<p>I'm taking 7 courses + 1 lab = 21.5 credits in the fall. Alongside that, I plan to play club ultimate frisbee and work in a research lab. The chances are, I will have to drop a course because I don't want to die.</p>
<p>So I'm trying to imagine myself actually enduring this schedule, with the intention of getting all As without getting fired, but I need a little bit of help. That being said, I'd find it helpful if people share those times when they conquered or was conquered by a really tough schedule.</p>
<p>Also, it'd be nice if people don't call me a lunatic for even thinking this. It's not impossible.</p>
<p>I have never done a schedule quite like that… lol. My first semester I took 12 credits worth of 300 level political science (my major) and a science class with a 5 hour lab, which was probably a mistake. The next semester my courses were a bit more diversified, however I had classes back to back to back three days a week from 10am to 6pm, plus I was working 20 hours a week and was in the middle of founding a student org.</p>
<p>I think next semester may actually turn out to be my worst.</p>
<p>My toughest semester was a schedule with only 3 courses. One course assigned about 20 hours of work a week, the other two courses 5-10 hours each. Add to that an 18 hour a week job and I was performing at my limit. (I sure hope that people are wrong when they say that undergrad is a breeze compared to grad school, because otherwise I will be dead next year.)</p>
<p>Why do you work yourselves that much? Are you trying to graduate in 2 years?</p>
<p>Seriously, I don’t get the point. In twenty years you will hate yourself for not getting the entire college experience. You have the rest of your life to work 40 hour weeks.</p>
<p>I think that if you do that you’re just an idiot. Why sacrifice a partial social life to undertake that? It’s just stupid.</p>
<p>Unless you’re trying to catch up, because you changed your major, and graduate on time, etc, it’s stupid. Why rush the last years of your freedom before garnering more and more responsibility? </p>
<p>NOt to say that anyone should delay graduating or anything. But take for granted the four years you’ve been allotted and the time that is deemed worthy of devoting to this aspect, chapter of one’s life.</p>
<p>Last semester, I took 6 courses that added up to 20 hours. Throughout that semester, I did 2 different sports. I think I got sick two different times during it because the stress killed my immune system. I probably averaged like 6 hours of sleep per night, and I was in my room a lot. Too add onto that, I was uncertain about my grades in three of those courses until final exams were over (thankfully, I was able to keep my 4.0). Needless to say, I’m not stressing myself out like that again. I’ll bring myself down to 17 hours, which wasn’t too bad. It’ll be 7 courses this time, though (stupid labs).</p>
<p>I guess my situation’s different because I’m not working towards a degree. Since technically I’m still a high school student, I’m trying to show colleges that I can handle college/a tough courseload.</p>
<p>4point3forty makes an excellent point to something I often wonder about when I read people’s comments about their course load.</p>
<p>Do they have major catch up? What major? Why so much every semester?? Are they doube-majoring? Etc.</p>
<p>People tend to not explain that in the post, which makes people think they’re crazy for taking on such a load. I don’t think people would look at you any different if you posted “Hey I f***** up, so I’m trying to catch up for lost time/mistakes by taking _<strong><em>, </em></strong>, etc.” or whatever excuse their is.</p>
<p>I always feel bad about the classes/course load I’m taking when I read these posts, since mine is nowhere near as crazy. I’m taking about 15-17 units per semester (a comfy number) and doing just fine. And guess what? I’ll be graduating ON TIME.</p>
<p>I didn’t take any AP tests and I am a transfer student. I haven’t had a summer break since high school. Bleh. For the most part I can manage taking only 17-18 credits a semester (assuming I take six each spring and summer), but all I have left are the hardest classes in my major to take all at once, and I have no room to mix easier classes in. So I end up with anywhere from 500 to 1000 pages of reading to do in four or five days mixed with interning, volunteering, work, and running my club.</p>
<p>Well, at Penn, credits are done as in one credit one class. My schedule will probably either 6 or 7 credits. This is what I am planning to do right now:</p>
<p>TevashSzat’s schedule is probably going to be harder than mine:</p>
<p>chem 325 - thermo (a little hard)
chem 332 - o chem 2 (oc1 was easy, so a little hard)
ch e 386 - transport phenomenon I (dunno)
com s 228 - java sorting and algorithms (difficult for me)
engl 250 - … (pain in the ass but not hard)
phys 222 - gen physics II (easy)</p>
<p>In response to my critics:</p>
<p>o I’m doing math and com sci minors.
o I want to get done with college at least a semester early.
o I’m living with my parents because we don’t have money.
----- I don’t want to waste time trying to make close friends in class.
----- I’ll be busy with ultimate and work anyway.
----- I don’t party/drink/hook-ups
o I want to get away from my parents.
o I want to get out of Iowa.
o I can get this 21.5 schedule over with, and then can settle back to taking 15-18 credits, pending early graduation, during which I will place more emphasis on GRE, research, anything else.</p>
<p>The most units I ever took at the college level was 16. It actually wasn’t a super dificult semester. The most dificult one was when I took 15 about a year ago. I just so happened to have a lot of classes with a LOT of REALLY hard professors. ugh.
I never understood people that go anything above 16-18 units… I don’t ever see that being a good idea, ever. Life is all about the process… and when you’re rushing through it with your head cutoff and so glued to a specific time frame you’re completely missing the point and putting way too much stress on yourself.</p>
<p>Having 12 credit hours. Had so much free time that I procrastinated like crazy and knew I could procrastinate and still save my semester even if I felt like I was going to mess up. </p>
<p>Last semester was pretty tough. I took 16 credits in five courses. It was manageable for a couple of reasons. First, three of those classes all collected work on Tuesdays, so I could space out my work and get it done (or procrastinate and do it all Sunday night) then have a day or two off in the middle of the week. Second, my TR classes didn’t start until 11 so I could sleep in (!!!). Third, my physics lab was on a “whenever you’re available” schedule, so I could fit that in when I had the time. Things worked out pretty nicely, I’d say.</p>
<p>My hardest course load? I haven’t really had any. I’ve only taken 100 level courses (Communications, Theatre, Philosophy, Statistics, Sociology, Chinese, Spanish, and now Biology and Chemistry). I will be taking Chem 102, Psych100, and Chinese 210 in for fall quarter.</p>
<p>I do this specifically so I can work part time (10-18 hrs/week), write for the school newspaper, and have enough free time to volunteer or spend time with friends/bf.</p>
<p>A tip: Don’t take more than 17 or so credit hours unless they are GECs or “easy A” courses. Never take two science courses w/labs at the same time, especially if you are taking difficult math courses, and mix GECs with major/prerequisite courses if you can.</p>