With the fall semester winding down, the spring semester begins its impending approach. By the time of publication, students are in the process of or have already completed registering for their spring classes. For some students, this might just be another thing they need to remember to complete. For others, myself included, this has been weighing on their mind.
Senior Isabella McCarthy-Bennett said she has been working on solutions for her senior year as getting into certain classes has been difficult. She added that she needed a painting class last semester, but was unable to get in because of limited course roster spots. She was able to get into another class with the same teacher and is in the process of replacing the painting credit with this other class: art and community.
As a senior, registering for my final semester has proven to be a stressful experience. The prospect that I need to make sure that I get into the last remaining required classes I need or else I won’t be graduating in May of 2026 has been daunting to say the least. I am a studio art major and it is required that I take either ART-312 or IAART-391. I am interested in, and want to take, ART-312 – Topics in Contemporary Art. I tried getting into this course for my junior year, but it is only offered in the spring semester and it was completely filled.
Lecturer of Art and Design Miles Warner, who teaches the class, said he has tried to accommodate students in the past by allowing more students in than what it is capped at.
“In terms of what resources we have at our fingertips right now, I think a lot of people are wearing a lot of different hats and doing so successfully, which is really an awesome thing, but it can be taxing,” Warner said. He added that he has taught the class twice now and developed it from the beginning. Warner also teaches other foundations classes for art and design majors.
Warner explained that sometimes the demand is high and, like me, was wondering what could be done to make it easier for students, especially seniors, to get into these required classes.
“I think the class being a popular class is a good thing. [It] means we’re all, as a community, doing something right. How do we make it so that people can get in more and be part of the things that they want to do more?” said Warner.
With an increase in class demand and cuts being made to both classes in general as well as faculty, it is no wonder that students are having a hard time finding space for these requirements.
According to junior Evalynn LaRose, sophomores majoring in music education and their advisors were informed on November 4 that some of the courses they needed to graduate were going to be cut. Students who had registered for these classes had to switch their schedules around to accommodate this change. However, after the sophomores advocated for themselves regarding these changes, the classes were put back in the course catalog, resolving this issue.
Kim Lauffer, a multimedia journalism professor, said problems begin to arise when only one section of a class is offered with limited seats, especially classes required for multiple majors, as well as ISP [integrative studies program] classes. Lauffer said most classes are taught between the hours of 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., which leads to many overlaps.
“If we had some sense of when other people were scheduling things, it would be a whole lot easier to avoid those kinds of conflicts,” Lauffer said.
One solution Lauffer touched on was if department heads met with their faculty and discussed which classes students needed, then they could better plan what classes should be offered, as well as when they should be offered.
Skylar Tourville can be contacted at
