It’s that time of the year, when Villanovans are vying for the best classes, best professors and best times as they start thinking about what the Fall 2022 semester holds for them. It’s either chaos, as students put in their course CRNs trying desperately to get in that class with one spot left, or it is smooth sailing, as many upperclassmen can attest to. 

Rising seniors registered for classes on Monday, March 21 and Tuesday, March 22. Christina Kurian, currently a junior majoring in Political Science and Economics, is studying abroad at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, so her experience registering for classes this semester was different from previous semesters in many ways.

For starters, due to time zone differences, she was registering for classes at 2 a.m. her time. Additionally, given that she is a rising senior and had a good scheduling time, she was able to easily sign up for all of the classes she wanted and needed to take this upcoming semester. 

“The schedule that I wanted was the schedule that I got, and it’s great taking classes that I actually want to in my major,” Kurian said.

She contrasted this with her previous registration experiences, which were not as easy. 

“[In the past] I’ve always had to over-plan, and I’ve always expected to not get the classes that I wanted,” Kurian said. “I had a top schedule and at least two others, so it was not just one schedule I was trying to get.”

Kurian also mentioned that she always had to overload on classes to make sure that she was on track with both her majors, which was an added level of stress when trying to put together her schedule. However, the overloading has paid off for her now since she can take a lighter load of classes when she returns from studying abroad for her last two semesters at the University.

Freshman Ananya Yogarajah did not have quite the same experience as Kurian. She is majoring in Psychology and is looking to declare Sociology as her second major, though she noted how being able to declare depends on her ability to take a specific sociology class next semester. It is notoriously difficult for rising sophomores to get into classes that they want, as many upperclassmen take highly coveted spots, which can make the overall process frustrating. 

Yogarajah spoke about her experience from last semester. 

“Last semester, I got the third to last time on the second day, and it was just a little bit challenging,” Yogarajah said. “I felt like I was at a disadvantage because people from other colleges can take classes in CLAS, but they don’t reserve spots for us. Now I feel better because I am on the first day, so I’ve had time over the weekend to look at what classes are available, and I know there are only a few slots in front of me this time.”

Additionally, Yogarajah expressed frustration about not being able to take classes that she wanted, but rather classes that were required. 

“Since I had such a late time [last semester], when I chose my classes, it was all core classes, and I had nothing related to my major,” Yogarajah said. “I just felt like I was checking off boxes on a checklist, and I had to constantly monitor to see if someone would drop.”

Yogarajah’s thoughts are common for students at the University, which offers some solace, but there is still a lack of control she felt when registering.

Both Yogarajah and Kurian offered remarks on how they wish the registration process was different.