Being a student at UCR means that I am on the quarter system which is very different from the regular semester system. With this system, classes are taken during a ten-week period and the eleventh week is when we have finals. This system has many ups and downs that can be beneficial to or difficult for students and below are some that I have experienced:.
- Classes change fast
This is possibly one of the best parts of the quarter system. Having classes for only ten weeks means that by the time I’m getting sick of a class, it will already be coming to an end. Many of the courses I take are very reading and writing heavy so sometimes having them for a shorter period of time is better for me.
- Midterms begin week 3
This sucks since week 3 is very early on in the quarter and that means we’ve only met with your professor about 4-5 times prior. This makes it questionable initially as to how much material we could have possibly learned in those weeks but many classes are lecture heavy so there is a lot of material that will be on the midterm that we somehow need to know by week 3. Additionally, it can be stressful cramming for a midterm while another class is on a different schedule.
- Barely any break in between a quarter
The moment that Fall quarter hits, there are barely any breaks between the quarters. First, it’s Fall quarter, then two weeks of winter break, then winter quarter, spring break (one week), and then spring quarter, and finally, you get a summer break.
- Summer is long AF
This is probably the best part of being in the quarter system since summer break can be pretty long. The break usually lasts from the second or third week of June until the last week of September or the first week of October. This can be pretty relaxing for students after working our brains off non-stop for the last three quarters. This is when I tend to completely turn off my mind so that I can actually relax.
These are some of the ups and downs of the quarter system that affected me the most. Right now with classes being on zoom, things still feel the same but in a sense, breaks feel even shorter between the quarters so it can be more stressful.