With the fall semester approaching its end, the search for spring courses has officially begun. If registering for classes usually entails a string of endless curses, frustrated sighs and hair pulls mingled with angry tears when you discover a class you needed or really wanted to take is already full, just know you’re not alone. Here’s the Clog’s summary of what you may have lost brain cells over on enrollment day. 

Got lab?

For a lot of my STEM majors out there, the majority of required science classes include a lab portion as well. If you were unlucky with your enrollment time this year, many of these courses were already full by the time you logged in to enroll. What’s worse? There may be a lab section open, but unless you’re enrolled into the adjacent class, you can’t even put your name on the waitlist for it. 

Reserved seats

There is nothing more annoying than seeing the bolded “reserved seats” underneath a class’s description. It almost feels like I missed out on joining the highly exclusive VIP section of class enrollment. If this doesn’t apply to you, I hope your pillow is never cold when you need it to be. 

DeCals 

Where are they? Seriously. I needed a one-unit class and when I went to look for the DeCal spring list it wasn’t even up yet. Major let down. 

You don’t get it, I NEED this

If you’re like me, who has their four-year class schedule planned out for medical school, there are some classes you just NEED to take. Not getting a class almost ruins the entire framework— guess my counselor will be seeing me again this week. 

I have to wake up early?

Kudos to early birds — I don’t know how you do it. Waking up early is nearly an impossible feat for me, especially if I’m in REM. Dracula and I are very similar in that way; we both love a dark room. I was forced to sign up for an 8 a.m. lab section for next semester and I’m seriously already in pain. Just thinking about it hurts my poor brain. If you’re like me and love going to sleep late, the combination already receives my toxic stamp of approval. 

The ideal schedule

The ideal schedule, it’s picture perfect. You may have even set it as your wallpaper already and sent it out to everyone. But when the clock struck and your enrollment time opened, it all went downhill. Your new schedule looks nothing like the one you had planned out an hour ago. This one looks downright disgusting — classes back to back and an afternoon discussion on Fridays? Can we have a do-over?

RateMyProfessor 

Maybe you initially went into your CalCentral thinking you would enroll in the class taught by the professor with the five-star rating on RateMyProfessor. The reviews were more than stellar. All of a sudden, taking a math class this semester didn’t seem so terrifying. That is, until every class with that professor is now full and you’re left with your only option — taking it with another professor who screams “red flag.” Looks like I’m learning derivatives on YouTube again. 

Despite all its woes, figuring out what your next semester of classes will look like — including all the new friends you’ll make and all the new knowledge you’ll absorb — can prove to be an exciting time. The Clog wishes you the best of luck enrolling into classes for the spring semester and hopes everything works itself out.