Strength in what remains behind ourinsecurities
JANNA,18 Aaron Beatrice Caihong Cally Daniel Denise Eliz Ferlin Hongwei Janice! Queenie! Rusydi SiewYee Tse Lin Credits ©Glamouresque.	Tuesday, August 07, 2012 I HOPE U LIKE MY LETTER MR DEAN Basically very flowery words that all points to a single main factor: I AM TOO STUPID FOR THE COURSE. DUH. I still dont understand the need for writing a letter, complete waste of time! To: Faculty of Science, Associate Dean (Academic) Dear Sir/Mdm I am an international student who just started classes in UQ this Semester 2, 2012. BIOL 2202, Genetics, had been my elective course of choice at the beginning of this semester. It was a main point of interest for me, and I also felt that it would be an added advantage to take a related Science elective. However, I was concerned after reading the course profile as it stated that BIOL1020 was a prerequisite for BIOL2202, and I did not have that foundation. Instead, I would be taking both courses simultaneously this semester. After seeking advice from a faculty member and given reassurance that this course of action was appropriate, I went ahead and signed on for BIOL2202 classes. Despite attending all the lectures regularly, revising with Lectopia, and reading extra material on concepts I do not understand, I found myself struggling to understand the course’s content. I was determined to continue and complete the course by putting in extra effort to compensate for my lack of fundamental knowledge, which I believe is the main attributing factor in my case. However, the defining moment came when even after all the hard work, I was unable to do the sample MCQ questions posted by the course coordinator, Mr James Fraser, on the evening of 3rd August 2012. Arranging a consultation appointment with Mr Fraser had been an option I was contemplating, but I decided against it as there were simply too many key concepts I could not comprehend, and the time frame was realistically impossible to work within. I started to weigh the pros and cons of investing a significantly larger amount of time in an elective as compared to my core modules. Evidently, the disadvantages heavily outweighed the advantages. Hence, with a heavy heart, I have decided to switch courses as I predict a detrimental outcome on my academic performance if I do not do so.  After researching on various courses provided by UQ, I found myself being drawn to the School of Human Movement’s course on Health and Fitness through Diet and Exercise, NUTR1023. Understanding how the body responds to different classes of food and evaluating different diet schemes, including how exercise can optimize an individual’s health, is a rather refreshing course to take apart from Science courses. Thus far, I have missed out on 2 lectures, adding up to a total of 4 hours. No assessments or practical sessions have been carried out yet. In order to catch up with the course’s pace, I intend to listen to the Lectopia recordings and read the notes in detail, clarifying any uncertainties or doubts with the course lecturers. Approval as a late addition to this course has already been given by the course coordinator, Mr Michael Leveritt, and practical sessions have also been arranged. I look forward to an early favourable reply so that I am able to gain access to the materials on Blackboard and get up to speed with my peers. Sincerely, Janna Tay Lin Hui 42948362