Basic Scheduling Guidelines

What about the catalog?

Use the Undergraduate Catalog as a reference document only. Use the Catalog to:

• find degree requirements for each major at the College;
• determine if a course you select from the Homer Connect Class Schedule Spring 2010 has prerequisites; and
• determine if a course is designated for general education.

Do not select your courses for the spring semester from the Catalog. Why? Because

• not all courses listed in the catalog are offered for the spring semester.
• you may not have the necessary course prerequisites for many of the courses listed in the Catalog as many of the 200, 300, and 400-level courses do have specifically listed prerequisites.
   

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Reading Homer Connect Listings

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Reading Catalog Descriptions

Courses in other schools at Ithaca College:

• As an H&S student, you are allowed to enroll in courses offered in other schools on campus IF there are openings and you meet the course prerequisites.

Placement scores:

• Some courses have a placement prerequisite. Typically, these are courses offered in the departments of Mathematics, Writing, and Modern Languages and Literatures. 
• The placement prerequisites are normally listed within individual course descriptions in the undergraduate catalog.
• You can find your placement scores via Homer Connect. Your adviser also has access to your placement scores;
• Before attempting to register for a course, ensure that you have the appropriate placement score.

Constructing a schedule:

1. The tools: there are various ‘tools’ you will use to construct your spring schedule. Used together, these references will provide you with the essential information regarding degree requirements and course offerings. The ‘tools’ include the:
   • Ithaca College Undergraduate Catalog 2009-2010;
   • School of Humanities and Sciences Supplement Spring 2010;
   • Homer Connect Class Schedule spring 2010; and
   • CAPP report. This is a degree evaluation/degree audit report. You can use this report to determine what degree requirements are still unmet. You will find your degree evaluation and a reference guide within Homer Connect.
2. The approach:
   • Declared Majors: You will use the Undergraduate Catalog and your degree evaluation (CAPP report)  as references to determine what courses are required for your declared major.
     • Select one or two major courses.
     • Select coursework to begin working on your general education requirement.
   • Exploratory Students: You also will use the Undergraduate Catalog and degree evaluation (CAPP report) as references to identify coursework required within majors that you may be interested in pursuing.
     • Select several courses that will serve as ‘exploratory’ for you as you enroll in coursework in an area that is new to you and coursework in areas that you want to learn more about at the college level.
     • Select coursework to begin working on your general education requirement. Note that many of the 100-level courses that you may select as ‘exploratory’ options also may be coursework that is designated as general education.
     • Use your degree evaluation (CAPP report ) as a way to explore the requirements for majors offered at Ithaca College. You will select the “What-if analysis” option rather than “Generate New Evaluation” at the bottom of the first page of your degree evaluation.  

An acceptable schedule:

1. Includes 12-16 credits
   • This will be 4-5 courses.
   • Generally, courses are either 3 or 4 credits each. The credit difference reflects the number of contact hours with the professor in each course.
2. Balance of days/times
   • You will select courses that are offered on both a Tuesday/Thursday (TR) sequence and a Monday, Wednesday, Friday (MWF) sequence.
3. Variety of courses
   • You will select courses from across the School and/or College.

Meeting with your adviser: You will meet with your adviser to discuss your scheduling choices for the spring semester. At this meeting your adviser will answer your questions and review/discuss the course selection options you have made. You may want to use the following Course Selection Worksheet on which to list your courses in preparation for your meeting with your adviser.