Resources I Love at Illinois (Part I)

Resources I Love at Illinois (Part I) This week was an extremely busy week for me. However, I got quite great news that I was selected by a research program. I was super excited, and I would like to talk about a couple resources that our school provides based on my experience. Hopefully, you find this post useful. Research When you are at Illinois, one of the privileges is that you can always find a place to do research if you try because we have so many faculty members and post-doctoral/doctoral fellows. I was too shy to email professors to ask for a research position in the first two years. However, after I attended a workshop hosted by OUR (Office of Undergraduate Research), I decided to step out of my comfort zone to at least contact some research programs. I also had my dream research groups ready and planned to write formal emails. Luckily, I got good news from the first program that I applied to, called PURE (Promoting Undergraduate Research in Engineering). Despite its name, this program is not limited to Engineering students at all, and every freshman and sophomore can apply. It is a great chance to get involved in research as an underclassman. I know that I will be  super busy for the rest of the semester, but I will  cherish this opportunity and put a lot of effort into it. There are lots of opportunities posted online, so please don’t hesitate to go to research workshops, apply for different programs and contact your professors! If you don’t try, you will never grab the chance. One step forward may mean success. Personal Development A friend of mine recently recommended I earn a  MIL (Market Information Lab) Practicum Certification, which offers various classes on software that does business analysis, such as Capital IQ, Bloomberg, and @Risk. It was mainly for students in the College of Business, but I think it would be pretty helpful for students in Economics and Statistics, as well. For non-business students, the classes are not free, but it would only cost $10. After finishing the basic courses, we can also choose different tracks to learn further. I think it is a great resource, and I would like to recommend this to all of you. I know the  Department of Computer Science also offers different certifications, and you may want to check them out here. Next time, I will talk about other kinds of resources I have “benefitted from,” and I hope all of us can cherish opportunities that our campus offers. After receiving so many kindnesses from our school, I finally begin to understand the meaning of going to college:  to  try my best to learn as much  as possible (not necessary just from classes) to become a better person, and  Illinois will try its best to create the best environment, as well. Connie Class of 2018 I am double majoring in Computer Engineering in the College of Engineering and Statistics in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. My hometown is a historical and peaceful city called Suzhou, located in southeastern China.