As we trudge along these final weeks of fall semester, mentally preparing ourselves for final exams and most importantly Christmas break, we also begin to wonder: what am I going to do next semester? For most students, registration is a stressful time, mostly because crucial classes usually fill up before they can get their hands on them. While class traffic can’t be controlled, there are five simple tips a college student can follow in order to get the best out of registration.
1. Ask yourself: am I on track? In other words, run a degree evaluation. Check to see if you have fulfilled that perfect balance of degree requirements and general education classes. Or all GE’s. Or all degree requirements. Either way, I have no fear greater than thinking I’m on track to graduate, when really, I’m not. If you haphazardly take random classes without checking to see if they fulfill any attributes, you can find yourself staying a semester or even a year or two longer than you originally planned.
2. Know what classes you want to take. Before you meet up with your advisor, make sure you have compiled a list of classes. If this is your first time registering, I recommend taking a balance of major classes (if you’ve already selected a major) and GE’s. If you haven’t selected a major, then take your GE’s and maybe some elective classes that are in your field of interest. You can discover what you’re into while fulfilling those general education classes, before you’re required to select a major.
3. Make sure you know what your advisor looks like. No, really. I know someone who has never met with her advisor before, and she’s already a junior. It’s important to establish some sort of face-to-face relationship with her/him, and it’s very important that she/he knows who you are. If you’re a freshman, it’s never too early to email your advisor and meet up with them, even way before registration. They are there to, well, advise you on your academic journey throughout college. Most likely your advisor will be from the department you are majoring in – want an internship, career advice, or any help building your resume? Go to your advisor. Building this trust and showing her or him that you’re committed to being successful will ultimately make college a more meaningful and personal experience.
4. Register. Obviously make sure you’re on top of what day and time you can begin to register. My floor mate last year was not prepared at all and didn’t even know it was time to register until hours after his time slot. He ended up only getting 11 units –he wasn’t even a full-time student. Don’t be that person! If you are the type to forget easily, set multiple alarms in your phone as a reminder. Write on post-it notes your proposed schedule, your back-ups and the course numbers, and place those notes where you can see them (I tape them to my laptop). It’s crunch time, and there’s no such thing as being too prepared – better to be safe than sorry.
5. Things didn’t go the way you planned? Don’t freak out. If you are unable to get into an important class, go directly to your advisor. Better yet, go directly to the professor who teaches that class. Work with them to see if you can get on any wait lists. While you wait, explore for other classes that you can take just in case your first choice does not work out. It sucks, but not everything works out in our favor. You might have to wait and see if you can make it into some classes next semester. In the meantime, don’t let one or two setbacks keep you from having a productive and successful term.
These tips might be simple, but you can go a long way just by following the smallest of steps. Be organized, be on top of your progress, be punctual, take advantage of the help you can get and most importantly, be excited for the semester to come. The great thing about college is that you have the power to steer yourself in whatever direction you desire.