Choosing college courses is arguably one of the most stressful aspects in attending college your freshman year. For the first time in the history of your academic career, you're handed the freedom of choosing your own classes as well as setting up the academic schedule that works best for you. Here are some helpful tips that will, not only help in making decisions about your classes, but ensure that they're the best choice for you and for the direction in which you want to go.
1.) Review the Course Catalog
Reviewing the course catalog helps you know what's offered at your school and is key to you understanding which classes you should be taking. Keep in mind that you DON'T have to know your major at this point either. When asked if not having a major at all affected a students four year graduation rate or not, Mckenna Rabb, a Sophomore at Arizona State University, told us that “Having a major does help and make picking classes easier, but it definitely doesn't hurt you or put you behind if you don't have one. I didn't have a declared major my first year and was able to stay on track with classes and graduation.” If you know your major, you can use the course catalog to choose courses that generally fulfill requirements for your major. If you don't know your major, you can use the course catalog to find classes that spark your interest and use that to guide your freshman year into an exploration of what your field of study will be the next three years.
1.) Review the Course Catalog
Reviewing the course catalog helps you know what's offered at your school and is key to you understanding which classes you should be taking. Keep in mind that you DON'T have to know your major at this point either. When asked if not having a major at all affected a students four year graduation rate or not, Mckenna Rabb, a Sophomore at Arizona State University, told us that “Having a major does help and make picking classes easier, but it definitely doesn't hurt you or put you behind if you don't have one. I didn't have a declared major my first year and was able to stay on track with classes and graduation.” If you know your major, you can use the course catalog to choose courses that generally fulfill requirements for your major. If you don't know your major, you can use the course catalog to find classes that spark your interest and use that to guide your freshman year into an exploration of what your field of study will be the next three years.
2.) Create a Class Schedule that Works
The goal for a full time college student is to have around four to six classes a semester and to set up that schedule to give yourself study time in between so you're not overwhelmed. On Average, the expectation is that for every hour you spend in class, you spend 2 hours outside of class preparing for the next lesson. In order to best succeed, its necessary to give yourself time to study and prepare between classes to ensure that you're getting the most out of the classes you've committed to, as well as scheduling in free time for you to enjoy the social aspects of college. You're the person that knows your study habits best, so in order to set up the best schedule for you- you should identify your "production peaks", or simply give yourself study time when you know you'll work best. In the end, if your schedule doesn't work for you within the first week you can always go talk to your advisor about fixing your schedule.
The goal for a full time college student is to have around four to six classes a semester and to set up that schedule to give yourself study time in between so you're not overwhelmed. On Average, the expectation is that for every hour you spend in class, you spend 2 hours outside of class preparing for the next lesson. In order to best succeed, its necessary to give yourself time to study and prepare between classes to ensure that you're getting the most out of the classes you've committed to, as well as scheduling in free time for you to enjoy the social aspects of college. You're the person that knows your study habits best, so in order to set up the best schedule for you- you should identify your "production peaks", or simply give yourself study time when you know you'll work best. In the end, if your schedule doesn't work for you within the first week you can always go talk to your advisor about fixing your schedule.
3.) Visit your Advisor
Every Student is assigned a specific advisor to help them set up the schedule that is right for them and keep them on track towards achieving their goals. Make an effort to meet with your advisor prior to registration to evaluate your goals for the school year and set up a list of the best classes you can take in accordance to that list. It's best to create and come in with a list of questions for your advisor to clear up any possible confusions you may have. If your advisor does not have the answers, you can sometimes figure out how to contact the professors that teach the courses you have questions about. Your advisor can help you reach out to them to find your answers.
Every Student is assigned a specific advisor to help them set up the schedule that is right for them and keep them on track towards achieving their goals. Make an effort to meet with your advisor prior to registration to evaluate your goals for the school year and set up a list of the best classes you can take in accordance to that list. It's best to create and come in with a list of questions for your advisor to clear up any possible confusions you may have. If your advisor does not have the answers, you can sometimes figure out how to contact the professors that teach the courses you have questions about. Your advisor can help you reach out to them to find your answers.
4.) Don't Rush to Complete General Ed Requirements
A lot of people think that the first two years should be solely dedicated to completing your general education requirements so that the rest of your college education can be spent specializing your major, but most colleges say other wise. Many schools advise to not rush the general education courses your first two years, in order to give yourself time to branch out and discover what it is you really want to study. Tho your focus should not be solely on completing your general education requirements, it is advised that you do put a heavier emphasis on these requirements as you take a few fun classes along the way. The idea is that you don't want to put all your emphasis on your major, as you may just end up changing it in the end... Then all the time and effort you'd put into completing courses for that major are all to waste and you'll have to study longer in order to graduate.
A lot of people think that the first two years should be solely dedicated to completing your general education requirements so that the rest of your college education can be spent specializing your major, but most colleges say other wise. Many schools advise to not rush the general education courses your first two years, in order to give yourself time to branch out and discover what it is you really want to study. Tho your focus should not be solely on completing your general education requirements, it is advised that you do put a heavier emphasis on these requirements as you take a few fun classes along the way. The idea is that you don't want to put all your emphasis on your major, as you may just end up changing it in the end... Then all the time and effort you'd put into completing courses for that major are all to waste and you'll have to study longer in order to graduate.
