Such a Beautiful Day!

Hello All!

Such a wonderful day today here in Aberdeen. Blue skies and weather in the mid 50's - what else can one ask for! :) It's been a beautiful birthday today. Here's what I've been up to the past two days:


Here's a picture of the outside of King's College, the building where my classes will be:
Here's another picture of King's College. There's actually a courtyard through the center gate the leads to offices, lecture halls, and the business school:

Yesterday, Tuesday, September 18:

Yesterday I went to registration at the post-grad business school. The graduate business school is housed in King's College, the oldest past of the university. The original building was constructed around 1495, though the inside has been renovated many times. Pictures of the outside are attached above. The Scottish Parliament was actually housed in this building in the late 20th century. This hall now functions as a lecture hall, and students apparently can respond during lectures using the debate microphones at each desk.

Because I'll be studying here for nine months doing "Independent Studies in Business Administration," no one at the university had been able to tell me exactly what classes I should/could take. All my questions were finally answered yesteday, and I think everything will work great even though the outcome wasn't exactly as expected.

The MBA and Graduate Business programs are very structured here, and students take compulsory modules during the fall and spring semesters. Therefore, all of the MBA students are in the same classes. So yesterday, they told me that I could either take the standard first semester MBA module, or not take any graduate business classes.

I was a slightly dissapointed not to have the flexibility to take several cultural undergraduate electives, but some exciting news came along. Through simply completing the standand fall and spring MBA modules, I'll leave here in May with a Post-graduate Diploma in Business Administration (just 3 months shy of a complete MBA). So, I'll essentially be taking classes as an MBA student here. I also have the option of taking all undergraduate electives during the spring semester and passing on this option. I'll make this decision in January. Of course, I'll always remain focused on fulfilling my duties as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar.

After registration I picked up my student ID card and then stopped downtown on the way home to fix my UK phone and pick up a few housekeeping items. If any of you need to call me directly, you can reach me at 779-917-6839. To call from the US using a calling card, dial 011-44-779-917-6839.

Today, Wednesday, September 19:

Today was great! The weather was sunny today, so walked to campus this morning to attend the all-day induction/orientation for MBA students. Induction was filled with general information and guest speekers. International students make up a huge percentage of the graduate business school. I've met other students so far from Bulgaria, Columbia, Britain, Ghana, and of course Scotland. I met a guy also named Nick from Bulgaria who completed the last two years of his undergraduate degree at the university in Washington state. We got along well and have much in common, and we're already making plans to explore the Scottish countryside.

After returning home from induction, my roommate Marat (from Kazakhstan) had a very nice birthday present for me. Inside a little box were two very nice looking cufflinks formed from the University of Aberdeen's official crest (sort of a shield). It was a wonderful gift. I celebrated my birthday with family back home before leaving, so today was like icing on the cake!

I'm off for now, but I'll post again soon. Cheers!