Choosing Classes - Features -

You should visit the bookstore to see the books that will be assigned to you. Allow yourself a good amount of time to look at them. Do you want to spend the next 10-15 weeks of your life reading these books? Are they interesting, boring or practical? You may discover a course that you thought would be boring has some really great books. Conversely a class that you thought would be really interesting, has terrible textbooks. Even worse, the class has a terrible textbook written by the professor who is lecturing in the class.

Class size is also important to consider. How many students are going to be in the class? Are there seminars or discussion broken off into smaller groups? Will you be interacting with the professor or a grad student? Find out about the workload, the number of papers, tests and other assignments.

Other Options

Other things to consider in choosing a class: Look for special classes. Sometimes there are special seminars or classes that are not listed in the normal catalog, but fulfil requirements. They may end up being a lot more interesting than some general class with a generic textbook. These classes may not be well known and will require extra research to find. Also be on alert for visiting professors that may have specialties that are not normally offered by your department or school. One of our editors took a great philosophy of aesthetics class from a visiting professor.

Consider options for taking classes at other nearby colleges that have a relationship with your school. Many colleges and universities have agreements with nearby schools to allow students to take classes that are not offered at the student's school. You might also do this to spend time on another campus or to save money. Always check with your administration to find out if they will give you credit for the class.