What I wish I knew.

In the weeks leading up to the beginning of my module, there was a lot of curiosity and anxiety regarding the upcoming journey I was about to embark on. If you are anything like me, these are some of the things that I wish I had known before my first week.

Come by any time before your module starts. Please. We don’t bite.

When I moved with my wife to Denver from San Diego for Turing, I wanted to come by… but didn’t know the door code and thus felt “my time hadn’t come, I must wait until my module begins.” There is nothing wrong with waiting, but if you are like me or many of my classmates… we felt so anxious and underprepared in the week or so leading up to the start of school. We just wanted to know more to be be prepared as much as possible. Getting familiar with the space or getting some kind of rundown from current students will help immensely in alleviating that tension. If you do decide to come by, the earlier you can the better because the week before your journey begins: no one is here… and the week before that you run a high chance of everyone, students and staff, being grumpy and/or stressed.

Get familiar with terminal

Coming from a PC, I knew nothing about how to use terminal. And for many in my cohort, what system they used didn’t make a difference: they just weren’t familiar with it. If there is one thing that will make your first week here easier (besides the pre-work) it is learning basic terminal functions like cd and ls to navigate your file structure. (Note: Turing is always in a state of self-improvement and since I began, they have completely changed what’s involved with the pre-work. It is very likely this is already included. If so… good job. You win.)

Make getting to Turing as convenient / fast as possible

Moving from San Diego, we had no idea what was what when we were trying to find a place to live. If you don’t already have your living situation figured out, Turing has a welcome packet (that you may have to request) that details a lot of great information. Part of this details neighborhoods and transportation systems, but my biggest suggestion is to live close. Walking / biking to school is the best way to go and the savings in transportation costs will soon offset any other disadvantages.

Be prepared to work

In my application process, I was repeatedly reminded that Turing is an intensive school can frequently require 80+ hours of work a week. (It’s not that bad when you include weekends…) Somehow, many of the students came into the school unaware of this and were surprised by the effort and time required to succeed. Do not be that person. Better to not come at all if you are unprepared for the (minor and temporary) sacrifice (that will pay off in untold ways).

Finally: don’t stress

Turing is crammed full of students and staff and alumni that all want to see and help you succeed. If you have a question, someone will answer it. If you you’re struggling, there are literally a hundred+ people that will willingly take the time to pull you back together (and your project too, in the process). But also, Turing is fun. Relax and focus on the process. Focus on the learning instead of all there is to learn. Focus on the problem at hand instead of potential problems. You’ll get there.