This is a spinoff from the parents helping parents thread. With NSC coming up, I would like us to help one another in this area. At NSC, students only have an advisor, who is helping everyone in the room, to guide them in registering for their first semester courses. The more the students know going into that room the better. Please post any knowledge or insights here related to the thread title, even if it seems like common knowledge.
The student needs to learn how to read the course list and make a class schedule. Practice doing this so that it becomes easy and a quick process. Learn to read what day/time the class is held. Make sure to include the appropriate lab with the course.
Build a few schedules on the Howdy portal (I don’t recall where it is located) or use this schedule builder https://www.freecollegeschedulemaker.com/ The classes are colored coded so you get a feel for how any given day will look with its load. Practice making a doable schedule, so you don’t get stressed trying to learn how to do one at the same time you are trying to register and every class you put in is losing seats while you are fumbling around.
On day 2 of NSC, you will have your group advising session with the one advisor and you will watch a Powerpoint presentation of how you are supposed to register. Then you are released for lunch. After lunch, the students go to register. Some majors have let parents in. Some don’t. It is during lunch that the majority of kids are just learning how to read the courses/CNR numbers etc, etc. This is when your student needs to make out his/her schedule of classes and have the CNR numbers ready to plug in and hit enter. You’re done!
Caveat: Go in with some back up CRN’s for a class or a few doable schedules. For my son, he made his schedule during lunch and when he went to plug in his CNR’s, one class was no longer available. He had a back up CNR for the same subject, same time, but different prof he had already checked out on http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/ and https://profpicker.com.
Take ratemyprofs with a grain of salt for some reviews. You will get a hint which are legit. You can balance it with the profpicker, that shows the grades each prof gave out the past semesters they have been teaching. Example: For spring semester, my son could only get two classes he needed when registration opened last fall. So, after New Years, he was finally able to get a spot and the prof ratings were horrible. There were only 5. So, looking at profpicker, the grade distrobution was pretty good with A’s and B’s compared to C’s/D’s/F’s. This prof has been really great if you put in the work.
Also, students staying overnight in the dorm would be fine for those who don’t have parents (prepaid and cheaper than hotel), if the parent(s) is going and staying in hotel, it was a pain in the behind to coordinate pick up/breakfast/parking/lugging sheets/towels/etc.
Watch for Parking Passes to go on sale starting in April. You want to put in for this ASAP, as they do sell out.
Purchase your sports pass ASAP as these sell out and student will not be able to attend any sport without it.
Buy a cool gel foam mattress topper for the dorm and a matress pad to hold it in place.
Have each student have their own mini fridge. Sharing a micro chill last year didn’t work well for 2 people.
Attend the pre-conference day of NSC. LOTS of photo opportunities. Go to the Williams Alumni Center where you can try on an Aggie Ring (and get your pic with the sign that you tried one on). Multiple opportunities to hold signs and take pics.
Walk around campus taking pics at/with statues.
Find your dorm.
Wear sensible shoes for walking (personal experience) and wear clothes for humid summer weather.
Thank you Thelma2. Does anyone know if BUSN 101 is worth it? It’s some type of intro to the business school type class that is not required. Mays Business School told me that my son can’t talk to an advisor until his NSC.
Stats are that 90% choose to take BUSN 101 - it is pre-req for business honors follow on courses should he get into BHP. There are two opportunities for BHP admission- once at application for Mays as incoming freshman, then after first semester at Mays as a freshman.
Busn 101 is for Mays only, Busn 100 for either gen studies or Mays. BUSN 101 is what most pick.
http://catalog.tamu.edu/undergraduate/course-descriptions/busn/busn.pdf . My D took 101, my son took the BHP version, BUSN 125. They both had strong business backgrounds – seems like you would be at a disadvantage to skip it. It is required for BHP (BUSN 125) so that makes a statement from the department…
Is the fall course list/catalogue out yet?
Yes @labegg it is out, however; the new freshman engineering courses are not out yet, as they are still finalizing the classes.
@Evon1254 Where do you find it?
@trish02 You can find next years unpublished catalog here https://nextcatalog.tamu.edu . Class schedules/listings can be found in howdy under the My Record tab on the left side. Select Search Class Schedule and you can see listings for finalized courses.
@Evon1254 We found the spot, but we must be doing something wrong. It says Fall 2018 with a search box and then we search and can’t get past the yellow box that says “College Station and Galveston Campus Terms of Use:” Do you know what we could be doing wrong?
@trish02 Did you accept the terms of use?
@Evon1254 We don’t see where to do that.
We found it!! Thank you!
@trish02 Hmm, I got a page of text thr first time I looked at it and a button along the bottom that says accept. At that point I could search for all the classes I will be taking next year (Except for engineering 102).
Is it required for a non science major student that the science courses taken to meet core requirements include a lab? My son already has one college science course that has credit for a lab and wants to take an online course without a lab. His third science course will have a lab. So if he goes with this plan he will have two 4 hour science courses with a lab and a 3 hour science course without a lab. I assume this will work to fulfill the core requirements for science. Does anyone have any knowledge if this plan will work?
@TexasMustang The life and physical sciences must come from the approved courses on the list. The list is here http://core.tamu.edu/
Click on 2017
Click on College Station Campus
Click life and physical science
Schools and give numbers to classes for their own use. However, a lot of classes have common course numbers. In regards to science classes, not every science class is eligible. You would have to look up the courses your son has taken and see what their common course number is and then see if it will satisfy the A&M requirement by what is on the list. He can take any of those listed (not all have common course numbers) and it is always a good idea to find the ones that also satisfy the ICD requirement at the same time.
The courses do transfer, as listed on the TCCNS. What is the ICD?
Under the link to the core course requirements provided by Thelma2 it is stated that Chem 106 must be accompanied by a lab. This is not stated on the list of core courses I found elsewhere. This throws a kink into the plans. What is the best office to call at A&M to get clarification on this? I know it’s a long shot but my hope is that a lab is required only if taking the course at A&M.
Under the link to the core course requirements provided by Thelma2 it is stated that Chem 106 must be accompanied by a lab. This is not stated on the list of core courses I found elsewhere. This throws a kink into the plans. What is the best office to call at A&M to get clarification on this? I know it’s a long shot but my hope is that a lab is required only if taking the course at A&M.
I see now - ICD is the international course requirement.