Is taking 5 summer classes insane?

College Search & Selection
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1

Since we are most likely going to be in quarantine during this summer and probably will be bored out of my mind, I was thinking of taking some college classes to possibly graduate a semester early. I’m an incoming freshman and will be attending a university but was thinking of taking these summer classes online at my local community college. The five classes I am planning to take happen in two different sessions but they do overlap a little bit.

6 Week First Session (06/22-07/31)
ENG 1A
HIST 17B
POLSC 1

6 Week Second Session (07/06-08/14)
ENG 1B
HIST 17B

I’ve never taken college classes before but I have a pretty good work ethic and have taken about two APs every year of high school and have done well in the class (As & Bs). I just wanted to get some insight if taking 5 classes is insane and if it’s doable.

I don’t have any commitments during the summer given everything that’s happening in the world.

2

Just double-check that all the credits will transfer and be useful to you for meeting core requirements.

3

Check with the college where you have enrolled to make sure they will allow you to take summer classes elsewhere and that the credits will transfer.

Yes, five is too many. The classes are condensed and move at a very fast pace. However, if you are permitted to do so, taking one or two is not a bad idea given the limited options on deck for the summer. DD will be taking one at our local college as a concurrent enrollment starting in June.

4

They overlap 4 of the 6 weeks.

Just taking 3 in a 6 week period would be insane. Much less the other 2 stacked on top for 4 weeks. I would suggest taking 1 ( maybe 2) it total. The workload during the 4 week overlap period is like taking 12 HS classes at the same time.

5

I would not take more than two classes since there is so much overlap in the dates and the courses are so condensed. A typical semester is 14 weeks so these courses should move at more than twice the normal speed.

Agree that you should check with your college advisor that your full time school will accept the credits. It varies from school to school but I remember that my S’s college would not accept CC credits once a student was enrolled. Get it in writing if your advisor agrees to let the classes count for credit.