I AM REALLY not sure what the thrill of Black Friday shopping is, but the chaotic atmosphere that surrounds the opening of stores is almost equivalent to the traffic of course selection times at the University. The only difference is that instead of lining up and camping outside of Best Buy or Walmart, we impatiently sit in front of the computer while the clock ticks toward midnight.
The situation with course selection in many ways parallels Black Friday. Because only certain things are on clearance on Black Friday, consumers tend to purchase only those select items. The high demand for these select items will result in shortages and backup; therefore, it is highly inefficient.
Furthermore, customers often do not even need those items; they only purchase them under the assumption that they are cheaper on Black Friday. The point is that people spend money on goods they really do not have to spend money on at the moment. People overspend instead of being frugal, and many do not even realize it.
Similarly, when the course selection process begins, some classes - like goods - fill up very quickly regardless of whether students need them. Certain classes or professors are in demand, and students enroll in them for that reason rather than necessity. This inhibits students who do need the classes from enrolling, and in the long run those students may be delayed in declaring or finishing their major or area requirements.
Registering for classes has restrictions. Students are limited first by the 15-credit policy and then the 17-credit policy. "The system of allowing every student to enroll in 15 credits first grew out of increasing enrollment pressures in the College of Arts & Sciences," said Rachel Most, assistant dean and director of advising in the College. "It seems only fair to allow each student to enroll in four to five classes first, and then allow everyone to go back and add another class, lab or discussion if they wish to do so."
Although the logic of the 15-credit policy is very reasonable, the problem is that it ends up being rather complicated. A couple weeks ago when I was selecting classes for next semester I had a difficult time because I needed to select 17 credits to fill my requirements for my major. I had to prioritize and hope the one class I put on hold would remain open until the 15 credit policy is lifted. If the 17-credit policy had existed from the beginning, I simply could have registered my classes and be done with it.
Furthermore, the 15-credit policy makes the course selection process incredibly inefficient. For example, a student might have already enrolled in 13 credits worth of classes but still need a three-credit ENWR class, which is an area requirement for the College. That individual will have to wait for the 15-credit policy to be expanded to the 17-credit policy and hope that ENWR classes are still available.
Such a strict restriction on classes often prohibits students from taking four-credit or two-credit classes because it complicates the easy math of five three-credit courses. Taking either a four-credit or two-credit class can force a student to wait until the 17-credit policy is in effect for unnecessary reason.
In addition, the fact that a 15-credit load is encouraged means that some students who do not want to take that many credits end up enrolling in classes in which they are not interested. This deprives those students who sincerely wish to enroll in those same classes from having the opportunity to do so. Course selection has become similar to blackjack, where the objective is simply to ensure a perfect number of credits, not more or less.
There are not many drawbacks to allowing students to enroll in 17 credits from the beginning. One might argue, of course, that 17 credits is also an arbitrary limit - why not more or why not less? How should we really determine what is the limit?
If you ask most University students how many credits they are taking, though, they will respond anywhere between 15 to 17 credits because that is the standard. Thus, a limit of 17 credits makes sense, but the process becomes inefficient when the credit limit is expanded halfway through the course selection process. With an initial credit limit of 17, there would be the risk of classes filling up faster, but that risk exists with either policy.
Reducing the complication of course sign-up can start with the elimination of the transition from a 15-credit to a 17-credit limit, and just allowing 17 credits from the beginning. Then, perhaps, selecting classes would be less of a mathematical game and more of an expression of one's genuine academic preferences.
Fariha Kabir's column appears Thursdays in The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at f.kabir@cavalierdaily.com.
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