Now that you are registered for College Colloquium and have completed the Advising and Registration Questionnaire you should have an advising and registration appointment.
During your advising and registration appointment, we will work together to register you for classes beyond College Colloquium. The typical load for a Willamette student is 16 credits and because most classes are 4 credits, you’ll have 4 courses of which College Colloquium is one. You will construct a schedule for your other courses based on your particular interests and needs. Choose 3-4 classes from the following categories:
- Colloquium (required)
- Language other than English
- Major Exploration or Major Preparation
- Liberal Arts Distribution
- Elective
- Writing-centered
General Advice
For first year students on their first semester schedule:
- Begin your foreign language study or continue in the language you were studying in high school. If you are continuing a language you will need to take the placement exam in order to enroll at the right level.
- Take a required course in your major or take courses in areas you want to explore as possible majors.
- In general, you can start a major within the first two to three semesters with some notable exceptions: chemistry and music.
- Several of the science majors have a two semester introductory sequence that is best to begin in the fall, e.g., Introductory Physics I [PHYS 221] or Introduction to Programming [CS 141].
- If you are interested in pre-health profession, biology or chemistry you should register for General Chemistry I [CHEM 115].
- If you are interested in majoring or minoring in music you must take a theory assessment test during Opening Days. Majors and minors typically take Music Theory and Aural Skills in the fall along with lessons. For more information go to Music.
- Take Liberal Arts Distribution courses to satisfy the General Education program.
- Consider an activity class (these are 1 credit) to stay physically active, e.g., Yoga [FITS 085X].
- Consider a music ensemble (these are 1 credit) or music lessons to pursue an interest in music, e.g., Jazz Ensemble [MUSC 031X]. You will need to audition, for more information on auditions go to Music.
- We do have a few 2 credit classes, e.g., Fundamentals of Ballet [THTR 181], if you would like a slightly lighter or heavier load.
- If you are interested in participating in theatre productions please consult the Theatre page. Theatre has both courses and production activities open to first-year students.
- You can take up to 18 academic credits without incurring an extra tuition fee. The activity courses (designated with an X in the course number) can be added above the 18 credits without additional tuition.
- First-year students who have taken Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses or who have college transfer credit may have the necessary prerequisites for courses beyond the introductory level. For more information see AP, IB, and Transfer FAQ.
Additional Considerations
For choosing classes and thinking about the workload:
- Expect 2 to 3 hours of homework or preparation for each hour in class
- Take no more than 1 course that requires a laboratory
- Not all courses have to satisfy a requirement (you have room for electives)
- Be flexible, choose more than three courses that you're interested in taking in case some are closed
- Most first-year students take courses numbered at the 100 and 200 level, though some may take a 300 level course
- Your schedule should be from a variety of disciplines to explore the curriculum and to have different types of homework