<p>We just visited Union College in Shenectady, NY where they offer the trimester year. Students are only required to take 3 courses per trimester for a total of 9/yr but my son wondered just how intense this type of program is? We are interested in any opinions from other students/parents who have been involved in this type of curriculum here(Union) or any other trimester schools. Thank you.</p>
<p>I had trimesters in my HS and I liked it very much. It is direct and moves along but the exams are not soo bad really and you don't get bored. In my school it allowed more material to be covered and I wish I had the same system in college. I wouldn't worry.....you focus more, cover more and keep moving.</p>
<p>Stanford has trimesters and my son will be a senior next year. The courses are shorter and more intense than on the semester system. One advantage is that studying abroad or other such programs can be done for one-third of an academic year, rather than one-half. It is therefore more possible for engineers, science majors, etc. to take part in such opportunities. I</p>
<p>University of Chicago has a quarter system, which is equivalent to a trimester system (3 10-11 week terms per academic year). Students typically take 3 or 4 courses only per term. It worked just fine.</p>
<p>I attended OSU many years ago which then had, as now a three quarter school year. The current schedule requires students to take 4 classes per term which in some instances more intensive in so far as they met 5 or more hours per week. Frosh year calc meet 5 times/week, physics met 5 times/week plus a 3 hr lab, chem 4 times/wk plus 3 hr lab and ochem met 4 times a week plus a whopping 2-3hr lab sessions!! So students in engineering and the p sciences could expect to be in class about 22 hrs per week. Cornell by comparison requires 4 courses/semester with an average of about 17 class hours/week. I noticed that Union College requires its engineering student to typically take 3 and sometimes 4 courses/quarter.</p>
<p>Also check the academic calendar. Quarter systems often start the school year about a month later and finish up about a month later than a typical semester system. And the interterm winter-spring break often didnt match up with the semester midterm breaks.</p>
<p>Then add to that the necessity of going through 3 finals weeks per school year and limited time to complete research papers and it add up to a less than desirable academic calendar in my opinion.</p>
<p>I know OSU has periodically considered going to a common semester system but has not taken any action to implement the change.</p>
<p>I've seen the difference between trimesters and quarters. At Carleton, they run a trimester system without a summer session. It is NOT the same as a quarter system. Classes run for 10 weeks and a student has difficulty getting approval for more than 3 courses. This is because each 10 week session covers the same material that is contained in a semester's syllabus. For example, the typical two semester O-Chem sequence is taken in 2 trimesters at Carleton. 30 weeks of material presented in 20. It is intense, but very doable with good time management. 9 courses in a year, equivalent to the number usually taken in a semester system. Required 4 semesters of language is taken in 4 trimesters.</p>
<p>Contrast with UCLA which is on a quarter system, having a summer session equal to one quarter. The O-Chem sequence consists of courses 30A, 30B, and 30C. 3 quarters = 2 semesters.</p>
<p>Rubyred, Union's trimester system sounds very much like Carleton's.</p>
<p>Thank you all very much for your insight. Originaloog- yes Union did mention that fact about eng. students needing to take 3-3-4 courses over the school year. It's interesting you mentined Cornell b/c son is looking there too. Maize - Yes, Union is on the 10 week plan. Thanks again. I know my hubby and I have our opinions but it will be up to son, I guess all we can do is help him get all the facts and speak with present students.
I had one question a bit off topic but Union 'strongly recommends' an interview and they said an 'on-campus' versus 'alumni' interview in your area have exactly the same weight. (It is an evaluative interview) We are about 3.5 hrs away from Union and son wants to interview, do we go with a local alumni who may be older and out of the 'college scene' for awhile or do we make the plan to head back to Union? Does anyone have any insight here? You are all so helpful-it's like having our own personal college guidance couselor. >>>>wink, smile<<<<</p>
<p>I havent heard that about Carleton before Maize- that they take a two semesters worth of work and cover it in two trimesters
Is there information someplace that explains how that would transfer to/from another school that has more traditional quarter/semester system?</p>
<p>At Reed they have semesters- Ochem is a year long course- my daughter had difficulty with the length of the semester and the weight of the material-the final determined her grade. FOr students who have trouble with testing- and with studying- I think shorter terms- trimesters/quarters are preferable- since it is a shorter amount of time to cover and be tested on.
