<p>I don't really understand how classes work. For example, I want to major in Psychology and minor in Communications, so how would my classes be arranged? Do I get to pick and choose or do I get a set number of classes and have to take all of them? Sorry if I'm not being clear, I just want to know what it's like. Thank you.</p>
<p>You pick and choose the classes which will fulfill your major requirements (or minor requirements, if you are pursuing a minor as well).</p>
<p>You choose what you take and when, within the scope of you majors, its requirements, and what prerequisites are. Prereqs are classes you must take before another class. I.e. you must take Physics II before Physics III, you must take algebra before pre-calc, etc. There will be advisors to guide you through this, but many students figure it out on their own. These days you can register for your classes online. Say there’s a psychology 100 class you need to take your first quarter or semester. It might have different “sections,” which are different instances of the same class in different times and places. Section one might be Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at ten in the morning in Beavis Hall, section two might be on Tuesdays and Thursdays at one in the afternoon in Butthead Auditorium. And so on. If you want the morning class because you have an afternoon part-time job, you register for the morning section.</p>
<p>Let me simplify:</p>
<p>1) You take courses required to fulfill major
2) You also take courses to fulfill the school’s general education requirement
3) You take electives to make sure you have the minimum credit hours to graduate</p>
<p>tobaccoNchocolat summed it up pretty well. To add to that: Major requirements usually consist of a combination of set classes and a few classes you get to choose. For example, the psychology major at my college requires:</p>
<ul>
<li>experimental psychology (psych 101)</li>
<li>statistics</li>
<li>senior seminar</li>
<li>4 classes chosen from a list of 8 “core” classes</li>
<li>4 free psychology electives</li>
</ul>
<p>Your major and minor will determine many of your classes. Then there are general education requirements that all students at your college have to complete, regardless of their major. Finally, you need four years’ worth of credits to graduate. Your major, minor and general education classes might add up to enough credits. If they don’t, you would take random classes in other fields or more courses in your major or minor to get enough credits. (Actually, you can always take more classes than you are required to take; but that adds to your workload and might even delay graduation without careful planning.)</p>