With the semester nearing its end, its time start looking ahead to a brand new year, and with that, a brand new schedule. 

Enrollment for Spring 2015 will start in the coming weeks. Nick Marshall, an academic advisor at Washburn, urges that students take the appropriate steps before choosing their classes.

“Meet with their advisor, talk about classes, talk about any problems, then the advisor will give the pin, which is sort of the ticket to register,” said Marshall.

First and foremost, students should run a degree audit, which can be done online at my.washburn.edu, to make sure that they are on track to graduate.

“Basically, that [a degree audit] is a the road map to a degree,” said Marshall. “It’s going to tell them all of the things they’ve done and all the things they a currently doing to get their degree.”

From there, students should think about what courses best fit their needs in regard to their area of study.

“I think for any student, make sure they’re on track to graduate,” said Marshall. “Make sure that they are taking the general education courses they need. If they’ve declared a major, make sure they’re taking the major classes they need,”

Lydia Gibson, a sophomore physical therapy assistant major, agreed with the importance of having a plan when you enroll.

“Having a plan will keep students from taking courses they don’t need to take and keep them on track to graduate,” said Gibson.

Students can find information about classes through mywashburn.edu or at the Center for Student Success, which located on the main level of Mabee Library.

Students can also talk to peers about classes, but Marshall cautions students to take this advice with a grain of salt.

“There’s always going to be people who maybe had a really bad experience and that’s going to color how they talk about certain classes,” said Marshall. “But, sometimes if the student is a senior and majoring in something, then they might be a good resource. It always depends on the student’s background.”

However, there is a lot to be said about a fellow student’s firsthand experience with a class or professor.

“I would also ask upper division majors for their do’s and don’ts with classes,” said Caitlin Ediger, a senior music education major. “I usually tried to seek out professors who loved their subject and made learning fun. Ask older students in your field who to take from. Believe me, they know.”

Often times, it can be the professor that makes a class worth taking.

“I seek out really good teachers, because I want to learn from people who love the subject they’re teaching,” said senior biology and biochemistry major Mollyanne Gibson.

When selecting classes, Marshall encouraged students approach the task with a sense of adventure

“Be open-minded about classes,” said Marshall. “Take something that you’ve never taken before. Explore, definitely. College is a very unique time where you can study pretty much anything, so don’t lock yourself into one thing and think you can’t take anything else.”

Course registration for Spring 2015 begins next week and can be done online at my.washburn.edu.

Advanced enrollment:

Seniors: Nov.3 – 4.

Juniors Nov. 5-6

Sophomores: Nov. 7 & 9

Freshman: Nov. 11-12

Open enrollment: Nov. 13.