At the end of the day, most students leave classroom buildings and head out to their jobs, apartments or dorm rooms. However, for some students, nightfall does not mean the end of their school day.
Night courses provide students with an opportunity to take classes they otherwise may not be able to attend. For many students, they are an effective alternative to daytime courses.
According to the University’s Evening School, currently there are 266 courses in 29 departments offered through the Evening School program. While the Evening School offers several courses through its program, including classes in English, speech communication, history and human ecology, several academic departments offer classes that are not affiliated with the Evening School. Courses offered include ones in accounting, biology, and mass communication, among others.
Students cite various reasons for taking night classes. Often, students enroll at night because they cannot get the classes they need during the day. Some students need certain courses to fulfill prerequisite or degree requirements.
“I couldn’t get it any other time, and usually night classes are not so full,” said Jennifer Barnett, a biological sciences sophomore and student in an evening Computer Science 1248 class.
In addition, some students like the fact that evening classes usually only meet once per week, which often better accommodates busy schedules. Others prefer to take classes with friends at night.
“Somebody convinced me to take it with them,” said Joseph Bergeron, a biological sciences junior.
Students also cited wanting to have a specific instructor as a reason to take an evening class. In addition, some students are better able to stay awake later in the day than in the morning or early afternoon.
Night courses also tend to have a higher number of adult students than most daytime classes. Many of these adults have full-time jobs, as well as family obligations, making evenings the only available time to take classes.
Elaine Resweber, an English senior, said night classes better accommodated her busy daytime schedule. Resweber said she particularly enjoyed taking a poetry class at night because of fewer disruptions in the three-hour time period.
“There were no interruptions, and it had a good flow to it,” she said.
Gregory Bursavich, director of Accounting Services and an instructor for night classes in accounting, said it is typical for his classes to have more adult students. He thinks this allows his classes to be “more interesting, more real and have more diversity.” Bursavich said younger students tend to enjoy hearing the life experiences of some of their older classmates.
With night classes offered through different departments, as well as the Evening School, students have several alternatives to daytime classes. “We’re definitely filling a need,” said Wendy Overton, business manager for the Evening School.