Since university life is completely different from life at Kingswood school, this report covers numerous topics.

My course is based on “Flipped classroom” and “Team-based learning”. The former requires students to study a topic before a class and to apply the knowledge, which is obtained through self-study, in a class. Since I do not like listening to a lecturer for a long time, this learning style suits me. The downside of our classes is that a class would be less productive if a teammate did not prepare for it. (Not all courses at Imperial College London take this way of learning.)

My first exams are going to be held after the Christmas holidays. These exams are open-book, which means that we are allowed to look at our notes during an exam. Thus, I focus on understanding rather than memorising and creating tidy notes to use during an exam.

I have joined the caving club and have been on a caving trip. Two of the members of the club drove a van to Yorkshire alternately. This made me realise that I really became a university student, considering that teachers always supervise students at school. Descending through a small hall on a rope with many tools was not scary. As going deeper, the cave got wider and caused me to notice how dangerous the situation I was in. It took eight hours to complete caving because only one person can use a rope. I got soaked due to dropping water inside the cave, which made me cold. Overall, it was a wonderful experience.

Surprisingly, there are quite a few students who are not responsible for their food in a fridge, and they spoil their food. This was the biggest shock I had during the first term.

Lastly, I have managed to survive the big shift and got used to living on my own. As this term was to prepare for lab work in the next term, I have not had much lab work. I am looking forward to doing lab projects.