What I Wished I Knew Before.....

I suspect this is something I will be adding to as time passes but for now its August 2010 and the new UMDers are in their respective countries counting down the weeks to arrival next month and the beginning of a memorable and exciting year. That you will enjoy yourself is almost a given, that you will maximise the learning experience is another thing. That will take investment of time and effort both inside and outside the lecture room and is entirely in your hands.

I stand corrected but I don't think any graduating class has ever had more than 10% graduating with distinctions. Last year we had exactly 10%. Now with a few weeks to go I think you should have what I call a flying start. I would recommend getting the brain in gear for the kind of thinking and the subject area that will demand your constant attention for the 12 months after arrival.

How would I have done that?

Well a little reading is for sure. Let me warn you, this course like any masters requires a humungous amount of reading so it seems almost wrong to suggest you even begin before getting here but it will only help. Despite the clear emphasis on Development in the programme title I had absolutely no exposure to reading on development issues prior to the course. I was trained as an architect and many if not most of the others are trained as planners but development was another issue. All concepts, all presentations, all papers, all lectures encircle the goal of development and although this is targeted at urban spaces, a strong understanding of development is at the core.

I would suggest heading to google books at http://books.google.com/ and plugging in the word development or development theory and find a couple good ones to read. I would recommend one I read after I had graduated but that I found had helped to cement so much into a cohesive whole. Of course, I found it more meaningful to read after the programme but am sure there would have been much value had it been before. That was Development and the Developing World by Uma S. Kambhampati. which answered question like .....What is development? The Difference between growth and development. Does industrialization lead to growth and development or does fast growth cause industrialization? etc.

Above all, go with where your interest lies, follow your bliss as they say and enjoy it. I absolutely loved the learning process at IHS and found that it can even become addictive as the more you learn its the more you realise how much you know and how little you really know. :0)

Erasmus Library

Collection profile
The University Library (UL) of EUR is a typical social science library. Having started as a collection of materials about the economy, it has expanded into a collection about all processes in society:

• How do we earn a living? Economy
• How do we deal with one another? Social Sciences
• What kinds of mutual agreements do we have? Law (from international to domestic)
• How do we improve these processes? Public and Business Administration.

Okay that's what the Erasmsus Library website says. What I'll say is that this library is of no match for the IHS library collection that specializes in urban development and housing issues. However, there are always additional supportive material that can be found here. I for one was very impressed with the number of books on my home country - Jamaica, authored by Jamaicans that I must confess are not so easily accessible back home but were accessible at EUR. So its definitely worth exploring.

The HOT TIP O' DI DAY is..... when you need a book of course you do a search. This is how.

1. Go to http://www.eur.nl/ and click on the English flag at the top right corner for that Language. Or just save this setting on your favourites to take you to english directly http://www.eur.nl/english/


2. Click library at the top of the page.



3. Go to the option UL Catalogue under the Search Option - see image below.
   


4. Do your search, select book of choice and then hit REQUEST at bottom of page.
   



5. When the next page opens put in your library number. You find that on your library card - 8 numbers. Your password is usually the first three letters of your surname.
   


6. On the next page that opens, select the request option in the grey box.
   


7. Your book will be ready for pick up in 15 minutes after the request is made by the Circulation Desk on the ground floor of the Library, present your card and collect your book. TEN BOOKS MAXIMUM ARE ALLOWED FOR LOAN AT ANY ONE TIME.

You can do this while in class on your laptop, or at home before you head to IHS or anywhere via a computer. They will hold that book in reserve for you for that day before someone else can claim it. If the book is not available you may select RESERVE and as soon as it is returned an email is sent to your account to advise you.

Well there you have it. Easy as cheesy. CHEERS!!

Research Tips

Hi Everyone
So you are full throttle into research for term papers, course papers and coming up to the big one ....THESIS RESEARCH. Well just a quick suggestion on one source that was very helpful to UMD 5. I am sure some have already stumbled across it but there might be those who have not. This very helpful source is GOOGLE BOOKS!!


Google Books is a web site created by Google that has uploaded and impressive number of books on this site that can not only be viewed but will allow you to search using certain key words. Over the course of a year I have accessed and referenced 117 books. Before you begin its best i tell you most of these books only allow a limited view of the literature but some do allow you to read the entire book. The good thing is even a "limited view" still offers up much information. Follow steps below and see image at end of page.

1. Head to http://www.google.com/ and at the top are all the various google sites.


2. To maximise this site it will require that you have a Google Account...which usually requires a google email. Set that up and you are good to go.


3. Click on MORE and select BOOKS.


4. Plug in a search....hmmm lets try "infrastructure" hmmm too general. Lets try urban infrastructure. Yah much better.


5. Select a book, take a peek and if you like you can read on or save it in YOUR LIBRARY. This option should be at the top right of the screen.


6. After a while your libary is gonna grow, making it hard to find the books you saved and even forgot you saved. So you might want to add LABELS which will make it easier to find the books you want.


7. Add labels by clicking on MY LIBRARY at the top, right corner. All your saved books show up and you simply click "add labels" and think of words that will remind you of what this book is about and think of about three with commas in between. Then click save.


8. If you look on the right side of the page you can now see all your labels and an easier way to access your materials.

I found this an invaluable resource. Most times after locating a book I then turn to the Erasmus library website to see its available. I then reserved it while at home and pick up tomorrow for deeper study. Do not underestimate this resource and have fun. Cheers.