i’m a first year, and i’m super stressed about picking courses. how likely is it that i won’t get into the ones i want? (social sciences and humanities mostly.) what do i do if i can’t get in? also, how fast do you have to do your course selection before time runs out?
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hello friend,
it’s natural to be stressed your first time, but there’s less to worry about than you might think! it is true that first years get to pick their courses last of the bunch, but first year courses also tend to be on the larger side. so it kinda balances out. chances are your schedule will be full of those larger con hall shenanigans, where it doesn’t really matter if you’re the 15th or 959th person in. if you’re shooting for first year seminars and application-free ones, you might find you have a little bit of trouble, but those also don’t always fill up all the way. it’s hard to say how likely it is you won’t get your first picks without knowing the popularity of your courses or your start time, but speaking as someone who’s done course reg before, i think you’re gonna be okay.
if you’re worried about not making it in, you can put together as many backup timetables as you want. i think i had… three different versions, my first time doing course reg? and i ended up getting my top timetable. it’s kind of funny because this year, i’ve spent waaaay more time answering yalls’ questions about course planning than actually paying attention to my own. which is unfortunate cause my start time is (was? will be? nah. not gonna drop you any clues about my year) much, much sooner than yours. maybe it’s the sense of total nihilism that starts to accumulate when you’ve spent one too many months sleep-deprived and hyped up on coffee to get through the day. or maybe i’m mellowing out. we don’t know. hopefully the second one.
when your start time comes up, i would just recommend being ready– have your enrolment cart on ACORN preloaded with the courses you want, so all you have to do is click a few buttons a few times. there’s no “how fast”– just how prepared. make sure your internet connection is speeeedy. set several alarms if you’re in a different time zone and your start time is smack dab in the wee hours of the night.
aaaanyway. take a deep breath. another one. there you go. you’re gonna be just fine.
be Boundless,
aska