What's More Stressful than Finals? Registration!

Students continue to complain about the process--and also offer advice for making it easier by Alison GregoryFor college students all across the country, cramming for finals produces enough stress to make any young adult’s hair turn gray. At City College, another event causes just as much headache, but it doesn't mark the end of a semester, but the beginning.Registration for the Fall 2013 semester began Monday, April 15^th, causing students to wonder if they will get into the classes they want. Many at CCNY have responsibilities other than school, which makes the process more complicated. Schedules need to be made around part-time jobs, full-time jobs, and children among other things.When and how a student registers also creates anxiety. Each student is assigned a specific date and time to register; honors students and athletes are first in line, followed by seniors. Also, students can't register for some courses without approval from the department, and others need the go-ahead from one specific person, like a program director. Frustrated CCNY freshman Nicholas Rukaj, a biology major says “registering for classes is like processing a bill.”  It is also common to see people running from building to building and out of breath in the hopes of getting that perfect schedule. Let the games begin.One nervous student took to Facebook on the CCNY Secrets page to see if any other students had tips for getting through the registration process and ten helpful CCNY students left comments containing valuable information. “There are about three chances when classes open up,” notes Sebastian Augusto-Rabbit Kaestner, “when the grades come in, when the bill is due, and about a week into the semester.” This is helpful for those popular classes that fill up before anyone has a chance to look at the course schedule.“It's good to make a mock schedule of what classe[s] you need based on open sections,” says Azrael Hasan, “have your primary codes to enter and also keep secondary codes you are interested in/or need incase the first one doesn't work.”It also helps to set aside time one day to get all registration completed, and know which buildings you’ll have to go to. One thing many students forget in anticipation of knowing what the next semester will hold are setbacks. “Remove stops by visiting your advisor,” explains Hasan.Just like final exams, preparation for registration is crucial. So do your research long before you are able to enter those class codes into eSims.