Hit the Ground Running

HIT THE GROUND* RUNNING Orientation and WEEK ZERO 2006 Feb 15 – 24

FREE workshops classes and seminars

register https://inside.cs.rmit.edu.au/week_zero/ CS Login required

These classes are for all CS&IT students, choose as many as you can fit * into one week to work effectively when you begin the new semester

 On enrolment day, lab assistants will assist you in registering.  Register for compulsory and recommended sessions and choose a suitable timeslot.  Also register for as many other activities as you would like.  New activities will be added to the online registration system, so check again in February and change your registration as necessary.  You will be notified by email if any changes are made times or venues of sessions you have registered for.

Any questions about Week Zero email [email protected] edu.au Orientation and Week Zero Activity Descriptions

Essential for those students new to the School of CS& IT. You must attend these sessions.

New Student Welcome and Lunch Your formal introduction and welcome to the School followed by a meeting with your program group, co- ordinator and advisors. An opportunity to meet lecturers and students you will be working with, answers to the basic questions you have about how to get started and a tour of the school facilities. You will have lunch with staff of the school. UNIX Essentials and Computer Science Network Skills Learn about CS & IT systems and gain basic UNIX skills for your labs and assignments. You need to attend one A session followed by 2 of the B sessions. Academic Integrity - Skills for all CS&IT Students Understand what plagiarism is and learn what you need to do to ensure you don't plagiarise. This challenging and interactive workshop includes referencing your sources in programming and protecting your own work. Academic Integrity is highly valued by the School and this session is compulsory for all new students. International Questions & Answers This session for new International Students will introduce you to staff members, who can assist with improving your study skills, visa issues, assistance with personal matters and more. The session will provide useful information about RMIT, your School, and will give you the chance to ask any questions you have at this stage.

Sessions for particular groups you are strongly advised to attend sessions

Games Degree Students Activities in Art and Design, Gaming sessions First Year Undergraduate Students

Your first programming lecture, what are you supposed to do, can I talk, will I be asked a question, is it like in the movies? This lecture will really get you started as it is a lecture about lectures by one of our lecturers – one of the most useful activities a beginning student can attend. Undergraduate Students with advanced standing

Transition from TAFE or College; this workshop will focus on lecturer expectations and the different teaching and learning that happens at university. Presented by Teaching & Learning Advisors and current students.

Post Graduate Social Night Get together with other Post Grads. Share some time with other students in the same situation, make contacts, meet support staff, become a face not just a number. New and Returning Undergraduate and Post Graduate Students - choose as many activities as possible.

JAVA Boost A series of graded sessions that will enable students to reinforce their current proficiency in Java programming and build on this as they work towards the level of coding required for their future studies. The sessions will run for 2 hours each day of week one and each group of students will be supervised by two tutors. Each day, attendees will be required to complete a mini assignment. These self paced assignments will start at a basic level and progressively increase in complexity. Attend between one and five sessions. Topics covered will include object-oriented programming with classes, interfaces using arrays, file I/O, structures, data structures (linked lists, etc.), functions, formatting and coding standards. C-SHOT Revise your C programming skills with these self paced graded workshops. After attending a series of 2 hours supervised sessions you should feel confident to return to your studies in Advanced Programming or courses with C programming as a pre-requisite. Each day, attendees will be required to complete a mini assignment. These assignments will start at a basic level and progressively increase in complexity. Topics covered will include arrays, files, pointers, structures, data structures (linked lists, etc.), functions, formatting and coding standards. Casual Employment and Study RMIT Union Legal Service and RMIT Student Union workshop on your rights at work. A casual job can give you skills, money and a pleasant break from study, or it can become a nightmare of exploitation, disrupted study and money worries. What type of employment is suitable for a student and how do you find that job?

Recommended for new students. Uni is all about independent learning, these sessions get you started. Returning students who would like to improve their results are also encouraged to attend.

Managing Your Time to Academic Success Many students whether it is their first time at university or if they have been studying for a number of years, struggle when trying to manage assignment deadlines, group project meetings, exam revision AND daily demands in life, such work, sporting commitments, family and relationships etc. This 1.5-hour workshop will be delivered by a Learning Skills Teacher and Computer Science Teaching & Learning Advisor with the “focus” on Computer Science course deadlines, timetables and exams. Solutions to issues such as procrastination, distractions and feeling overwhelmed by assignment dates will be examined as well as practical exercises in writing individual timetables, goal setting and prioritising demands. All the information you will ever need about CS&IT courses Now that you are a university student, you are responsible for your own studies. This can be quite overwhelming. Where do you find our about classes, textbooks, assignments and exams? This workshop will step you through an example course guide and help you get yourself organised for the semester ahead. Skills for New Programmers Programming is an essential skill for IT students but sometimes it can seem like a big mystery. A positive attitude and consistent practice can make a big difference to the effectiveness of your study. This workshop focuses on the way successful students approach programming tasks. Find out from current students how they study and what resources you can use.