<p>How much work do we have to do before coming to orientation in developing our schedules?</p>
<p>Is it okay to just have a rough idea of the classes I want to take?</p>
<p>Yeah when you get to orientation they give you a big book of classes and times and you pick from there, they give you plenty of time to do it. Plus half of the classes you'll want will fill up before you sign up so you have to pick, like, 20-25 classes (ie 5 at similar times so whatever you end up with won't conflict, for example if spanish at 10 is filled up you can take art history at 10) so don't worry about it. the more you prepare the better of course but you dont have to do anything other than have a vague idea of what you want to take. you also learn all about general degree requirements and you can think about what you can take to fulfill those.</p>
<p>I had an "ideal schedule" planned out, and that was really helpful. Also don't listen to the COD if it says a course is full, because it's apparently not up to date at all. </p>
<p>One thing I wish I'd done was to write down the course number, the number that has a few letters and numbers in it that designates which session and class you want to sign up for. That's what you'll use to register with.</p>
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Also don't listen to the COD if it says a course is full, because it's apparently not up to date at all.
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<p>Thanks for posting this! I was really worried about all the grayed out sections on the COD.</p>
<p>You should prepare several schedules and choose classes that you would like to take during the fall. I would be ready to have 15-20 classes picked out, ranking them by preference.</p>
<p>the COD is updated daily around 6am. I've said this before but I'll say it again, since you all know that they are opening up slots every orientation session, to get a gauge on what the actual class size will be, change the link address from 20083 to like 20073 to see what it was in the fall of 07.</p>
<p>Also, keep in mind when scheduling what you're daily lifestyle is. What I mean is if you hate getting up early now, most likely you won't in the fall. Saying "oh I'll get up for class I'll change I'll be good" isn't that easy. If you're an early riser, go ahead, schedule that 9am and be done by 1pm for the day. But if you can barely get out of bed before noon, try to stick to the 11am and later classes. Remember, just because it starts at 11am doesn't mean you can sleep till 11. You'll be done later in the day most likely, but it means you'll get to class.
Also, don't schedule 9ams for three days and noons the other two. It will screw with your sleep pattern so much. Try to even out your start times. And labs at the end of the day are best, as if you finish early you can be done early, and if you need to stay a few extra minutes, you can without being late to your next class.
I know not much of this can be avoided fully, but it's just something to think about, especially in the future when you have more flexibility.</p>
<p>Yes, the COD is not updated in real time, so you have to check it throughout the day especially when signing up for classes in the fall.</p>
<p>It's also important not to space out your classes so much - in other words, you should arrange for your classes to go back-to-back as much as possible (with 10-15 minutes break in between). This will avoid waiting time and having your day more productive instead of just sitting around to kill time.</p>
<p>well that's a matter for opinion... i know someone who likes having an hour in between classes to do homework. also i can never take more than two, or at most three, classes in a row on any given day. especially those tu/th longer classes.</p>
<p>definitely important is to schedule time for lunch - 12 is the lunch rush and you'll spend more time in line than eating. if you can schedule lunch for 11 that's usually the least crowded time, and my favorite time to eat honestly.</p>
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Thanks for posting this! I was really worried about all the grayed out sections on the COD
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<p>But if something is grayed out on the COD how would you sign up for it? Do you wait or move on to try to get something that is not grayed out?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Well they open up x spots each orientation so it won't be grayed out when you're signing up basically.</p>
<p>I would take a pretty long look at the COD. I didn't really look at it until the night after we met with OLs and before we signed up. You definitely want to have a good idea with several options of courses that you can substitute here and there because chances are some if not all of your courses will fill up or have some issue when you try to register. You will be much happier when it's all said and done if you come in with back up plans.</p>