Most students at UB realize that finishing college on schedule can be spoiled by the registration process; the classes that students need most fill to capacity so that by the time the registration windows open, students are no longer able to get into their required classes.
Jessica Winters, a junior nursing major, noted that students not accepted into the nursing program in their freshman year face more complications while attempting to meet program requirements.
"If you're accepted in the nursing program, they automatically reserve a seat for you in every required course like anatomy and physiology," Winters said.
One of Winters' close friends had serious problems finding open slots in required classes before she applied to the major in the spring, she said. Although Winters had no problem registering for necessary courses, she admitted that the she was forced to carry a heavy class load when the toughest courses were offered in the same semester.
"Courses like pharmacology are usually offered once a year opposite other hard classes," Winters said. "It's tough but at least it prepares you for dealing with the stress in upper-division nursing classes."
Jessica Brockway, a junior nursing major, faced a similar experience.
"The stats class I had to get into was hard. Nursing 250 is sometimes hard to get into, but now that I'm an upperclassman, all the seats are open to me," Brockway said. "It's difficult before you get into the program."
Another problem class is Constitutional Law (PSC 303), a necessary class for both legal studies and political science majors that is often available only once a year.
Joseph Bestreich, a senior legal studies major, said it creates conflict when multiple majors require the same class or even when classes required within a major may also be used to fulfill general education requirements by any student at UB.
"Constitutional Law is the only required advanced course for legal studies, and it should probably be available every semester," Bestreich said.
According to Nicole Cavallaro of the undergraduate English office, her department has already taken measures to address similar problems.
"Criticism, the only class English majors must specifically take, was recently opened to all majors, but this past semester we were only able to offer two sections instead of four," Cavallaro said. "For that reason we closed the course to English majors only."
Rob Letest, a junior economics major, shared Bestreich's concerns about classes required across the majors. For Letest, general physics one (PHY 107) poses a problem because it's a course taken by students in so many programs.
"It is hard to get into some classes, but honestly, I think there are lots of open slots in morning classes that upperclassmen refuse to take and freshmen pick them up when they register," Letest said.
Letest recommended that students get into sophomore or upper division classes as soon as possible and worry about general education requirements as upperclassmen when registration windows are open to them earlier - this way they can spread out the classes, taking a few per semester.
For Samuel Webster, a junior business major, the main obstacle is snatching up linked classes that are held during prime hours or that don't conflict with other long labs.
"The problem is not so much the getting into the lecture itself as finding those recitations or labs that fit into your schedule just right. It's really hard to plan a schedule based on getting into a specific recitation with only a few seats left," Webster said.
Webster said students often become used to dealing with BIRD and general undergraduate advisors who pull little weight.
"In reality, dealing with the department in person will sometimes get you a lot farther than screaming at your computer," Webster said.
