<p>I've heard that at some LACs, some classes are only offered during one semester or quarter in a year and some aren't offered at all. I have scrounged some threads on this site that compare universities to LACs, but I can't find anything definite about this.</p>
<p>For those who have attended or are currently attending LACs (or anyone who can shed some light), what are your thoughts on this?</p>
<p>My D goes to a LAC and my S to a large public. Yes, some LAC’s only offer a class one semester or even once every couple of years. But my S frequently can’t get into classes that are offered. If it’s offered, and can’t get in, it’s not much of an advantage.</p>
<p>You are correct - not every class is offered every semester or every year at most LACs: All the intros generally are, but not necessarily the more advanced courses. </p>
<p>How often you get shut out varies by school. Some LACs will increase the class size to meet demand. (This may not be an option for seminars or classes with labs.) Some LACs have a policy that if you are shut out once, you get priority next time the course is offered. Some LACs prioritize who gets into an oversubscribed class (if you need it to graduate, if you are majoring in that dept, if you need it for related research, if you are a senior, etc…). Check the policy at the schools you are interested in.</p>
<p>Thank you for the insight. I will be sure to check the policies.</p>
<p>Any LAC students have some thoughts?</p>
<p>And is this a common practice at the mid-sized universities (the ones that claim to be a LAC and research university hybrid)?</p>
<p>I will be attending a small LAC this fall- Illinois Wesleyan U, about 2100 students. Yes, there are some courses that are only offered fall or only spring semester, and some that are only offered in May Term, and some colleges have some that are only offered in even or odd years, or just randomly, or every 3 years, etc. Some popular classes will be offered every semester, but one section may not be enough, so there’s that too. Intro courses generally are offered every semester and have several sections of it; it’s the more advanced ones that are specific to a particular major that aren’t offered as often. They are small colleges, so that’s part of it. But the upside to it is that you’re not competing with too many people to get the classes you need and I’ve often heard more complaints about the difficulty of getting into classes at large public colleges/universities compared to small LACs. I don’t know about the mid-size universities you ask about, sorry. At small LACs, you just have to watch what’s offered and plan your schedule to fit in those classes when they happen to be offered. Post #3 also has some good info.</p>
<p>I went to and now work at a SLAC. Our rarest courses are offered once every other year. The advisers know about these and help students plan to catch them one of the two times they’ll be offered during their career. The only time course scheduling was ever a problem for me was when two required courses for each of my majors were offered with only one section each at exactly the same time. I was able to work it out with the professors to split my time between them and get extra help outside class as I needed it. Worked out fine.</p>
<p>So, yes, it is an issue. With planning on the student’s part it is rarely a problem. Even without planning on the student’s part, we typically bend over backwards to accomodate true conflicts (though not necessarily preferences).</p>