5.) Register Early
The earlier you register for classes, the better the chance you'll have of getting the classes you want and need. Make sure to have a broad list of classes, so that if the classes you want to take are full you have a list of classes that you've considered to choose from instead.
6.) Maintain Balance
Start slow and work up to harder classes. Allow yourself time to transition from High School into the other-worldly experience that is College lifestyle. Make sure that you know what kinds of course work each class your taking requires, so that you can rightfully prepare the study time necessary for those courses (and so you don't get stuck writing 5 essays for 5 different classes in a week!). Mckenna Rabb advises that your should "Ease into your classes- don't try and take 22 credits because you think you can handle the workload. And remember to take a fun class every once and a while, like yoga, line dancing, or even a star wars class; college is about having some fun too!”.
The earlier you register for classes, the better the chance you'll have of getting the classes you want and need. Make sure to have a broad list of classes, so that if the classes you want to take are full you have a list of classes that you've considered to choose from instead.
6.) Maintain Balance
Start slow and work up to harder classes. Allow yourself time to transition from High School into the other-worldly experience that is College lifestyle. Make sure that you know what kinds of course work each class your taking requires, so that you can rightfully prepare the study time necessary for those courses (and so you don't get stuck writing 5 essays for 5 different classes in a week!). Mckenna Rabb advises that your should "Ease into your classes- don't try and take 22 credits because you think you can handle the workload. And remember to take a fun class every once and a while, like yoga, line dancing, or even a star wars class; college is about having some fun too!”.
7.) Use College Credit and/or Placement Exams
If you've earned any college credit throughout high school, find out if you can use them to fulfill core requirements when entering college. Placement exams can also help you test out of certain core subjects that otherwise would have been required of you.
8.) Plan to take a Writing Course
Definitely plan to take a writing course the first semester of college to help you succeed through the rest of your college educational career. Good writing is important in every class and is important in the real world as well. Employers generally want to hire people who can write and developing these skills in a class will benefit you in the long run. Taking a writing class is also beneficial in the aspect that a professor actually takes the time to read and critique your writing, which will get you legitimate feedback that will help you improve for your other classes.
If you've earned any college credit throughout high school, find out if you can use them to fulfill core requirements when entering college. Placement exams can also help you test out of certain core subjects that otherwise would have been required of you.
8.) Plan to take a Writing Course
Definitely plan to take a writing course the first semester of college to help you succeed through the rest of your college educational career. Good writing is important in every class and is important in the real world as well. Employers generally want to hire people who can write and developing these skills in a class will benefit you in the long run. Taking a writing class is also beneficial in the aspect that a professor actually takes the time to read and critique your writing, which will get you legitimate feedback that will help you improve for your other classes.
9.) Aim for Variety
Try to sample a wide variety of classes on campus. While attending a college, you may only enroll in 30 within the possible thousands of classes that are offered. By choosing different classes that fuel different interests of yours, you may find out exactly what you want to study. At least once a year, take a class that challenges your beliefs. It will help you gain a new perspective on the world and if you hate the course you'll still have learned more than if you'd just taken a course that confirms your beliefs. You may consider auditing classes throughout the school year to sample the different courses on campus. Auditing is when you attend a class you are not enrolled for academic credit in. You may just find a course that guides you to what you want to study.
10.) Read Faculty Evaluations
Most schools ask students to evaluate their professors at the end of each semester. Find out if these are made public and if so where these evaluations can be found. In general, classes that are rated higher by students are classes they did better in overall. Do some research online to see what each professor is like in each class and try to find a professor that sounds like they would fit what you need in the classroom.
Resources:
https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/find-colleges/academic-life/8-tips-for-choosing-college-classes
http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/the-college-solution/2011/02/08/7-tips-for-selecting-college-classes
http://www.igrad.com/articles/5-tips-for-choosing-college-courses
Try to sample a wide variety of classes on campus. While attending a college, you may only enroll in 30 within the possible thousands of classes that are offered. By choosing different classes that fuel different interests of yours, you may find out exactly what you want to study. At least once a year, take a class that challenges your beliefs. It will help you gain a new perspective on the world and if you hate the course you'll still have learned more than if you'd just taken a course that confirms your beliefs. You may consider auditing classes throughout the school year to sample the different courses on campus. Auditing is when you attend a class you are not enrolled for academic credit in. You may just find a course that guides you to what you want to study.
10.) Read Faculty Evaluations
Most schools ask students to evaluate their professors at the end of each semester. Find out if these are made public and if so where these evaluations can be found. In general, classes that are rated higher by students are classes they did better in overall. Do some research online to see what each professor is like in each class and try to find a professor that sounds like they would fit what you need in the classroom.
Resources:
https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/find-colleges/academic-life/8-tips-for-choosing-college-classes
http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/the-college-solution/2011/02/08/7-tips-for-selecting-college-classes
http://www.igrad.com/articles/5-tips-for-choosing-college-courses