Opinion

The Struggle of Picking Classes

Sometimes the most stressful things at the end of the semester are not finals, but scheduling your classes for next semester, especially here at Monmouth. Making the perfect schedule and also getting all the credits you need to graduate is close to impossible. There are so many stipulations we have when we’re creating our schedules for the upcoming semester, and it’s hard to apply them all to one schedule. Making your “perfect” schedule is easier said than done, especially when the classes you need to take aren’t scheduled at the ideal time or with that professor who has the highest rating on Ratemyprofessor.com.

Monmouth requires 128 credits to graduate as an undergrad, as opposed to other schools that only require 120 credits. If we, students at Monmouth, come in with no credits, we’ll have to take more than the standard 15 credits at least one semester to graduate in four years. There’s always the option of summer classes, but we all know that those can get expensive. So, we’re stuck cramming our schedules with enough credits (and still trying to get a day off).

It’s stressful when all of your friends are talking about when their registration time is and you feel like your registration is a million years later. Opening your email from the registrar that tells you when your time to register is such a nerve-racking ordeal. Are you going to have to be late to class so you can register? Do you have to wake up early? Do you have to register during another class? Should you just skip class to register? It feels like the time you do get to register is always the most inconvenient.

One of the most important parts of making your schedule, of course, is getting a day off. This makes it even more difficult finding all of the classes you really need that aren’t at 8:30 or on Fridays. Once you take one 8:30 class, most often you vow to never do such a horrible thing to yourself again. Although there are many perks to getting classes over with earlier in the day, being able to sleep in is never a bad thing.

Monmouth offers the option to not only make your schedule for fall semester, but spring at the same time. This can be a blessing and a curse. It’s great because you can see the classes that will be offered each semester. You don’t have to worry about going through this process again and struggling to fit in all the classes or panic if a class you need isn’t being offered in the spring semester. The down side is that you have to make two schedules, which can get confusing. You have double the struggle all at once.

As stressful as it can be, I love being able to make my schedule for both semesters at once. I like having the ability to lay out my whole year and know what is ahead of me. It’s definitely easier because I’ll see what classes are offered both semesters and see which one fits better with my schedule. I also like that I don’t have to worry about making another schedule during the fall semester; I’ll already have had it done and gotten it out of the way.

In the end, you’re probably not going to have a schedule that’s exactly as you’d like it. You might have to take an 8:30 am class, and you might have to have some classes on Friday’s. Creating your new schedule might be stressful now, but you’ll have it done and have your next two semesters laid out already.