Compsys Diaries

Finding a job. Probably the second most stressful part of an engineering degree- right after the very demanding workload. But it’s always a good excuse to procrastinate, ‘I have to find a job anyway, so why not look now?’ – me the night before an assignment is due. Getting work hours was such a confusing topic for me, because I didn’t have any friends who had previously done engineering and I was never specifically told about this requirement. So, the whole thing was a real blur- until one COMPSYS201 lecture, we had a guest speaker come in and talk about it in the middle of the first sem. So, if you’re like me and have no clue what all this commotion about getting a job is here’s a heads up: “Practical Work is a core component of your BE(Hons). You're required to complete 800 hours of Practical Work and complete a formal written report. You’ll generally undertake your Practical Work throughout the summer breaks at the end of Parts II and III.” - University of Au...

Although I’m already in my third year of studying compsys, I thought it would be useful if I made some posts to fill you in with what I’ve done so far as part of my degree. So, this one’s dedicated to the first semester of the first year of Computer Systems Engineering (at the University of Auckland). This would be the students second year in engineering but first year in the specialisation. Honestly speaking, the first semester of part II for me was very difficult and didn’t start out as exciting as I had anticipated; but eventually, it all came together and I knew I was in the right place. The four compulsory courses consisted of 2 electrical papers, 1 math paper and 1 compsys paper. As a computer systems student, during this first semester I felt confused and kind of out of place, surrounded by so many electrical students - I wondered if I was in the right place. But I knew what I wanted to do and I kept reminding myself that the best parts were still to come, and that every...