How to Select the Best College Class Schedule

Colleges offer a wide variety of classes on so many subjects, sometimes it's hard to decide where to begin and what to choose. There are certain basic requirements that you have to fill, particularly in the early years of undergraduate work, but you don't have to just be dealt even those cards randomly. You actually have a great deal of control over what you take, and those choices will help to determine how much you enjoy your education.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• List of classes
• List of teachers
• List of requirements to graduate

How to pick the best schedule of college classes

1. Start by figuring out what you need to graduate. Those are the first courses you should schedule, because there isn't much choice involved in those. But don't forget, even if everyone needs Biology 101 to get a degree, different teachers teach Bio 101 differently. Some, frankly, are much better than others. So do some research. Ask around. Teachers are as individual as the students. Learn the personalities of them, and you will better be able to predict which ones you will have more success with.

2. Think about if you are a morning or afternoon or evening person. When do you learn best? When are you most alert? Take the majority of your classes then, and, in particular, take your hardest classes at the times in which you are the sharpest. A sure way to fail is to take the toughest class early in the morning, at least for the late riser. You just have too much working against you then. Stack the odds in your favor.

3. Once you've filled your basic requirements, with the best teachers and at the times you want, fill in the rest of your schedule based on what you already have booked. If you have a couple of extremely difficult required classes, don't add risky electives that might be too time consuming and distracting. Schedule something you think will be fun and interesting but also that leaves most of your attention for the other classes on your list. If you have a light load of required classes, this is the time to take the stab at the really complex one that you've been curious about for a long time.

4. Always book an extra class. Most schools give a grace period to try courses and see what they are all about. If nothing else, go to the first class for each one, meet the professor, look at the syllabus, examine when assignments are due, how big they are, looking for conflicts or periods of overload. Then, drop the one you are the least excited about before it reaches the point that it will appear on your transcript.

5. Learn from your experiences. Maybe you thought you did well in night classes, but those really made you sleepy and you wished you instead were hanging out with your friends. Maybe you thought you liked young energetic professors, but instead you performed better in classes with old crusty veterans. Analyze yourself and your results, and try to keep refining your choices from the data you collect.

Tips & Warnings

• Be sure to asks friends, acquaintances, anyone you meet on campus about the various classes being offered. It's great for small talk, and you might discover a course, or even a career, that you might never have considered before.
• Don't register late. Many of the best classes, times and teachers already will have been taken.

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[collegerox]

on 9/21/2009 On the website www.myedu.com, they have ways for you to put together a schedule and look at different course workloads, professor grade histories, and potential degree plans. It helps you make sure that you're not overworking yourself, but that you still have your college career planned out.

They have professor reviews too so you can be prepared for the class that you're about to take.