your degree, and try to come up with a few backup modules that you'd be interested in doing, just in case you can't get your first choice on any additional modules. You should also check that you are sufficiently qualified to take a module.

Reply 70

Oharad

Question:

I'm applying for Computing, which asks for ABB/AAB, whilst maths + computing asks for AAB/AAA. I'd really like to be doing the subjects combined, but don't want to risk rejection.
So if I do computing in the first year and take lots of maths modules and do reasonably well (having done both comp and discrete + further maths at A level the first year module list seems like a breeze), would I be able to switch to the Maths + Computing course in the second year?

Reply 71

Oharad

Question:

I'm applying for Computing, which asks for ABB/AAB, whilst maths + computing asks for AAB/AAA. I'd really like to be doing the subjects combined, but don't want to risk rejection.
So if I do computing in the first year and take lots of maths modules and do reasonably well (having done both comp and discrete + further maths at A level the first year module list seems like a breeze), would I be able to switch to the Maths + Computing course in the second year?

Bear in mind that no-one on this site is an admissions officer or anything like that, so we can't say for sure. However, I would be very surprised if you did well in lots of Maths modules and then they wouldn't let you switch. And doing lots of Maths modules should definitely be an option - although 1st and 2nd year classes can be big, I don't think they have oversubscription problems.

Reply 72

kzhang2

i'm an international student wondering are the teaching fellows in st-andrews easy to understand?cuz i'm afraid i won't catch up with the class for quite a while esp. if they speak in a scottish english (sorrry doesnt mean to offend) = O =

Reply 73

kzhang2

i'm an international student wondering are the teaching fellows in st-andrews easy to understand?cuz i'm afraid i won't catch up with the class for quite a while esp. if they speak in a scottish english (sorrry doesnt mean to offend) = O =

Few of the lecturers I've had have had scottish accents - I can only think of one or two, and this is my 4th year here. Lecturers are aware they need to be understood, so even if they do have a stronger accent, they'll make an effort to make sure people understand :smile:

I'll say it again: Just because we're in Scotland doesn't mean everyone in St Andrews runs about in a kilt and chasing haggis while shouting 'och aye the nooooo' :wink:

Reply 74

kzhang2

i'm an international student wondering are the teaching fellows in st-andrews easy to understand?cuz i'm afraid i won't catch up with the class for quite a while esp. if they speak in a scottish english (sorrry doesnt mean to offend) = O =

I've yet to have any teaching from someone with a scottish accent.

Eastern european occasionally, scottish no.

Reply 75

Bella_trixxx

I think there may be a Philosophy lecturer from Scotland? :p:

Reply 76

Sambo2

Prof Gemmal..

Is no longer teaching I thought...

A good call though if he is still teaching.

Reply 77

Sambo2

10

terpineol

Is no longer teaching I thought...

A good call though if he is still teaching.

oh no, he's still in business!

Reply 78

Sambo2

oh no, he's still in business!

Fair doos, I had heard he had been given an offer he couldn't refuse elsewhere.

I think we have a woman covering some of this old stuff now. We saw him once earlier in the semester for a complete repeat of one of this second year lectures...

Reply 79