Registering for University Courses

[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:

1. Are the above-referenced scheduling difficulties a common thing these days?
2. Can it be revised early in the semester?
3. How to beat it next time?

Please and thanks.

CY

[Zarley]

1. I recall running into the same thing during first year. Higher years have priority in registering for courses (at least at U of C). I didn't register as soon as possible either so I ended up stuck with a brutal schedule.

2. Typically a spot or two will open up in a class during the early weeks of the semester. There is a two week window to swap or withdraw from courses without penalty. Some classes have waiting lists and other don't, so that complicates things.

3. For future years she will have priority over first year students and will have the benefit of knowing the ropes. It's best to register as soon as possible once it opens.

The software they use for this was garbage. Not sure if it is still in use but it is the most user unfriendly system I've every used. Nothing can be done about that though.

[CaptainYooh]

Originally Posted by Zarley

...
The software they use for this was garbage. Not sure if it is still in use but it is the most user unfriendly system I've every used. Nothing can be done about that though.

Complete garbage, I agree. With good weekly planners available on every major computer platform, students can't even see their courseload week calendar as they pick courses, until they leave the course search screens. So, by the time you pick a course, click on it and leave the page, you can only guess how it would fit into the proposed weekly schedule, prompting to go back and re-do it, if you get a scheduling conflict.

[Fuzz]

Just be glad you aren't flipping through a course book, calling in to a limited number of phone lines(oh, the hours redialing), punching in numbers in a limited amount of time, hoping you get everything right. That was the brutal '90's.

[MRCboicgy]

Heck, these were the same issues 10 years ago...

Really have to be persistent in looking for better options. People drop or change.

As for the labs, they suck, and they were never connected. One class, I was never able to make if to the lab since the only open one was Wed at 5:30 PM and I was working evenings (all other classes done by noon).

[skudr248]

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:

1. Are the above-referenced scheduling difficulties a common thing these days?
2. Can it be revised early in the semester?
3. How to beat it next time?

Please and thanks.

CY

Seeing how I am just about to graduate university in 5 weeks I'll will chime in.

So yeah, unfortunately first year registration is hectic because most universities open registration for classes for students already attending in March/April so students who get accepted later on unfortunately have to pick up classes in awkward times. BUT DONT DISPAIR! haha, the great thing is first week of university in the fall people drop/change classes like there is no tomorrow and this is where your kid will have to take advantage, and I mean literally sitting there refreshing every little while to see if a spot is open in a class she wants.

You won't have to beat it next time, just the unfortunate circumstance of first year students. But make sure she keeps up to speed on when class registration for the next semester open's up to take advantage RIGHT AWAY if she wants to schedule out when she wants her classes/what classes she wants.

Labs for classes - pretty straight forward just look at the description for which course ID number the class is for the lab and click the two (usually right after the class ends ex) 1:50 end 2:00pm lab starts)

I can't even tell you, or begin to describe how messed up some of my schedules have been over my university semesters over the years. I now go to school at night (Mon-Thurs) 6-9pm each day after working full time. Thank god 5 more weeks of this ####.

[cDnStealth]

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:

1. Are the above-referenced scheduling difficulties a common thing these days?
2. Can it be revised early in the semester?
3. How to beat it next time?

Please and thanks.

CY

It's typical that Labs and Tutorials occur on different days and times. In regards to the bolded, scheduling classes so that you have full days off during the week is the greatest thing about university. I use to try to schedule my semesters so that I'd only have class Mon/Wed/Fri and my first class of the day wouldn't start until at least 10 AM.

[Simon96Taco]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Just be glad you aren't flipping through a course book, calling in to a limited number of phone lines(oh, the hours redialing), punching in numbers in a limited amount of time, hoping you get everything right. That was the brutal '90's.

I remember my first year of university...what an absolutely miserable process that was. How did we ever get anything done without the internet?!?!?!

[mile]

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:

1. Are the above-referenced scheduling difficulties a common thing these days?
2. Can it be revised early in the semester?
3. 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?

