<p>Registration begins tomorrow, so would anyone please explain to me how the registration process works?</p>
<p>Also, could anyone explain how to read the course listings on webstac? Because according to this, I'm just gonna have all my classes Mon., Wed., and Fri. and nothing on the other days of the week</p>
<p>I'm an incoming freshman in SEAS for BME</p>
<p>I’d recommend balancing classes that are M/W/(F) wth T/Th. You don’t want to have five classes in one day. Registration is simple…if you used the registration worksheet you can just scroll through your choices and click register. Otherwise you just type the name of the department, class number, section, and lab number in if applicable. If you want, post what classes you’re thinking of taking and days and times for more advice.</p>
<p>My ds is also an incoming freshman in SEAS, but WebSTAC says he can’t register until July 29.</p>
<p>Are registration times staggered, with not all freshmen allowed to register at the same time? If so, how do they decide who goes first?</p>
<p>Yeah they generally are staggered, and I believe it’s random. It’s not a huge deal, since only engineering students are registering over the next couple days, and there’s 200-400 of them.</p>
<p>Wait, is this just for engineering students?
ArtSci registers at orientation, right?</p>
<p>Crozet, from what I can tell, ArtSci students who didn’t attend an ArtSci weekend register at orientation.
a semi-related question…I am going into BME, and was wondering if the freshman engineering seminar is worth taking…the course listing said it only meets once a week, and there is no exam, but will it just be extra work or actually be worthwhile?</p>
<p>hiltzation- some people will say that En120 is worth it, others will not. Personally, I only think it’s worth it if you don’t know what you want to major in in engineering. If you’re dead set on BME, then it’s not worth it.
The benefit is that you can get extra info sessions on the different majors.</p>
<p>lgreen- this year, because there are 350 incoming engineers, there are 6 groups for registration, and they are indeed staggered. It’s entirely random.
Also, to make it fair for Physics 197 (there are 130 spots for incoming engineers), the 130 spots are spread out throughout the 6 days, such that everyone has an equal chance of getting a spot in one of the three sections.</p>
<p>I didn’t take EN120 but as Johnson said…if you’re not entirely sure on what engineering major you want to have, it’s probably worth it. If you’re taking a light load (say 12 units) it’s probably worth it too if you have time. If you know exactly what you want to do, don’t care for the other disciplines, then it’s probably not for you.</p>
<p>I did an Applied Science CS degree…I don’t really care about the other types of engineering, so I never took it. If you’re in something thats actually more engineering…saying EE, it might be worth it.</p>
<p>Unless you like Physics, I would go the route of 117-118. I personally was never a huge fan, so ended up only taking 117. If you’re doing an applied science CS degree I’d keep the 8 units of science needed easy since you really don’t need physics, chem, or bio unless you are premed.</p>
<p>Hilt is right about the ArtSci thing…these next upcoming days of registration is only for engineers. Engineers used to register at Orientation, but this was changed to summer at some point in the last 5 years.</p>
<p>I thought more about Dark’s original question…and want to reemphasize that unless you’re a masochist, taking all of your classes on MWF isn’t the brightest idea. You might be stuck with multiple deadlines on one day, with exams, etc. I knew coming into college from high school I thought what’s the big deal…I sat through 7-8 hours of school a day in high school. But it’s different…you really want to spread around your schedule as much as you can. Even if it means not taking a course you wanted to take until later on…you’re just looking for trouble having every course on the same days.</p>
<p>And wow 350 for the incoming class seems huge.</p>
<p>As for scheduling, it might not seem fair that you some people register a couple days before others, but it’s just a part of college process that you’ll encounter all four years (and also with housing lotteries). A lot of things are done randomly, and you may not get the classes you want. Wash U is a lot better than most other schools about getting in the classes you need, but you have to get used to the fact that sometimes you won’t be able to get in a class you want and you may only be able to take it a couple years later, if at all.</p>
<p>Just some random thoughts on random issues</p>
<p>Johnson or marcdvl- do either of you know if physics 197 lets engineers off the waitlist on a first come, first serve basis? I registered for it literally a minute after registration opened…also, appr. how many freshman engineers even want to take 197? i.e. how many don’t get to take it that wanted to?<br>
thanks!</p>
<p>also…when would they let us know if we are succesfully enrolled in 197? just to make sure I’d have enough time to get the book(s) cheaply!</p>
<p>Does anyone have any idea how many of the ArtSci students have already registered through ArtSci weekends, and how many still need to register?</p>
<p>I’m regretting that my S didn’t go to an ArtSci weekend to register earlier because some of the classes he was planning to take are almost full. Having a larger than usual freshman class can’t help.</p>
<p>197 should be a first come, first serve, for each day that there is registration (each of the registration days should have an equal shot at 197).
Your second question is difficult to answer, because it’s different every year, and will be especially different considering the incoming class is unusual.</p>
<p>My freshman year, I think I knew that I was enrolled less than a week after registration. You should have plenty of time to find the books for either 117 or 197 cheaply.
Also, I saw an incoming freshman bme post their schedule on facebook, and it appears as if they were already enrolled in 197 (it was black, not green as when you’re waitlisted).</p>
<p>The ArtSci weekends are finished, so i wouldn’t expect much more art sci registration until orientation.</p>
<p>sacchi: Your son always has the option of talking to the professor on the first day of class and asking to be let in if he’s low enough on the wait list. People will also drop some classes…many people enroll for more classes than they plan to take and decide after the first couple days of class which to actually take.</p>
<p>One other thing…not getting into the classes you really want is a fact of college life. It happened to me even as a junior. I remember when I was first a freshman, I was upset when I didn’t get the exact classes at the exact times I wanted. But it worked itself out…I took some of the courses the following semester, etc.<br>
Wash U is a lot better than other schools in that they’ll open up courses that get filled for first years (mainly science/engineering courses). Also at any point, if you need a class thats only offered every two years, and you are a junior or senior that didn’t get in, 99% of the time the professor will be understanding and let you in.</p>
<p>Compare that to other universities (mainly public universities) where due to the recession, it’s common to have to spend 5 years getting a 4 year degree because there aren’t enough sections of required classes. </p>
<p>Yes it sucks if you don’t get into your first choice. Yes most of the popular classes will be full before freshmen have a chance to register. But it’s honestly not too bad. You have to be flexible, especially during your freshmen year about classes and times. You might end up with getting stuck in a 9am class when you can’t get into a later section. It can always be worse though.</p>
<p>Just my 2 cents</p>
<p>I have my schedule now. My lectures are on MWF and labs and recitations are on Tuesdays and thursdays, so it’s hectic, but still pretty diverse.</p>
<p>Now the I’m concerned with another question: where can I fit work-study and activities on this schedule?</p>
<p>That’s why when you kept making posts about doing research, and work study, and activities, and taking 6 courses I mentioned that you’d probably be short on time.</p>
<p>Activities generally occur at night and the weekend. As for work study, hopefully you scheduled your classes so that you’re done at an early enough time on some days and can work then.</p>
<p>yeah on 3/5 days on the week I should be completely finished at around 3 p.m. Is that ok?</p>
<p>It is a relief to hear that Wash U does open up additional sections of courses, if demand warrants. With this large entering class, it would not be equitable to penalize these freshmen (especially given tuition costs…!).</p>
<p>^To marina…they do but generally only for lab, first year engineering, and certain other engineering classes.</p>
<p>One 300 level CS class in particular had 30 spots (limited by computers), with 70 people signed up. The CS department worked hard to make accomodations and ended up increasing enrollment to 65.</p>