How to Choose a Rigorous College Schedule for Your First Year
Review the school catalog., Look at the class schedule for the first term., Read the rules about overloading first, or ask for advice, before choosing the classes you'll take., Understand how units correlate to hours per week that you will spend...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Review the school catalog.
This should list the requirements to graduate in your chosen major, and it is important that you understand what requirements you must fulfill.
It will also give a brief description of the contents of the courses, which in turn will help you gauge how difficult each course will be and whether it will interest you. -
Step 2: Look at the class schedule for the first term.
Begin making a list of classes you wish to take.
Try to include alternatives both for times and for course titles, since certain popular classes may be crowded at first.
Do any of the additional classes you want to take clash? Is it going to be possible to work around clashes or is this going to make one or more of the classes too difficult to complete? Cross off those that really won't work out. , Some of the things to bear in mind include:
In some cases, your institution may not permit taking an extensive overload.
If you need approval for an overload (many colleges require this), this is often an additional step from normal enrollment, so be sure to get the correct papers and approvals in advance.
Do you know what penalties or flexibilities are in place for dropping, changing or failing additional courses taken? It's a very good idea to know how many weeks into the term you have to withdraw from a subject without recording a fail, in case you realize you need to lighten the load and pick up the dropped subject later on. , Often one unit corresponds to one hour in class, but the proportion may be different for certain things such as lab or review sessions.
Remember that the number of units you take will also determine how much homework you will have.
Plan to spend an average of two hours of study outside of class each week for each hour in class
- though this, too, varies from class to class. , Many schools have a certain minimum number of units you must take per term to be considered a full time student.
This minimum number of units may not take up all of your time, and it may not get you through your curriculum in a reasonable number of terms.
On the other end of the spectrum, you don't want to overload yourself with classes, especially not before you know how many units you can reasonably handle during a given term. , Here again, try to get the advice of someone who has attended your school in your department.
Aim to be at least on the waiting list for classes that are difficult to get into, as soon as you have all the prerequisites. -
Step 3: Read the rules about overloading first
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Step 4: or ask for advice
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Step 5: before choosing the classes you'll take.
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Step 6: Understand how units correlate to hours per week that you will spend.
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Step 7: Ask school staff or returning students what a reasonable course load is.
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Step 8: Find out if any of your chosen classes are difficult to get into.
Detailed Guide
This should list the requirements to graduate in your chosen major, and it is important that you understand what requirements you must fulfill.
It will also give a brief description of the contents of the courses, which in turn will help you gauge how difficult each course will be and whether it will interest you.
Begin making a list of classes you wish to take.
Try to include alternatives both for times and for course titles, since certain popular classes may be crowded at first.
Do any of the additional classes you want to take clash? Is it going to be possible to work around clashes or is this going to make one or more of the classes too difficult to complete? Cross off those that really won't work out. , Some of the things to bear in mind include:
In some cases, your institution may not permit taking an extensive overload.
If you need approval for an overload (many colleges require this), this is often an additional step from normal enrollment, so be sure to get the correct papers and approvals in advance.
Do you know what penalties or flexibilities are in place for dropping, changing or failing additional courses taken? It's a very good idea to know how many weeks into the term you have to withdraw from a subject without recording a fail, in case you realize you need to lighten the load and pick up the dropped subject later on. , Often one unit corresponds to one hour in class, but the proportion may be different for certain things such as lab or review sessions.
Remember that the number of units you take will also determine how much homework you will have.
Plan to spend an average of two hours of study outside of class each week for each hour in class
- though this, too, varies from class to class. , Many schools have a certain minimum number of units you must take per term to be considered a full time student.
This minimum number of units may not take up all of your time, and it may not get you through your curriculum in a reasonable number of terms.
On the other end of the spectrum, you don't want to overload yourself with classes, especially not before you know how many units you can reasonably handle during a given term. , Here again, try to get the advice of someone who has attended your school in your department.
Aim to be at least on the waiting list for classes that are difficult to get into, as soon as you have all the prerequisites.
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Catherine Roberts
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