[The Big Chill]

The best way to get a good schedule is to know what courses you want to sign up for ahead of time, and register in them the second you are able to do so. First year is always a crapshoot because so many students are registering for the courses.

The good news for first years is that plenty of people will drop out, so if you continue to monitor the courses, there is a decent chance a spot will open up during the first few days of classes. There should also be plenty of different courses a first year can take that should count towards a degree, even if it means taking a course you hadn't originally planned on taking in year one.

The only real way to mitigate these issues is to sit down for a couple of hours before your registration time and map out what classes you want to take. It can be a pretty painstaking process, because you might have to click on every single class to figure out the pre-reqs.

For UofC's registration you can put your courses in your shopping cart before your registration opens. I always do that, and then sit there and hit refresh on my browser until the second my registration opens. Even with all that, though, I've still ended up with a couple of pretty annoying semesters.

[CaptainYooh]

Originally Posted by mile

...
Only part of your post I'm confused about is tutorials and labs not being "connected" to main courses. What does that mean?

Firstly, thanks for a well-written and to the point response.

Regarding the perceived disconnect: The way I see it: all lecture course that require labs must have concurrent registration option meaning that registering for one automatically guarantees you a spot in another. This was not the case at all for all core subjects. Plus, there were a lot less spaces available at tutorials, which I also found strange. It would be logical to have the number of tutorial spaces equal to the number of lecture spaces.

[mile]

Originally Posted by CaptainYooh

Firstly, thanks for a well-written and to the point response.

Regarding the perceived disconnect: The way I see it: all lecture course that require labs must have concurrent registration option meaning that registering for one automatically guarantees you a spot in another. This was not the case at all for all core subjects. Plus, there were a lot less spaces available at tutorials, which I also found strange. It would be logical to have the number of tutorial spaces equal to the number of lecture spaces.

Ah I see, that's happened to me before.

Maybe there are more than one lab/tutorial sections for that lecture? Usually there are, that's why lab and tutorial class sizes are almost always smaller than the lecture class size. Ex. lecture sec 01 requires to enroll in one of tutorial sections 01, 02, 03, 04 - something like that.

Otherwise, you could call enrollment services and ask them to look into it. They've made exceptions for things like that before, and I find that they are generally pretty helpful with any questions about registration.

**EDIT: oh yeah, and like the above poster said, USE the shopping cart next time. It doesn't enroll you in the class, but it allows you to do all the struggling/stressing out and save your classes before registration starts and when registration does start all you have to do is click enroll.

[cDnStealth]

Originally Posted by CaptainYooh

Firstly, thanks for a well-written and to the point response.

Regarding the perceived disconnect: The way I see it: all lecture course that require labs must have concurrent registration option meaning that registering for one automatically guarantees you a spot in another. This was not the case at all for all core subjects. Plus, there were a lot less spaces available at tutorials, which I also found strange. It would be logical to have the number of tutorial spaces equal to the number of lecture spaces.

Usually there are multiple labs/tutorial time slots that available and you pick one that (hopefully) fits into you schedule. I've never encountered a course not having enough spaces available in a tutorial/lab. Generally tutorials are run in smaller groups so that students are actually able to ask questions or get help with something that has been taught in a lecture. You can't really get help if your tutorial has 100 students in it.

[lazypucker]

Don't panic Captain, if your daughter is going to classes with her friends, THEY will make sure they get in to the classes they want...

[CaptainYooh]

From what the feedback is so far, this is a well-known problem for the first year students and it gets easier. Thus; the reasonable question: why do the U's make it so difficult for 17-yr old kids.

Back in my university days, we did not have many choices - all courses and weekly schedules including all labs and tuts, save for a few electives, have been pre-determined for us each semester.

[vegasbound]

Because UofC tries to make things as difficult as possible... But yes, my first year was horrible. I didn't know anyone, didn't ask for help, etc. It was baaad. My only suggestion as far as registering for classes is- maybe first year or after second year definitely try and get MWF or Tues/Thur. I'm a history major so I don't have labs or tutorials so I can get away with it. And this is probably just me- don't have breaks in the schedule. I have taken "filler" classes so I don't have an hour break because I will leave. All my schedules are back-to-back classes.

