It’s the time of year every college student worries about. No, not midterms or finals, but the time to choose your classes for the upcoming semester.
“Choosing your schedule can be an extremely stressful process, especially in the underclassman years,” sophomore broadcast journalism Vincent Mercandetti said. ” It’s tough because you don’t know what teachers to take.” Students arrange their schedules in many different ways. “I like to block my schedule,” sophomore health science major Tyler Schuck said. “I try not to have more then two or three classes in a row.”
A majority of students tend to group their classes and few students choose to have more than three classes in a row. Some students, however, leave gaps in their schedule to eat lunch or enjoy some free time.
“I enjoy having my free time. It’s nice to have a break a day,” sophomore undecided major Sean Geary said. “I’m so involved within the Quinnipiac community that at times I feel overwhelmed.”
“I like to plan around lunch,” health science major Scott Hebert said.
Students also try to keep certain times of night free so they do not miss their favorite television shows such as “24” on Mondays and “The Office” on Thursday nights.
“For the past three years, I have kept my Monday nights free so I don’t miss ’24,'” junior health science major Mario Bencivenga said.
For students who like to go out on Thursday nights, they try to end class early so they have ample time to catch the shuttles.
“The latest I’m willing to have a class on Thursdays is 5 o’clock,” junior English major Hollis Skarnski said. “I like having a lot of time to get ready to go out.”
Students also like to group their classes because they are in a different frame of mind when they have more than one in a row. “I get in class mode,” Herbert said. “I’m ready for the day.”
Choosing what class to take can also prove to be stressful, but students often rely on what their friends have to say about a certain teacher as well as input from popular Web sites such as ratemyprofessor.com and qureview.com.
“When choosing what classes to take I check both QUreview and Ratemyprofessor,” sophomore business major James Cullen said. “Sometimes, QUReview won’t have the teacher I want to look because he might be part time; that’s when I use ratemyprofessor.”
Jean Blue, associate dean of the college of liberal arts, and the faculty set up the times for the liberal arts classes.
“We use statistics from last year’s classes,” Blue said.
Blue agrees that there are a set amount of open slots for classes, but also stresses that teachers are like students, too. Teachers have times they would also rather teach, but they do not always get that time. “You need to be realistic,” Blue said. “It’s all a negotiation process.”
Choosing classes can often prove to be a stressful and at times painful process. Through a variety of resources such as friends and Web sites, the majority of students are happy with the schedule they end up with.