Some students may get into trouble with semesters- feeling like they will catch up or that it will make sense- eventually- shorter terms you know you don't have that leeway so you may be more likely to stay on track</p>
<p>When looking at schools last year, my son did not like trimester system at Union - the school year ends much later than many other schools (June 8); you have the entire month of December off. My son also thought it would be difficult if not impossible to spend a semester abroad in other programs, and that he would be limited to just Union's programs abroad. Bottom line: he refused to apply to Union. Just one kid's reaction.</p>
<p>My daughters college has trimesters, but they call them quarters. I don't understand that because they don't have a summer session, so there really are only 3 quarters in a school year. Each quarter is 10 weeks and as others have said the work is pretty intense. The downside is also the timing. She has her first class after labor day and then has a break from something like Nov. 16 or so and is off until just after New Years. Spring break is a short week but she isn't done the school year until the first week in June. She just has a short time to catch up with her friends that attend more traditional colleges, and some lag time when no one is home. Most of the students in her college are able to schedule a semester abroad or go abroad during the long winter break. She's hoping to go to Peru on a study abroad in the Spring semester.</p>
<p>Lawrence U:
"Although students only spend ten weeks in a term, each course includes the same amount of material as would be found in a more traditional fifteen-week semester; thus, most students take a full load of three courses per term. The pace of our academic term leaves little room for students to procrastinate, and students are encouraged to stay on top of their work."</p>
<p>Sounds perfect for my procrastinating kid...</p>
<p>And they do participate in "semester abroad" programs other than their own. I know that for Fall semester you just start the semester earlier, and I am not sure how they handle Spring.</p>
<p>Their Winter break is Dec 10 - Jan 2, which is not that different from "semester" schools.</p>
<p>emeraldkity - My D is a rising soph at Carleton. marmot's description re Lawrence is accurate for Carleton also. I have no clue about credit transfer. They have so few students transfer in or out. 97% return for soph year. D prefers the schedule as well as the pacing (with only 3 courses that go by quickly). School starts mid-Sept and fall term ends on the Monday of Thanksgiving week, so the kids have a 6 week break until returning for winter term around Jan. 2. There is about a 10 day break between winter and spring terms and school ends about the second week of June.</p>
<p>For those doing half-year abroad programs, most kids prefer to go in the fall because the other half of the school year means they will miss two trimesters instead of one if they are not in a Carleton run program.</p>
<p>There are quarter systems and quarter systems. ( BTW/ it's my understanding that OSU is changing or has changed to a semester system.) Looking just at the organization of the academic year (forget the summer program for the moment), a quarter system and trimester are equivalent in that there are three terms in the academic year (Sept-June/or Aug-May, or what have you).</p>
<p>But what differs a lot between these trimester/quarter systems is how many courses students typically take per term. Some, like Chicago, offer intense courses, and no student would think of taking 5 in a term, most take 3 or 4. Other schools' quarter systems are organized with students typically taking as many as 5 courses (each 3 credits) per term. These courses aren't as intense.</p>
<p>Personally, I think the few but intensive course approach is a good one. Less of a balancing act with deadlines, easier to work on larger projects, if a student is taking only 3 courses at a time. In contrast, with the quarter systems that the universities I've taught at used to have, students were typically taking 5 courses and frankly things got complicated and really defeated the advantages of having a quarter system.</p>
<p>As EK has noted, Reed has quite a few courses that are year-long. Almost all of my courses were year-long when I was enrolled. I don't know which other schools have that.</p>
<p>Thanks, mackinaw, you have hit the nail on the head. It doesn't matter how you slice it, it's what you put in it. Another comparison: a year-long course at Reed vs. the eight 3.5 week blocks at Colorado College, one course per block.</p>