[cDnStealth]

I think part of it has to do with how many different courses there are. People in the same major aren't necessarily going to be taking the same courses all at once so the school isn't going to handcuff students with a set time/day for something like a lab. Having those parts of the courses flexible allow you to build them around the rest of your schedule. Another reason why it's a little more difficult for first years is probably because universities know that many students will either change their majors or drop out.

Keep in mind (and maybe you already have) that your daughter is going to need to do electives so nothing she takes in her first year will hurt her. She doesn't need to load up on requirements for her major. Personally, I took so many courses in my field that by my 4th year I couldn't apply any more credits from them to my degree and had to take electives. It's been mentioned already, but she'll get to register early next year. The key is for her to know the day/time she can do so and have her courses planned out beforehand.

[mile]

Originally Posted by vegasbound

Because UofC tries to make things as difficult as possible... But yes, my first year was horrible. I didn't know anyone, didn't ask for help, etc. It was baaad. My only suggestion as far as registering for classes is- maybe first year or after second year definitely try and get MWF or Tues/Thur. I'm a history major so I don't have labs or tutorials so I can get away with it. And this is probably just me- don't have breaks in the schedule. I have taken "filler" classes so I don't have an hour break because I will leave. All my schedules are back-to-back classes.

1-2 hour breaks are such a waste of time. Not enough time to do anything productive, and most of the time is usually spent wandering around waiting for my next class.

Originally Posted by cDnStealth

I think part of it has to do with how many different courses there are. People in the same major aren't necessarily going to be taking the same courses all at once so the school isn't going to handcuff students with a set time/day for something like a lab. Having those parts of the courses flexible allow you to build them around the rest of your schedule. Another reason why it's a little more difficult for first years is probably because universities know that many students will either change their majors or drop out.

Pretty much this. It may be difficult for 17-year olds but the tradeoff is that once you get the hang of it you can give yourself flexibility in later years. Everyone is completing their degree at their own pace (whether it be 4,5, or 6 years) and even those in the same major could be concentrating in different areas and therefore have to take different courses at different times. Also like you said first year is supposed to be hard, and part of it is being able to deal with things like getting a harder schedule and workload - they want to see who is able to push through it because it is common for first years to dropout or switch majors.

The University could probably do a better job providing more help and simplify the system for new students. It might suck for first years but I'm glad I have choices. Especially since I didn't have any in first year.

[Sakic19]

Originally Posted by vegasbound

Because UofC tries to make things as difficult as possible... But yes, my first year was horrible. I didn't know anyone, didn't ask for help, etc. It was baaad. My only suggestion as far as registering for classes is- maybe first year or after second year definitely try and get MWF or Tues/Thur. I'm a history major so I don't have labs or tutorials so I can get away with it. And this is probably just me- don't have breaks in the schedule. I have taken "filler" classes so I don't have an hour break because I will leave. All my schedules are back-to-back classes.

Back to back courses is the way to go, as well as trying to get a day off (long weekend) every week if the schedule allows for it. I'm a current student and have found my school's process to be a little tough to deal with, but for my undergrad at UBC they made it very easy to make your schedule/check prereqs and such.

I also wouldn't worry about which courses your daughter registers in for first year unless it's a program with a standard timetable (engineering/science etc...) I've found it's very easy to change courses before the withdraw deadline as lots of the courses are filled with kids who register in too many courses and drop after the syllabus class.

[GGG]

The flexibility of courses being available really helps in later years.

To me it sounds like your daughter was unprepared, usually things like this are covered during the campus tour days. The key is to be prepared and have 4 schedules that you find acceptable before you hit the registration date. This way you have options ready if your 1st choices are filled

I remember the last year we got online registration and it was a godsend compared to the old phone system where after punching in 200 digits of codes your last class would be full a crater the system.

One tip though is presuming your daughter is likeable and had good highschool marks she should be able to get overrides to get into the classes she needs as long as she has a better reason then not liking the time it's at. You just go to the a Profs and say can sign off on a form.