Dear Diary, a Year in Review (at NYP) .......And what I love about it

9 Jan 2014

Like many other school-leavers, Ru Yee and I thought that it would be fun to check out the Open House at all the polytechnics.  We were racing against time as we only had a day to view them all. With some quick last-minute planning, we settled on the routes. No doubt we had to move quickly. There were places to go and things to see!

Common sense dictates that when in doubt, always follow the crowd. And that was how we got to the atrium of NYP. From Yio Chu Kang MRT, it took us barely five minutes to get there. Thank goodness! We wasted no time viewing each booth before promptly heading to the other polytechnics. But, with our poor sense of direction, we got lost again after taking multiple buses to nowhere�

Needless to say, I love the convenience of going to NYP from the MRT station.

9 April 2014
So, my first day of Freshman Orientation (FMO) is finally over! I admit, I wasn�t sure if I would get along with others, especially my future classmates. After all, it felt like we had nothing in common when we introduced ourselves.

But before we got to know more about each other, we got split into different groups. This time, each group consisted of people from other classes. Oh boy, that didn�t sound good. (Just kidding. It was the best thing that happened.)

It was then and there that I found people who had the same interests as me. Naturally, we got along. Although there were some people who were polar opposites of me, I felt that we got to have a decent conversation too! I appreciate the opportunity given to make so many new friends. 

FMO 14/15

24 April 2014
Apparently, I live in a cave. News of Club Crawl 2014 has been turning up in social media sites and I missed it. Time to mentally berate myself. But hey, at least I turned up on the second day! Phew!

Lo and behold, such a sight it was. There were many booths lined up, snaking around the sports hall, with the main stage as the focus in the middle. Pretty ingenious of the organisers, I say. The positioning of the booths forces the event-goers to view every single booth.

Well, I knew that there were many CCAs available in a poly compared to a secondary school but I didn�t expect THAT many. There were naturally many event-goers. That led to me and my classmates jostling our way through the crowd, seeing what each booth had to offer.

After a while or so, we asked each other what we wanted to join. It was a tough choice for all of us. There were just too many CCAs to pick from. Well, we just went with the flow and signed up for whatever tickled our fancy. It was quick and painless too.  The number of CCAs available is just truly astounding.

12 July 2014
It�s now the end of the second week since the reopening of school. Now that I think about it, there is not much of a difference between a secondary school holiday and a poly one. After all, we are still saddled with work to do. Instead of clearing piles of math work, we had to work on projects.

The lecturers and tutors are also now trying to get us in the mood of studying for the semestral examinations. Of course, this meant that our project deadline was looming closer. I guess the past week has put me on edge, with my tutor constantly checking our project progress. Thankfully, by now, everyone treats our tutor as a friend.  It made the atmosphere lighter.

I guess all educators hope to see their students do well. My tutors and lecturers offered to conduct extra lectures and practical sessions even though everyone was busy. Despite the fact that not all tutors were full time staff here, they still offered their personal emails should we have any enquires. It�s definitely going to be very useful. NYP lecturers and tutors are definitely the most caring out there.

I see the light

2 Oct 2014
Two days felt pretty short for a CCA camp but it was pretty fun for my first one in NYP.

Camps are an integral part of school life here in NYP seeing how almost every CCA has one. The camp I went to was sort of a combined clubs camp. And look! My social circle has widened.

Nevertheless, I am also interested in the amount of preparation required for this big camp. My guess is� a lot. Due to chance, I got to see their operating area. And oh my, the command post was such a sight. There was a list of to-dos sprawled across the whiteboard. That surely says something about the effort put in.

Camp Nexus 2014

Through this experience, I assume that all other camps require similar or even more rigorous planning. Would join another camp again, be it a CCA camp or not. Hey, there is even a shirt and cert for participation. It is kind of heart-warming to know that everyone puts in their 101% to make things smooth and enjoyable.

Note to self: Continue studying hard. GPA is a hot topic, regardless of activity.

12 Nov 2014

Dear Diary,

There is one more semester left before I become a year 2 student. Life here is exciting. NYP has its flaws, but to me, it is perfect. After all, there is a plethora of activities and opportunities available. Feeling really pumped up now!

Ciao,
Amabel

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By Amabel Yeo, Diploma in Information Technology

Unlike most girls, Amabel prefers spending her time on the computer than to go shopping. During her free time, she can be seen playing different mobile games or reading their reviews.