The number of students who are attending summer sessions to complete their majors, double majors and minors is on the rise.
University Registrar Louis Hunt said there is a general trend for students and especially upperclassmen to attend summer sessions.
“The number of hours being delivered via distance education is increasing dramatically — the overall number of credit hours is flat,” Hunt said. “Students use the credit hours [from summer sessions] to sometimes complete minors, additional minors or to stay ahead to get back on track if they’ve fallen behind.”
Celia Grubbs, a junior in psychology, said summer sessions give students an opportunity to do a lot of other things, such as working and relaxing.
“It’s helpful because you get to take one class at a time and put all of your focus on that instead of having five, six or seven classes at a time,” Grubbs said. “Just taking one or two classes, you’re going to get bored so you can work or study abroad as well.”
During summer sessions, students tend to go to classes each week that last for three hours every day, Monday through Friday, according to Hunt. He said students find the experience to be more intense, resulting in a saturation of subject matter, which could be both good and bad at times.
“Class sizes tend to be smaller, but the length of the semester is shorter, so it’s very intense, which serves some students well and some students less well,” Hunt said. “We want to encourage students’ progress and the movement toward their degree in a very timely fashion, making sure summer school supports their goals.”
Brooks Rayman, a junior in mathematics, said he plans to attend summer sessions this summer and recommends it to underclassmen as well because there are few advanced courses.
“I like it because you only have to focus on one class at a time, and it goes by really quickly,” Rayman said. “That’s probably also one of the cons, too, because you usually have a test every week. I enjoyed it — it gives you enough free time because you’re only in class for about an hour and a half every day.”
Hunt said the University would like to see more students utilizing summer sessions though summer sessions are not always a better option when students are burdened with credits for majors, double majors and minors. Therefore colleges do decide the courses offered in the summer separately.
“We do go out and survey students — ask them about what courses would they like to be offered that are possibly not being offered to suit their needs.”
Robert Dominguez, a sophomore in history education, said it is very important for students to be able to enroll in summer school sessions. “It gives me a chance to get ahead, and I found last summer that I enjoyed it, and I thought the classes were a little easier than the regular semester,” Dominguez said. “I had a rough freshman year, so it gave me a chance to catch up. If you can afford it, and you don’t have to work, it’s a great opportunity to get ahead and make up some lost time.”
Leigh Allen, a junior in premed, said she has attended summer sessions over one summer, and she found summer sessions did not allow much time in five weeks for mastery of a subject.
“They’re really rushed, and you don’t really get a chance to learn the material so it’s better to go ahead and have work experience or try other things, because this is the time you’ll only really have the summer because you’ll be working full-time after you get out of college,” Allen said.
Hunt said students should only enroll in summer sessions when it suits them. He suggested students consider their academic standings, plan of study and alternative summer options before attending summer sessions.
“A University goal is to make summer school more responsive to the needs of students — ensure that the courses students need are being offered during the summer sessions so they can use it to their benefit,” Hunt said.
