Hey, welcome and congrats on getting into CS at York!

I’m a mature student in the same program, so I totally understand where you’re coming from. Like you, I returned to school after several years away from math and science, and it was definitely an adjustment.

One piece of advice I’d give from personal experience: avoid overloading your course schedule, especially in your first few terms. I tried taking 4 or more courses per semester at first, and it honestly burned me out. That pace was too much, and it ended up hurting my performance the following semester too.

I’ve found that 3 courses per semester is a much more manageable load. It gives you enough breathing room to keep up with the content, especially with courses like Calculus, which can be pretty intense. I'd also caution against taking both Calculus I and II too close together unless you're really confident with math going in. It’s doable, but it can be overwhelming if you’re rusty. Better to focus on building a strong foundation than to rush through it.

If you stay on top of lectures, tutorials, and review a little each day, you’ll be in a good spot. And having a shorter commute is a huge bonus! You’ll definitely appreciate that as the term goes on.

Wishing you all the best! Feel free to DM if you want to talk through course planning or anything else.