Crisis Week

Hey everyone & Happy Halloween!

Well-tomorrow is our last day of crisis week! We started last Wednesday and I've been living in the Intel Lab every since. (In case you forgot, crisis week is when our professor will assign us a tasking and we have exactly one hour to report back to him with our analysis and briefing) I received my first crisis week assignment last Friday, which was a written briefing, also known as a SFAR (Short Form Analytical Report). I received my team briefing earlier today and it went great! Tomorrow I expect to receive my individual oral report. I'm really not that nervous though, as we've been researching the European Debt Crisis for eight weeks now!

Immediately following Crisis Week, our team needs to get started on our final briefing. Our final briefing is scheduled for next week and will be approximately one hour long. In our final briefing we will discuss our group's findings and analysis regarding US trade and the European Debt Crisis. We are also expected to create a link chart, just like we did in the Advanced Intelligence Analysis course I took last fall (I have a blog entry specifically on that class if you would like to read it).

In other news, tomorrow is November and the end of term is near. I've already registered for four winter term classes:
       1) American Government
       2) Advanced Computer Applications
       3) Competitive Intelligence
       4) Criminal Justice

All of the above are required classes for intel students. We will also have a new intel building next fall, which everyone is excited about! Here is a picture of the construction:

New Intelligence Studies Building Construction

Thank you for reading! Enjoy the fall!

Ryan

Update

Hello again!

Well midterms are over and Thanksgiving break cannot come soon enough! I'm starting to feel the end of term coming - everything is starting to creep up on me. I've started on my final projects and reports for my classes after looking at my calendar and realizing we have like three weeks left of this term! 

On Wednesday we start our Crisis Week for Intel. It lasts from 10/26-10/31. Our professor will call us and give us a "crisis" going on in the world and we then have one hour to prepare a briefing for him on the situation. One of the briefings is a written piece and the other is an oral piece in which you have to meet him and give your briefing. It's going to be a nerve-wracking week but I'll be glad once it's over! 

We just had an Open House on campus yesterday and we had a great turnout! I gave four families a tour of campus and answered their questions. We had a few people interested in the Intel major so I was able to talk with them one-on-one and tell them my personal experiences. If you are considering a major and want more information just call the school and ask to set up a meeting. It helps A LOT. 

Anyway, I'm going to get back to writing this final essay for my history class - even though it's a beautiful day here in Erie. Welcome to college. 

Thanks for reading, 

Ryan 

 

Back at Mercyhurst!

Hello again!

I'm back at Mercyhurst for my sophomore year and I can't believe how fast it's going! Last week I had midterms and fall break is approaching! Soon it will be Thanksgiving and Christmas!! I'm taking three classes this term: American History, Writing for Intelligence, and Macroeconomics. I really enjoy all three classes and I like my professors. I really like the trimester system here because I'm not bogged down with a bunch of classes. I have my three classes and I can take my time and focus on each one. My favorite class this term is Writing for Intel. We have a ten week project on the European Debt Crisis and our final briefing is right before Thanksgiving break. Our project is going well so far, I've learned more about financials than I ever thought I would. But more importantly, I've seen how the economic trouble in Europe is directly tied to the US and our future. It's a great class and I've learned SO much.

I think the cold weather has arrived in Erie, 50's & 60's all week. The snow will be coming in another month or so! I'm considering joining ski club again this year. They go to Holiday Valley one night a week. They provide transportation to and from the ski resort and the college pass is affordable.

Well- that's a small update of my life at Mercyhurst right now. I'll keep the posts coming with more updates and information.

Thanks for reading!
Ryan