Course scheduling is something every college student dreads. The perfect schedule is always just out of reach, something of the imagination but never of reality.
While your ideal schedule may not be fully possible, the closest you can get to it is by preparing smartly.
By following these steps, we can not guarantee you will get every class you want, but we promise that it will make registration go as smoothly for you as possible.
Plan ahead
Come registration day, you want to be prepared.
An extra few minutes of your time in advance is well worth the saved stress when your registration time slot arrives.
Pick out the classes that you would like to take on OSCAR a few days before. Always check prerequisites to be fully certain you are eligible for the class and be sure to have a handful of backup classes just in case.
In order to see your schedule visually before committing to it, sign up for a free account on Courseoff, an application designed to help college students plan out their schedule simply and easily.
Be advised that Courseoff does not include course descriptions and prerequisites, so make sure you are using it alongside OSCAR.
The night before registration, copy the CRNs of the classes you want to take into a note on your computer. As soon as your registration time slot opens, paste those CRNs right into your browser. This will allow the quickest access to your first choice classes.
Ask for help
You are never alone on registration day. There are 26,000 resources all around you: your faculty and peers.
The first person you should talk to is your advisor. Most advisors have a sample of classes they recommend you take for each upcoming semester. At the very least, this provides a few class ideas that may help.
Next, consult other students in your major. What classes did they take when they were in your stage of their degree?
What professors do they recommend?
Most majors on campus have group chats, Canvas pages or Piazzas for this very purpose.
Do not be afraid to drop a message in yours to ask what courses may be best for you.
For a specific professor, many students turn to RateMyProfessor, a website for students to anonymously rate their professors based on their content, engagement and difficulty.
Even if reviews can be biased or exaggerated, it still gives a general idea of what different professors are like.
Breathe
You may get your perfect schedule. You probably won’t. Either way, you will be fine.
You will work with your advisor to get a full schedule of classes that will in some way suit your academic needs.
Just because you have to put off taking Health for another semester does not mean the world is ending. Even if you leave registration with half the credit hours you need for next semester, this is actually completely normal. The add-drop period is the saving grace for most students here at Tech. Use it to your advantage.
The worst thing you can do for yourself is cause yourself unnecessary stress over things beyond your control. Registration might not be perfect, but there is always next semester. The add-drop period is the saving grace for most students here at Tech. Use it to your advantage.
The worst thing you can do for yourself is cause yourself unnecessary stress over things beyond your control. Registration might not be perfect, but there is always next semester.