Picking your classes for the upcoming semester can be an overwhelming process. IU offers hundreds of courses and putting them together in a realistic schedule is like trying to solve a puzzle. It’s always a good idea to check in with an academic advisor, but not everyone has time to meet with their advisors before registration. Luckily, there are several resources available to help you choose courses and give you a taste of what to expect in a class.
Check your graduation requirements and degree plan
No matter what degree you are pursuing, there are certain requirements you must meet. IU’s academic bulletins lay out the requirements for each major. Knowing what classes you must take to graduate allows you to plan ahead so you’re not panicking to cram in classes during your senior year. Maybe a course you really want to take is only offered in the spring. Or maybe you’re planning to study abroad and can wait to fulfill some general education requirements while you’re abroad. Planning ahead ensures you are not caught off guard.
Degree maps can be especially helpful because they outline how you can complete your degree. While students are not required to take courses in the exact order and semester specified in the degree plan, it can be a helpful road map.
Check the Online Course Questionnaire answers
Online Course Questionnaires (OCQs) are surveys given to students at the end of each course. The answers to five of the questions are compiled and made available to students through the OCQ Student Dashboard. Each OCQ displays how motivated the instructor made students feel, whether the instructor emphasized student learning, the percentage of students that would recommend the course, how much time the class required compared to other classes, and the average hours spent on the course. For each course, you can choose whether you want to see data from all the instructors or just one, as well as which semester’s data.
The OCQ dashboard can help you balance your schedule so you can plan to take classes with varying amounts of homework. It gives you a heads up about what you’re walking into before you’ve even signed up for class. OCQ lets you select up to 6 courses to view statistics for all classes in your intended schedule simultaneously.
Check the grade distribution
Past grade distributions for classes can be accessed through the OCQ as well. This tool shows you what percentage of students received As, Bs, and so on. The distributions are organized by instructor and semester. Seeing how other students performed in the class can help you decide if you want to take the course.
Look your professor up on Rate My Professor
Before you sign up for a class, make sure to research the professor. A top-notch instructor can make a seemingly dull class engaging, while a bad instructor can make you dread even an interesting class. On the Rate My Professor website, students from colleges across the US can rate the quality and difficulty of a teacher’s class, as well as provide information on if attendance is mandatory, if they would take the class again and what grade they received. Pay close attention to the dates on the reviews and what course they are for. Make sure to read the written reviews as well, rather than just looking at the rating distribution at the top of the page.
A word of caution: You won’t find all your instructors on the site. If a class is taught by a graduate student, for example, you’re unlikely to find them on the site. Even if you do find your instructor, don’t take everything you read at face value. Note the student reviews and see if their complaints match your preferences. A student might rate a class low but upon reading the review, you find they disliked that tests were such a large portion of their grade. If you prefer tests to essays and projects, then go ahead and take the class. Similarly, some teachers may have horrible reviews for one course they teach and great reviews for another. Also keep in mind that most students choose to write reviews for instructors they feel very strongly about. So the reviews are not necessarily representative of most student’s opinion of the instructor.
Enrollment for classes begins Oct. 24. Students receive an enrollment date, when they may begin scheduling classes based on the number of credits they have earned. Your enrollment date and time can be viewed in the ‘Enrollment’ tab of the Student Center.
