Whether it’s your first, fifth or even your last quarter at BC, registration is a process that may be a bit intimidating but is really something that needs to be addressed in a timely manner. The fun aspect of registration is that BC offers a huge range of classes to help students fulfill their requirements.
New first-year college students planning to enroll in 10 or more credits are required to take the First Year Experience class that will help them transition to this new learning environment, understand expectations and introduce resources, whether they are for social or academic purposes.
Most commonly, students will obtain an Associate degree in Arts and Sciences, which consist of 90 credits, spread out over written communication, quantitative/symbolic reasoning, humanities, social science, natural science and electives. There are also requirements for cultural diversity as well as intermediate algebra proficiency.
While the categories in which credits must be obtained may seem bland at first glance, investigate what classes actually apply towards those credits. For example, humanity classes include dance, drama, communications and various language studies.
In order to make the most of your college experience, consider registering for classes with prerequisites or those that may not be as appealing. Once you pass those stages, then you will be able to enjoy electives and perhaps classes that will help you to decide what your major will be. These classes may fill up quickly, so be sure to register as soon as you can in order to get them out of the way. English and math classes are likely to fill up the quickest, such as English 101 and Math 99.
If you are looking for natural science classes but have no interest in science whatsoever, look into taking Astronomy 100, Environmental Science 100/101, Psychology 202 or Philosophy 120. Figure out which science interests you the most to select a lab class, which is a requirement for one of your natural science classes.
When it comes to instructors, a lot of students will use ratemyprofessors.com to figure out whom to take their class with. Be cautious of the types of reviews people have because they may have completely different learning styles and were unsuccessful because the instructor’s teaching style was not what they were used to. Another way to decide which professor you want to take your class with is actually e-mailing them and asking them for a syllabus. You also can consult them about meeting in person; professors love it when students visit during office hours.
Online classes sometimes cannot be avoided. In the event you enroll in one, make sure you are ready to be organized and can follow a schedule well. Running Start students may find some English, history and geography classes are only offered online. In-person classes fill up quickly; for example, English 101 is only offered online at this time. In this case, look at the class roster online and meet with people to form study groups.
Advisors are a wonderful resource on campus. Drop in to the second floor of the B Building and set up an appointment to plan out a schedule for your BC career and to ensure you reach your goals.
Classes are continuing to fill up, so register now! Go online to the Bellevue College website, and click “Register” in the top right corner above the search bar. Next, click “Log In.” Your student ID is a number that all students are given at BC and can be looked up by just typing “SID” into the search bar. Your pin number will most likely be your birthday in mmddyy format. You will need the course number, which is a four digit number located beside the title of the course either in the course catalogue or online. In the event a class is full, do not fear to sign up for the waitlist. Sometimes people drop classes on their first day and occasionally instructors will allow more people into the class. However, they will only do so if you attend their class the first week. Within the first few days, they will most likely issue blue cards, which can be used to register for their class.
Don’t fret if you don’t get the classes you want. There are still many quarters after fall quarter and consulting with professors can be helpful because they want students to succeed.