Hi ASSIST participants!
This will most likely be the last e-mail you will receive from me before joining ASSIST. I understand that the last few weeks will probably be very busy for most of you as you prepare to come to Canada. I don't want to overburden you with even more e-mails to read, so I have gathered some last-minute information for you now. Please read through it carefully; it is all very important and could save you much hassle in the long run.
But before I get to the important pieces of information, here's a little aside: how many of you have noticed that I am sending this e-mail on a Sunday? You might be thinking, "who works on a Sunday?". Well, I do. And I'll tell you why! I left work at I House early on Friday to go and meet Sandra, who just came back to Vancouver from Germany, and is working with me as a Residence Assistant for the duration of the ASSIST program. She will live in Gage with 5 of you and will work with the whole team to deliver an exciting array of social and cultural activities. Sandra brings with her many international experiences, as she has lived in Germany for most of her life, and has also volunteered for eduational programs in Tanzania and Thailand before coming to UBC as an international student. She also has many interests in the fields of sustainability and global citizenship and is a great person to talk to about volunteering or campus involvement in general.
Dzifa and Robyn, the other two ASSIST staff members, will be coming back from their own travels next week, excited and ready to start planning some fun events for all of you! They have very limited access to the Internet as they are travelling through some remote areas, but they have both asked me to convey to you how excited they are for ASSIST to start! Dzifa, Sandra, Robyn and I are really looking forward to meeting all of you. We are lucky to have an exceptionally diverse group attending ASSIST this year and we really have a lot to learn from you, the participants. You bring with you your unique and valuable individual experiences and we can't wait to hear about them!
Now, onto the important topics:
Arrival dates and times
Kerstin Heilgenberg, our wonderful ASSIST Program Coordinator, has already sent out an e-mail to all of you asking for the date and time you expect to arrive at UBC for ASSIST. So far we have only received 15 replies, so I will urge you all to just send me or Kerstin a quick e-mail stating when you will be arriving, as soon as you can. This will be of tremendous help to the ASSIST team, so we can plan out our welcome events around that.
LPI
ALL UBC students planning to take first-year English (any one of ENGL 110, 111, 112) MUST write the LPI, unless they qualify for an exemption. The LPI stands for Language Proficiency Index, and is a written exam that tests your English skills. Details of who qualifies for an exemption can be found at
http://www.english.ubc.ca/ugrad/1styear/gen_2.htm .
The deadline for international students to write the LPI is September 1st, 2007.
You can register for the LPI online at
http://www.ares.ubc.ca/LPI/index.html .
If you do not pass the LPI on or before the September 1st sitting, or qualify for an exemption, you will not be able to take a first-year English course in Term 1. Even if you are currently registered in 1st year English, if you do not meet the LPI requirement (or qualify for an exemption), you will be dropped from your English course and will have no chance to appeal it. The First-Year English department is very strict about this policy and it is rigorously enforced.
The LPI is a significantly more challenging test than the TOEFL. Many students who do not prepare for the LPI end up failing it, even if they have studied English for 5 or more years. In some cases, even native English speakers have failed the LPI because they were unfamiliar with its format. There is one workshop on the LPI scheduled for ASSIST, but bear in mind that you may have to put in extra work outside of class time to prepare for the LPI, because independent practice is key to preparing for this test.
It is also not a bad idea to register for an elective that fits in your timetable, if you are worried about failing the LPI. If you fail the LPI, you can choose to continue on with that elective and you will be dropped from English. This way you will still be taking a full courseload. You will have until September 18th to drop your elective course. If you pass the LPI, you can drop your elective and continue on with first-year English.
What to pack
Consult
http://www.international.ubc.ca/prearrival.cfm?page=bring for a list of items you may wish to bring with you to Canada.
I have a few things I would suggest packing in your hand luggage. These are:
Wallet (with around $40 CAD for the cab and a snack if you're hungry)
Passport and any immigration documents you might need (TRV, Study Permit, Permanent Resident Card)
Cell phone (if you have one)
Plane ticket
Directions to campus for the cab driver/your family
Music listening device - iPod or CD player (if you have one)
Laptop (if you have one)
Change of clothes for the next day (in case your luggage gets lost, which happens frequently)
Something to sleep in (in case you're tired when you get to Gage and don't want to dig through suitcases to find something to wear)
Sweater (nights get quite chilly in Vancouver)
Again, for those of you living on rez in Gage, bed linens will be provided, so you don't need to worry about that.
Try not to bring any food items along with you as they may have to be inspected by a Border Security Officer. This may delay your arrival to Vancouver and cause you hassle. Also, airlines these days have quite strict policies governing the carriage of liquids onto an aeroplane, so I would suggest not bringing any, to avoid unnecessary delays. You can always get a complimentary glass of water/juice on the plane!
I think that's it from me for now. Thank you for reading through this huge e-mail! If you have any questions regarding anything pertaining to ASSIST or UBC in general, please don't hesitate to contact me. I look forward to meeting you all and have a splendid time preparing to come to UBC!
Take care,
Sonja
P.S. Check out the blog for some photos of Vancouver!
Sonja Babovic
Administrative Assistant
ASSIST - The SMART START to Life at UBC
Deadline for applications is July 30th
http://www.students.ubc.ca/go/assisthttp://assist07.blogspot.com/International House
1783 West Mall
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z1
Tel: +1 604-822-5021
Fax: +1 604-822-5099
