For many Duke Students, the prospect of choosing classes and building schedules for the upcoming semester is a highlight of the academic year. Having access to a huge array of courses, bookbagging provides students the ability to explore and investigate the diversity of knowledge the Duke curriculum has to offer. Finding a way to construct a course bank that accounts for graduation requirements, post-graduation requirements, personal interest and work load is both thrilling and daunting.
Yet this sense of excitement that comes with bookbagging is often combined with feelings of frustration and anxiety. Currently, the registration process operates under a rotation system that takes into account seniority and cycles students through different registration windows. Oftentimes, those with inopportune registration windows are left scrambling at the last minute to build a new schedule because the classes are already full—an occurrence that may be problematic if the course will not be offered again or if it is a prerequisite for moving ahead in a major.
The rotation system is especially burdensome for first year students, who are automatically barred from taking many courses because they go last in the process. Yet despite these limitations, the current process balances fairness and practicality—students can rest assured that at some point they will move up in the cycle to be first on the registration window.
Beyond registration windows, an important factor in the issues that students face when bookbagging and registering for classes is seat availability. Yet a problem students face each year are the extensive waitlists for courses during enrollment. From courses like Organic Chemistry and Introduction to Public Policy—courses that are prerequisites for moving forward in the major—there is a perennial anxiety from students in later registration windows that are barred from the class because it is already full. Not only does this change their schedule, but also more importantly they can be forced into a limbo state, unable to move forward in their major. We are concerned by this perennial problem of more student interest than there are seats available for these important prerequisite classes.
To mediate this issue, we propose a solution that will help departments and professors more accurately gauge student interest in these large courses and add sections as necessary. Under this recommended system, students would have to gain a permission number from the professor of a course to book bag these larger scale classes—for example, Introduction to Public Policy. The extra step would more accurately gauge student interest for professors, and would encourage students to be more deliberate and intentional in their course selection.
Whether you are a first year bookbagging for the second time or a senior for the last, here are some important factors to think about as you shape the next eighth of your Duke career. Think of bookbagging as a of self-exploration rather than a process of choosing courses solely for their reputation as an “easy-A” or to check boxes on graduation or major requirements. Read carefully the course synopses on ACES, but go even further—reach out to the professor and ask for a syllabus. The subject of a course is important, but the right professor whose style resonates with you can make all the difference. As you move through this bookbagging season, be intentional and thoughtful as you shop for classes.
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