<p>to email a prof before the official start of a semester to see about getting added to a full class? or should i just go to a couple classes and hope someone drops (its psych 101 so i kinda doubt thatll happen?)</p>
<p>It's not too pushy to e-mail the professor ahead of time. Many times they have no problem issuing overrides and taking on additional students. If that fails, then you can wait around and see if anybody drops.</p>
<p>I would suggest maybe just waiting til the first day of class, so they have a name to put with the face, and going up to them after class and asking.</p>
<p>No email is fine, I've done it before, most professors don't mind.</p>
<p>Do the email asap. Worst comes to worst he'll say no and you'll be exactly where you are right now.</p>
<p>you can definitely email... some people email as soon as class schedules come out.</p>
<p>Then talk to them after class.</p>
<p>not pushy at all....heck, I emailed a prof before it was even my turn to register because I saw that the class had filled up so quickly!</p>
<p>one other trick I'll pass along for getting into large classes involves patience and a little guile. Usually what happens in large classes is the teacher asks people on the waitlist to sign a sheet so she/he knows they're actually coming to class. Then the 2nd or 3rd class they'll announce they can take X from that list, say they're sorry to everyone else. No problem.</p>
<p>The next class, show up at the door and catch the prof on the way in. Explain why you really want to have this class in 1 or 2 sentences, ask if they can add just <em>one</em> more person. Now the prof doesn't really care; they don't grade the tests or homework, that's up to the TAs. So there's not really a lot of reluctance provided its just one person. This is why you ask at the start of class, because the prof is going to ask the class if anyone else from the waiting-list is still attending. The answer will be no, you're the only one, and you'll be in! Works at least 1/2 the time.</p>