When I was a freshman, I struggled to figure out my class schedule. Because I am an international student, I didn’t get the chance to have a face-to-face appointment with my academic advisor, so we went over my classes on the phone. When she mentioned that I had 15 minutes to get from one class to the next, I thought that was going to be fine. I was wrong.
In college, attending class is the students’ responsibility and most professors give points for attendance. If you have a “good” schedule, you probably have plenty of time between classes, but if you have a tight one, being on time for your class can become an adventure.
During my first semester of freshman year, I took two classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays and only had 15 minutes to get between them. At the end of the semester, I was totally exhausted at the end of those two days. So, is 15 minutes enough to get between classes?
I took a class at the library that ended at 10:30 a.m. and my next class started at 10:45 a.m. in the Parker building. The walk from the library to Parker took me seven minutes, but my first class never finished on time so I used to leave the library at 10:35 a.m. Since my classes were near the afternoon, I was always hungry but didn’t have time to stop for coffee or a snack. I had to wait until lunchtime to eat something or get a snack and be late to class. It doesn’t feel right to have to choose between getting a snack and making it to class on time.
Other students have expressed similar concerns about not having enough time to get to class. Michelle Ruiz, junior psychology major, said that during her freshman year, she had a class in DeSantis and fifteen minutes later a class in the University Park Plaza, which is located near the bookstore.
“Since I didn’t have a car, I had to walk there because by the time I was in the Shark Circle the Shark Shuttle was gone,” she said. “I think I made it to class on time only two times. The walk to the University Plaza is really long, it took around 25 minutes to get there from DeSantis. It wasn’t nice to be late for class nearly every week. That is why I now make sure I have at least 30 minutes between my classes.”
Having at least 30 minutes between classes is necessary, because that way you don’t have to rush to be at the classroom on time. Also, a 30 minute break is enough time to sit down, have some coffee or snacks and be ready for the next class. Even if you are not hungry, having at least 15 minutes to just rest between classes feels good.
I now know how to organize my class schedule and give myself at least 30 minutes between every class. It is much better, and I never have to stress again about being on time. I finish one class, get coffee and a snack and I am ready to go to the next one. Fifteen minutes might sound like plenty of time but to get between classes, it actually isn’t.