<p>Maize&Blue is correct. A trimester course at Carleton covers the same amount of material that a semester course covers at another university. I spoke to a former dean of the college last year who corroborated this information. When I transferred from Carleton, I was given a semester's worth of credit for my trimester classes.</p>
<p>The 3-quarter system is not the same as a trimester system. Union College is a 3-term system that runs from Sept. through June, and then has a summer session June through August. Most colleges refer to this as a "quarter" system. A true trimester system runs year-round. In a true trimester system, students earn "semester" units or credits and not "quarter" term units.</p>
<p>There has been discussion for years at Union College about switching from a 3-term system to a 2-term "semester" system, but the 2005-06 academic calendar on the website indicates that the 3-term system is still in affect. <a href="http://www.union.edu/Academics/Calendar/2005-2006/#fall05%5B/url%5D">http://www.union.edu/Academics/Calendar/2005-2006/#fall05</a></p>
<p>When I went to the University of Detroit back in the stone ages, it was on a true trimester system, because engineering and architecture students were on a 5-year co-op program. Third year through fifth year students would go to school one trimester and then go work in the field the next trimester, year round.</p>
<p>In fact, that is how I first heard of Silicon Valley (even though I was born and raised in the S.F. Bay Area), because Detroit engineering students would co-op at National Semiconductor, Fairchild, Intel and other high-tech companies out here in California. My roommate in freshman year was a 3rd-year engineering transfer student who took classes in the Fall trimester, worked in the field Winter trimester, and returned back to Detroit for classes in Summer trimester, then would work in the field again the next Fall trimester, etc.</p>
<p>That is a real trimester system. I don't personally know of any schools that operate on a true, year-round trimester system anymore.</p>
<p>
[quote]
She has her first class after labor day and then has a break from something like Nov. 16 or so and is off until just after New Years. Spring break is a short week but she isn't done the school year until the first week in June. She just has a short time to catch up with her friends that attend more traditional colleges, and some lag time when no one is home.
[/quote]
This makes summer employment problamatic for kids who plan on going back home (to live rent free!) and work. Around here most summer jobs start end of May or early June - and if you ain't here by then, you are sh---out-of-luck. My DD really liked Carleton, but the thought of being so out-of-sync schedule-wise with her friends who attend trad semester schools, and the problems w/ employment were part of the factors that kept her from attending.</p>
<p>thats a good point
my D starts school around labor day ( or a week before) and is out by mid May. her jobs have started paid training at end of May early June and begin in earnest by mid June.
Just getting out a couple weeks early than students in Washington schools which are on a quarter system has given her an advantage- plus she stlll has enough time off so she can hang out for a little before she starts working</p>
<p>I also found this which highlights the common features between schools with quarters or semester but then also a few schools which do their own thing
<a href="http://registrar.kenyon.edu/usatrans.htm%5B/url%5D">http://registrar.kenyon.edu/usatrans.htm</a></p>
<p>anxiousmom - For those concerned about summer employment, nothing beats the semester schedule at UMich. Starting shortly after Labor Day, the break between fall and spring was barely more than 2 weeks (not great for holiday season jobs). Spring semester started right after New Year's and ended around April 20-25. My S had 4 full months of summer employment and internships.</p>
<p>My D ends up with about the same amount of worktime - she works 5 weeks at winter break (starts job Monday after Thanksgiving) and then about 2.5 months from about June 15th to the end of August.</p>
<p>D has found the disconnect with her hs friends because of their different schedules to be more of an issue than employment opportunities.</p>
<p>Maize&Blue,
My daughter's experience has been the same. She's been able to get winter jobs and then works as a camp counselor from mid June until the first weekend in August and still has a few weeks to play.</p>