8.10.2013

Calculating...A Networking Student: Year Two Begins

Mid August has arrived. While outside the cicadas  are merrily singing away to celebrate this hot Milwaukee weather, my phone too adds to the chorus with it's impending notifications. [beep beep]  A class has been added to your schedule on Blackboard. [beep beep] Your tuition payment is due. [beep beep] Ike this is your mother, why haven't you called....

Yes it's that time again. Time to get my act together and start focusing on getting back to college. This semester I've further encumbered my schedule with a 6th class for a total of 18 credits. Looking back at things now, I kind of wish that I had tacked on some of these last general education credits in the beginning semesters. Retrospectively, things were slightly easier back in the first semester, although at the time I would have punched myself for the suggestion.  I probably could have squeezed in an extra science class and avoided having to take 18 credits in my last semester, but oh well; C'est la vie.

Summer school was a big help in making up for lost time though. I'm now finished with all of my English classes, so i shan't be worried about that anymore. Well, enough whining about general ed, let's get to the juicy stuff!

This semester I'll be taking Cisco 3 and Cisco 4 with Instructor Layne Davis. I'm not sure why, but they combine them both into the third semester. I've been doing nothing but self studying Cisco routing and switching since I got back from Cisco Live, so this class is gonna be a blast. As of right now I'm about 80% ready to take my ICND2 exam to try and become CCNA certified. Since we are still given access to +CBT Nuggets  I've basically replaced watching TV with watching Jeremy Cioara and +Keith Barker  to prepare me for all that is Cisco. These videos are still one of the finest (sometimes underutilized) videos that we are given access too. I highly recommend them.

I'm taking Psychology 201, and I'll tell ya....I know I'm just gonna be crazy about this class. Next.

Next up is Microsoft Server Administration 2 with +Brian Kirsch, the newly crowned Master Educator. While there is nothing all too thrilling about any Microsoft class, Brian has a way of making me love the classes he teaches by the end of the semester. Remind me to pick Stockholm Syndrome as the subject of my next Psychology research paper.  This will be the last non-VMware class I have with Brian before he destroys me in his 'Gauntlet of vFire' in my last semester.

I'll also be taking Mathematics with business applications. But I gotta say, I'm kind of divided over...ha ha OK I'll stop. Next!

One interesting class I will be taking as an elective credit, is the new Storage Area Network (SAN) course that's gonna be taught by both Kirsch and Davis. It was between Cloud technology and SAN for what I'd choose for my elective and since Cloud isn't offered in the Fall the choice was simple. SANs sounded interesting and to me it looks like another great opportunity to learn a wider range of industry technology.

So that's a little preview of the upcoming Fall semester. Now I get to do that last minute dance to find the text books I'll need for the courses. And nothing makes me cry happier than doing the 'Amazon Shuffle' to find the best prices so I can afford food for the next few months
.  Overall I'm really looking forward to getting back to it though. It's been nice to have a month or so off, but honestly this summer has been filled with so much awesomeness [see previous 10 posts] that I'm looking forward to the steady flow of school.