CSE390T: Transfer Admit Seminar - Spring 2017

This is a pilot seminar for new transfer students in UW CSE.

We will cover critical differences between UW CSE life and other schools based on previous transfer students' experiences. Topics will include significant differences between lecture and homework styles at UW, academic planning (graduating on time, class planning), and preparing for internships/industry. We will also cover fundamentals to be successful in CSE 311 while juggling an exceptionally heavy course load.

This C/NC class can count towards full-time student status.

Please use Canvas for up-to-date info.

Summary

Instructors: Krista [kmd at cs], Chloe [cdolese at cs], TA Harrison [kwikh at cs]

Class: Tuesdays & Thursdays at 10:30 in CSE 203

Office Hours: By request

Please use Canvas for up-to-date info.

Class Requirements

In order to receive credit, students are expected to return exit slips for Tuesday classes and complete 2 short "homework" projects at some time during the course.
  • Tuesday Exit Slips
    Every Tuesday, there will be an exit slip to fill out before leaving class. If you miss a Tuesday class, email Krista (kmd) to get a make-up via email.
  • Project 1 - Review Session
    At some point during the quarter (such as before a midterm), you must lead a mini-review session. Details can be found here.
  • Project 2 - Explore
    At some point during the quarter, you must "explore" something relevant to UW, UW CSE, or University District life and briefly share what you learned with the class. Details can be found here.

Please use Canvas for up-to-date info.

Schedule

Tuesdays & Thursdays at 10:30 in CSE 203

Please use Canvas for up-to-date info.

  • 2017-03-28
    Tuesday: Intro to class + CSE life
    Thursday: Expectations for theory/math/logic CSE class homework
  • 2017-04-04
    Tuesday: Senior Transfer Student Panel
  • 2017-04-11
    Tuesday: UW CSE Dept exam styles & expectations + Being Human
  • 2017-04-18
    Tuesday: Presentations & Communication / Midterm Review (See Project 1)
    Thursday: Internships, interviews, resumes, cover letters, linkedin, github "portfolio"
    Note: 4/20 UW-wide career fair
  • 2017-04-24
    Tuesday: Homework tokens + Midterm Review (See Project 1)
    Thursday: Midterm Review (See Project 1)
  • 2017-05-01
    Tuesday: Academic planning
  • 2017-05-08
    Tuesday: School(work)/life balance - Industry tips that apply to school

Projects

Please use Canvas for up-to-date info.

There are two required projects with the option to do more if you choose. All presentations will receive feedback from instructional staff and other students.

Please think about communication style! Communication of technical topics is important for industry success. Think about how you would explain ideas if part of an internship presentation! This is your chance to develop your industry meta-skills and get feedback from an industry professional (that's Krista!) and your peers.

Talk with Krista or Chloe to schedule your presentation and if you have any concerns about your topic.

Project 1 - Review Session

At least once during the quarter, you must lead a review session on a topic from 311 or another course most others in class are taking.

Prepare whatever you feel is necessary to help your fellow students understand the topic. To receive credit, presentations must demonstrate genuine effort to be useful to others. Make sure to prepare ahead of time, learn the topic well, and focus on communication.

Presentations can be as long or as short as necessary to cover the topic. (Hint: If it's less than 10 minutes, it's probably not sufficient to cover the material well or the topic is not sufficiently interesting and challenging.) You can do this either before an exam or any time. You can prepare slides or activities if you want. Again, prepare whatever you feel is necessary to help your fellow students understand the topic.

You are encouraged to pick a topic that you struggled with but now understand better. It is also acceptable to pick a topic you feel you can teach well.

You are welcomed and encouraged to do more than one review session! There will be many opportunities. I cannot emphasize enough how important communication and presentation skills are for interviews, internships, industry and academia. Take advantage of this opportunity.

Project 2 - Explore a Thing

At some point during the quarter, you must explore or participate in something that's not directly related to course work. It must be about about UW, UW CSE, or the U-District. Afterwards, make a short presentation to the class about what you learned.

It should be anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes. You can include slides if you want. Do whatever you think will be helpful to communicate and keep it interesting.

Some possible explorations include attend a colloquium or tech talk, visit a building on campus and take pretty pictures, or make a map of where to get healthy snack at all hours of night near CSE. There are lots of options! If you're not sure if something will count, just ask.

Instructor Bios

Krista

Krista is a member of the Allen School professional staff working on this seminar and outreach projects. Outside of CSE, she has a startup that needs money. Most of her career was as a Backend Engineer at Google but she left for the glamour of non-profit life including Hillary for America and Girls Who Code. Outside of work, Krista is a stereotypical feminist geek who would love to provide recommendation lists for books, TV, movies and comics.

Chloe

Chloe is an academic advisor in the Allen School. She sits on the Diversity & Inclusion Committee and focuses primarily on transfer student retention and support. Before working in CSE, Chloe was a counselor in the Office of Admissions supervising the campus visit program. A fun fact about Chloe is that she was on Team USA for jump rope in 2010!

Harrison

Harrison is a Junior CSE student and the TA of this seminar. He transferred to UW from Bellevue College as a Sophomore and became a CSE major this year. He is interested in graduate school and is currently a research assistant for Andy Ko’s Code and Cognition Lab (KoCoCo). Outside of school, he enjoys hiking and camping, and also has an affinity for keyboards and design.

Feedback

You can provide feedback here. If you would like this to be anonymous, leave the optional "From" section blank (or clear it if prepopulated).

Support Services

It is important that we take care of ourselves inside and outside of class and in our professional lives. Towards that end, there are many different kinds of support services on campus, such as the Counseling Center and Hall Health Mental Health Clinic. If you are concerned about yourself or a friend who is experiencing emotional distress, you can call SafeCampus at 206-685-7233 (SAFE). They will provide a 24/7 risk assessment and help to connect to appropriate resources on campus. Please save the SafeCampus number in your cell phones.

Access and Accommodations

Your experience in this class is important to us. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), please communicate your approved accommodations to us at your earliest convenience so we can discuss your needs in this course.

If you have not yet established services through DRS, but have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations (conditions include but not limited to mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical or health impacts), you are welcome to contact DRS at 206-543-8924 or uwdrs@uw.edu or disability.uw.edu. DRS offers resources and coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities and/or temporary health conditions. Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process between you, your instructor(s) and DRS. It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law.