Six Ways to Make the Right Choice in Choosing Your College Class Schedule

College Orientation can be daunting to say the least. It is the first step to navigating towards adulthood and may be one of the very first decisions you make without the guidance of your parents. My Freshman orientation I was whisked away from my parents and sat down with someone who specialized in my major and was told then and there to pick classes. I was completely blindsided and had no idea what were the right classes, teachers and times to pick so I just chose one of the schedules that had been pre-determined for my major. It was not awful, but as I have continued to be in college I have learned great ways to make sure you end up with an amazing and manageable schedule for your personality and learning type.

So without further ado, here are the 6 tips that are crucial in finding a schedule that works for you.

1. Rate. My. Professor.

This site is literally the holy grail in determining whether a professor teaches in a way that will be conducive to your learning style. I would recommend ignoring the ratings that are overly positive or negative without giving more detail than “this teacher sucks” or “easy class, got an A”. While it may be easy to fall for these types of reviews and be scared, I would look for ones that have descriptions on what type of teacher they are or how the class is formatted. If you are someone who loves the format of having no assignments and only exams, a teacher with that format may have received lower ratings because other students don’t like that format. At the end of the day it all depends on personal preference of teachers and so this is a great resource to see how class may be run by a specific professor.

2. Pick your ideal wake-up time, then add 2 hours when picking morning classes

Everyone says it, but I am here to remind you that waking up early for high school and waking up early for college are two totally different ball games. I was a swimmer in high school so I was up at 4 a.m. most days, so when it came time to sign up for college classes, I thought a 7:30 class would be easy. I was wrong. Can I handle 9 a.m. classes now? Yes, if I have to, but that is why I say choose your ideal wakeup time then add two hours. If you’re someone who would ideally wake up at 8, if possible your first class should be around 10 a.m. It helps to give yourself that two hour gap period as you are adjusting to your new life and new schedule.

3. Good professors are worth early mornings

Having a good professor is something that is priceless in my opinion, even if that price is sleeping in. If a great professor is only offered early in the morning, suck it up and take the early class unless you know you will skip every class. The good grade, knowledge learned and potential connection to a great educator is something that is worth the early morning.

4. Try not to “stack” too many classes

This is a complicated situation for many because I know many people, including myself, have work while also attending classes. This is why it may be tempting to put all of your classes on the same two days. Unless you absolutely have to, I advise against this. Instead I would recommend scheduling your classes around the same time on different days. It helps your brain get into a routine most similar to that of the high school school day. Meanwhile, stacking classes may give you plenty of free time to work or enjoy yourself, but it leads to burnout, quickly. Having to slug through a full day off college classes is not like high school classes as there is usually double the information presented. The one day off in between (Tuesday/Thursday or Monday/Wednesday schedules) is not enough time to comfortably finish work from all prior classes and prepare for the next.

5. Avoid Friday classes

I know that this isn’t always an option and chances are you will have at least one class on Friday your fall freshman semester, however it is really nice to keep Friday classes to a minimum for mental health purposes. Friday is a great day to get work done so that you can enjoy your weekend without worrying about cramming in homework on Sunday night. Plus, your brain will be exhausted by the end of the week and you’re more likely to skip classes on Friday.

6. Do what works for you

Now this might sound cliche, but everyone thrives in different situations and schedules. I have tried about every different combination of times and days for classes until I figured out that I like having late morning/early afternoon classes and then being done before 3 p.m. Many people like going to classes only later in the day and vice versa. Each person is unique so each person’s individual needs to have a productive and working schedule will be different. College is one big learning experience.

With that being said, do not be afraid to try out different types of schedules to see which works best for you.