Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptainYooh
I was helping my daughter pick and register for courses at two Universities for her first year. She's been conditionally accepted at both but not yet decided which one to choose. Both U's sent her letters requesting to complete first year course registrations now. Maybe I've been out of this too long; but I found the process very unfriendly, unclear and difficult despite being available online. Most core courses have already been filled-up. Some of those remaining were available at really awkward times, like late evenings. Supplementary courses (tutorials and labs) are not "connected" to the main courses. Requisites are sometimes noted in the footnotes and you wouldn't know about them until the course registration is rejected. At the end of the registration process, her Fall course schedule was looking completely inefficient (i.e. one class Monday evening, no classes on Tuesday, then three classes on Wednesday etc.). For Universities that should be on the forefront of web-based process efficiency, this seems very sluggish.
Questions to current university students:
- Are the above-referenced scheduling difficulties a common thing these days?
- Can it be revised early in the semester?
- How to beat it next time?
Please and thanks.
CY |
I don't know about other Universities (I'm a U of C Student) but they changed registration dates for this year - returning students could start registering for their Fall and Winter classes in March, rather than June. I don't know if that rule applies to new students coming in this Fall though. If it is, that could explain why most classes are full.
For your questions:
1. The problems you described probably are common for first years, but IMO your daughter's schedule doesn't sound too bad (from what you've said).
Having one or no classes on one day isn't a bad thing at all - that time can be used to do work for classes on the busier days. In first year I complained a lot about the course hours and schedule (having to stay late/uneven balance) but found out that it didn't really matter anyways because I was staying late almost everyday studying - and learned to enjoy it.
If the work load is too much or late hours for one class are a problem, maybe dropping that class and taking it in the Spring or Summer might be better. Most first year classes are available in the Spring/Summer, and the hours/workload are far more flexible. Be wary though if that class is a prerequisite for something you have to take later in the year though.
2. See Zarley's post above. Usually spots open up in the first two weeks of a semester because people can drop/swap classes without penalty or having to pay the fee. But things like wait lists can complicate things.
3. In the future, the scheduling difficulties shouldn't be a problem if you plan everything out in advance. Knowing which courses you want to take each semester and the pre-requisites is key. Always have your daughter check when is the earliest she can register for classes - not just for Fall/Winter, but Spring and Summer too.
For me, what really helps is the University of Calgary Calendar. There are suggested timetables for most programs, and key registration/fee dates are there.
http://www.ucalgary.ca/pubs/calendar.../sc-5-2-1.html
For example, if you click the link above and scroll down there is a suggested timetable for all four years of a Chemistry degree. And if you click each course, you should see pre-requisite info, anti-requisite info, and course hours.
And if you want to see the different lecture/lab/tutorial sections for a specific course, best way to look it up is with the registration software, or googling the course. ie. google "Chemistry 211 Fall 2015 U of C," and you'll find
http://contacts.ucalgary.ca/info/che...les%2F145-2412
So for whatever University your daughter decides to go to, try and find something similar.
If you have any problems with registering, like time conflicts or a problem where there is room in the lecture but no room in labs/tutorials, call the University's enrollment services and they could make an exception for your daughter.
Only part of your post I'm confused about is tutorials and labs not being "connected" to main courses. What does that mean?