WHY SHOULD YOU TAKE SUMMER CLASSES?

By Randell Leak

 

Ahhh. . . . .the spring semester just ended. You’re chilling with your headphones on, blasting the hot new summer songs with the air condition on. Life is good, while you’re relaxing at home, there are people who are majoring in the same degree as you, that are taking summer classes. They might finish college early and will transfer to a four-year school, while you’re home playing Fortnite. Now don’t get me wrong, I love Fortnite, but if you really want to advance your academic career, summer classes are the right thing for you.

For starters the classes aren’t like the spring and fall ones, CCC summer classes are shorter than the fall and spring semesters. So, if a student needs a math or a speech class, they should talk with their advisors and make sure the class is in the summer schedule. CCC offers summer sessions I through IV.

Another reason you should take summer classes is the parking. If it’s one thing students hate besides waking up for morning classes, it’s lack of parking spaces. Either there’s no parking spots or if you parked, you can bet that when you come back in a few hours, there will two other cars that sandwiched your car in its spot. During the summertime, there’s not that many people who attend classes so parking is easier.  You can just walk in, do your work and head out.

Just about every school has some sort of credit minimum for graduation. Summer classes can help you reach that minimum. If you can find classes that help you in your major, you can work towards your degree taking major requirements or by registering for a general education course like speech or art. By taking summer classes, it alleviates taking a packed course load and you can finish the semester with a breeze.

Also, with a smaller class size, your professors can give you more personal attention. This can be quite beneficial, especially if you find it difficult to adjust to the accelerated pace of a summer session course and require help. The more intimate learning environment may help you succeed. During the summer term, you will be limited in the number of credits you can take. With a reduced course load, you will be able to focus more on the class or classes you’re enrolled in. This can be useful if you hope to ace a difficult course, like organic chemistry or calculus. But also you can block out distractions with the classes being smaller since not that many people take summer classes.

By all means, you do not have to take summer courses, the wonderful thing about them is that it’s optional. So, if the spring semester drained all your energy, you’re not alone, no one will judge you if you don’t register for summer semester, at least, I hope not. If you want to further your education and get ahead, by all means take a summer session class. If you have Financial aid, it can work with your 2017-2018 year as well. But if you think you need a break from college,  no one’s stopping you enjoy your break!