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Undergraduate
Planning your schedule
Steps to Take before Your Scheduling Window Opens
1. Consult your academic adviser(s) for guidance
in the major and in the overall degree.
The planning process for scheduling for future
quarters is ongoing, and much of the work can be done well in advance.
You don’t need to
know when your registration window opens or have the next quarter’s
Master Schedule to make good use of a consultation with your adviser/counselor.
2. Consult the Course Offerings Bulletin & Master Schedule of Classes.
- Read the course descriptions of courses you may want
to take.
- Have you met the prerequisites for the course(s)
that you wish to take?
- If a course requires you must get a Course Enrollment
Permission Form from the front desk or 050 Denney Hall or from your
department and have it signed by the instructor. After getting the appropriate
signature, you must have the form processed in 050 Denney Hal.
- The Master
Schedule is available online weeks before registration begins. The
longer you wait to plan and to see your adviser, the more likely you
will have fewer courses to choose from when you’re finally ready
to schedule.
- Check for special notices from the Registrar
3. Plan a tentative schedule. Make sure you have
backup choices in case your first-choice courses are no longer available
when your
scheduling window opens. If you plan on taking three courses, select
three primary
choices and three backup choices. See Course Availability on the
registrar’s
website.
4. Review the “Registration Notice” included on the
registrar’s
website
5. See Registration
FAQs
6. Note your window opening time. Be prepared to log
on as soon as it opens to maximize your chances of getting the courses
you want.
Step by step instructions on registration.
7. In order to plan for future quarters, contact your
major department for a listing of prospective future offerings. Individual
departments
usually keep some sort of tentative lists regarding future offerings
of courses within their department.
Tips in Planning a Schedule
1. Why are you taking the course?
- Is the course required for your pre-major or major? Is it a prerequisite
to a required pre-major or major course?
- Does the course meet a GEC requirement?
- Is the course an elective? (Electives can be used
to explore possible majors or minors, to complement a major or minor,
to pursue a
personal interest in a subject, to enhance job- or life-skills, to do internships,
to study abroad, etc.)
- Is the course part of a sequence, and will
you be able to proceed through the sequence in a timely way? (Note,
for example:
many students
make the mistake of taking one or two quarters of a foreign language, then
waiting a year or more before taking the next course in the
language. This puts them at a great disadvantage and requires extra
work
in order to catch up. Avoid these situations—plan how you will proceed
through sequenced courses.)
2. Course-specific issues
- What is the focus of the course? Is this an easy or difficult subject
matter for you?
- How is course content presented? Large lecture? Small discussion groups?
- How will your work be evaluated; midterms and final only; papers; projects;
group work? You can get this information by obtaining a copy
of the syllabus from the course department or checking their website to see
if the
syllabus
is on the web.
- How much class time is required?
3. What are your time commitments for the upcoming quarter?
- How much time will you be able to devote to class preparation
and attendance?
- What are your other obligations—employment,
extracurricular activities, family responsibilities, internships,
sports and recreation,
social activities?
4. How will you balance your schedule?
- If your program permits, schedule a combination of GEC courses, major
courses, and electives.
- Balance the types of courses—does the course require a great deal
of reading and/or writing, memorization of material, frequent homework,
laboratory work? Try to take a variety of courses each quarter. Balance
courses that you know will be difficult with courses that will be easier
for you. Balance courses in which you have great interest with those
you’re not so interested in.
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