Advising

Semesterly Registration and Course Selection

Registering for Classes

Every student is assigned a specific date and time to begin the registration process. An email with your registration information will be sent to your account on record by the University a few weeks prior to registration. Your registration appointment information is also available online at http://www.testudo.umd.edu/apps/invloc/ . You can register for courses through Maryland's Automated Registration System (MARS) on-line at http://www.testudo.umd.edu/apps/dropadd/

 

Creating the 'Perfect' Schedule

You will be guided by several considerations when creating your schedule, including the requirements for your major and the practical considerations involved in creating a shedule that works for you. In addition, keep the following in mind:

1) Workload - Find the right balance between challenging yourself and overwhelming yourself. Time management is probably the single biggest challenge facing most college students. Make sure you know in August how much work you'll face in December.

2) Beyond course titles - Course titles and descriptions often say little about what a course is really like. And the substantive focus of a course may matter less than how it is taught. Choose the course not only by title and focus--choose the instructor, the syllabus, the material, and the learning styles built into the course design. Again, this means informing yourself about the whole course at the start.

3) Don't be afraid of change! - Don't passively accept your schedule. Be a critical consumer during the drop/add period, and adjust your schedule if necessary. It's not a bad idea to attend an extra class or two during the first week of classes, giving you the flexibility to switch if one course looks like a loser.

4) Progress toward graduation - Be aware that many courses are only offered once a year, and that many are offered only in popular, crowded time slots. Plan ahead, in consultation with your advisor, to avoid conflicts in your last few semesters. It's always a good idea to have a rough plan in mind for your remaining semesters, as long as you are flexible about adjusting it as you move through the program.

5) Applying for course substitutions - Every required class is there for a reason (even if it's hard to tell as you slog through the midterm). Under unusual circumstances, however, students may have a good reason to substitute a different course for one or more of the required courses in the Politics and Policy concentration. The most common circumstances under which substitutions are included (1) students studying abroad, (2) students facing a schedule conflict between two or more required courses during their final year of study, (3) students who have identified an upper-level course that they feel makes sense for them as one of their six restricted electives outside of the pre-approved courses, and (4) special course offerings not regularly available to students, as in the case of a visiting professor. In all instances, substituted courses must be related to the general themes and focus of the Politics and Policy concentration and must have a significant social-science or policy component.

To apply for a course substitution within the Politics and Policy concentration, you must send an e-mail message or written memo to Rodrigo Pinto containing the name and course number of the course you are proposing to substitute, as well as a detailed explanation of why you think the substitution is appropriate.

** NOTE: Course substitutions are not normally allowed for courses required of all ENSP majors, such as ENSP 101-102, the breadth requirements, statistics, or the capstone. Students with unusual circumstances related to these courses should contact Dr. Wendy Whittemore ( wwhitte@deans.umd.edu ), who reviews such situations on a case-by-case basis.