<p>Ok, first of all, I am sorry for spamming this wall, but I have many questions regarding scheduling as I am trying to plan out my entire 3 year shedule with many backups lol. I looked through many websites and saw a page on "discovery classes" which can be found here Letters</a> and Science Discovery Courses. They seem pretty interesting, especially the C180T language and power one and 40C Hollywood: the Place, the Industry, the Fantasy. The language and power seems interesting enough that I can say that that is one breadth course I MUST do before I graduate lol. So any comments on how hard it is to get into these classes? They seem pretty popular as almost all the language and power classes from spring 2011 were full. For the language and power one especially, is it too hard/unusual for lower division students to take them?</p>
<p>And discovery courses are not any differnet from normal classes right? I say that because although on the web page it says that Hollywood: the Place, the Industry, the Fantasy one is available for this fall, there were/are NO classes for it for all of 2011. And the language and power on isn't available for this fall; I'm guessing it's going to be available this spring. How do I know when classes for these are going to be held? Do I just do extensive research?</p>
<p>nvm correction, the hollywood one was available for this year lol. I just want to know how popular are these courses so that I know what chance I have of getting in if i sign up for it during phase II</p>
<p>There’s no precise way of knowing when classes will be held. They’re not exactly like Chem 1A, where many people need it so it’s offered every semester. Research can tell you what typically happens, though. For instance. Filippenko’s very popular beginning Astronomy class is usually taught in Fall semester. But the best way to plan out 3 years’ worth of scheduling is to just write down ‘Arts and Lit Breadth Class’ or ‘Philosophy Breadth Class’ instead of having your heart set that some random discovery course is gonna be available at the specific time that you need it.</p>
<p>When you look at enrollment counts for previous semesters, a TON of things are going to be full. Whether or not a class was filled isn’t the best indicator of whether or not you’ll get into it, it’s more of WHEN it gets filled. Some classes, whether it be a German R5A class with a known, easy instructor or a popular Poli Sci upper div with a world-renowned professor, fill within the first days of Telebears. Other classes don’t fill until most people’s Phase II’s are ending, but they still fill up eventually.</p>
<p>For the Language and Power class it said it’s listed as upper div, but all students are welcome. I took Soc 150, an upper div, as a Discovery course my first semester. I really liked it and it wasn’t difficult. Will this Language class be that way? I don’t know, but it looks like lower div students can take it without problems.</p>
<p>Discovery courses are not different from other courses, really. They’re usually designated as Discovery courses so they can be crosslisted between L&S and another department, which means more seats will be available and the class is more accessible to all students. For instance, the upper div Sociology class I took normally would only be open to declared Soc majors, but its designation as a Discovery course allowed non-sociology majors to sign up on the L&S side.</p>
<p>Those with a C prefix on the course number are also listed under some other department. Generally, this means separate buckets for registration purposes, so be sure to check both listings to see if there is space available.</p>
<p>For example, L&S C180T is also listed as German C109. For Spring 2011, the capacity was listed at 53 for L&S C180T and 61 for German C109, so the actual capacity was 114. Each discussion section was also divided into spaces for L&S C180T and German C109.</p>
<p>Language & Power is a wonderful course. It’s fascinating stuff, and Claire Kramsch is an excellent teacher and probably the warmest, nicest, and friendliest person in the world.</p>