Scheduling for summer/fall classes is right around the corner for some folks! And I always see posts going around saying, "don't take 8ams that's the devil speaking" "8ams are horrible and 9ams you're on thin ice". As someone who has 9am and 10am classes 3 days a week maybe these are some considerations to take when planning your classes rather than just skipping the early classes all together:
What kind of commute do you have?
This may seem kinda silly, but not everyone chooses to pay to live in campus housing. The home I grew up in is only 30 minutes away from the university, so I chose to continue living at home where I could save money before moving out on my own. Because of this taking classes later in the day makes me want to go less. I have one 5pm class on Thursdays and while it’s nice getting to wake up a couple hours later I have to constantly remind myself that I do have to go to class.
What does you major map look like?
A major map lays out the courses you should take to complete your degree. I am getting a BS degree, so my schedule goes something like Bio, Lab, Chem, Lab, Anchor, Discourse, and any class I and my adviser feel preps me for the MCAT. This limits me to the time I can take classes as I cannot just pick willy nilly to fit the schedule I would like to have.
What time are classes offered?
This one plays off the previous one. Classes go by quickly on registration day and you end up changing things around to accommodate what is left. If you’re a freshmen you kinda lose out, sorry. This either means you get stuck with the early classes or the late classes (I have a 7pm to 10pm chem lab and I hate it more than my 9am bio lecture).
What do you want to do with your day?
This one I think is the most important. I am done with all classes by 11am MWF. This means I can potentially get home by 11:30 if I don’t choose to go to the gym or the bio studio. But, I do, so I get home at about 12:30 with the gym | 1:30-2 with the bio studio (we are required to go once a week). No one gets home until 3 so I have 2 and a half hours to myself at least 2 days a week. This is the perfect time for me to do homework which usually takes me anywhere from 20 minutes to about 2 hours depending on what I have scheduled that day (if you want to know how I time manage let me know in the replies I’m pretty proud of it!!). I am done with everything by dinner. If I go to bed at 10 I have 6 hours to study, relax, ect.
Last but not least: Can you trust yourself to make it to that class?
I am by no means a morning person, but I know that I can roll out of bed at 6am without thinking about it, get in the shower before I am a human, and be on campus 30 minutes early to class to get my favorite seat. I trust myself to do that. But, if you can sleep past 3 alarms, like to lay in bed for an hour before even considering moving, and know you cannot make it on time to the early classes, maybe the midday classes are for you. A lot of my professors take attendance and some will even fail you for not showing up. Or they don’t take attendance, but use clickers for points and those missed points add up if you aren’t there. You know yourself better than anyone so pick the times that are right for you!
Schedules are a very personal thing and should be considered on a case by case basis. Ruling out the early classes just because others don’t like them may not be right for everyone! I know that when I go to schedule next fall with my adviser in a couple weeks I am going to try with all my might to not take anymore evening classes.
