College of Arts & Sciences students will no longer be able to hoard courses because the administration has lowered the maximum number of allowed credit-hours per semester. This academic year will be the first time College students will be prohibited from enrolling in more than 17 credits without permission from Garrett Hall.
Previously students were able to enroll in 19 credits once the open enrollment period began. Now the credit limit has been capped at 17.
Anthropology Prof. Richard Handler, who also serves as a College associate dean for academic programs, said space in classes has been getting tighter and the College needed to find a way to get more students into classes.
"The problem is students can't get into courses," Handler said.
Internal surveys have shown that students typically do not enroll in more than 17 credits, and many of those who do don't typically stay in them beyond the add/drop period, he said.
"People sign up for 19 credits with no intention of taking them," Handler said.
Popular courses in departments like Politics and Spanish fill up very quickly once enrollment begins, but then after the add/drop period these classes have space that wasn't there before.
The administrative change forces students to choose their courses more carefully because they don't have as much "wiggle room" as in years past.
Handler said the change was part of a larger effort to better manage classes.
The college has also increased the use of electronic wait lists to allow professors to better manage overflowing student enrollment in a timely manner, Handler said.
Students are still able to enroll in more than 17 credits if they feel the need, Handler said. These students need to petition their dean for an overloaded schedule.
Second-year College student Caitlin Gearen said she had to enroll in 20 credits because a Curry School class had an internship tied to it that added to her credit load.
Gearen said she filed her course-action form last spring, but has yet to see the change on ISIS. After filling out another petition form, she said she is still awaiting approval by the dean.
The process may be cumbersome for students who need to take more than 17 credits but it hasn't been unmanageable thus far, Gearen said.
Handler said this is a short-term solution to a long-term problem. Class sizes have been growing, without increases in the numbers of faculty at the University.
"Over time, our highest priority is to lower the student to faculty ratio," Handler said.
The College is in the process of hiring more faculty members, but, until that can be accomplished, small efforts are being taken to better manage the resources.
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