Now that I’ve successfully registered for my second year classes, I think now is a good time to check back in and let you know that I haven’t forgotten about y’all and this blog. I’m making a renewed commitment to be with you through the good times and the bad, to love and to hold, through energy drinks and all-nighters.

I was a little worried about 2nd-year registration cuz I heard that we register last (which is true) and that it would be more difficult to get into classes (which turned out to be false). With a lot of careful preparation I was able to get into 10 out of the 11 classes I wanted.

To make sure I avoided the Second Year Jinx, I made multiple worklists a few weeks in advance so I’d have time to tinker with them and also so I’d have a back-up plan on registration day. For first year, I remember my chosen STT being full even though my time was first thing in the morning on the first day. Even with a backup plan I consequently spent an good hour scrambling for an alternative that was only interrupted by the fact that I was in the middle of a back-to-school hair appointment. Clearly I was not a pro at scheduling anything back then. Make time for registration and make sure you like your backup timetable(s) almost as much as your first choice.

I think that in first year you’re competing with more students, depending on your faculty, and adding more elective options only increases that. With one elective in 2nd year, I only had to face the horde of Arts students once. Also, as an upper year trying to get into 100-level electives, it’s comforting to know that professors do reserve seats for non first-years. That’s how I got into SOCI 100. (A class I highly recommend!)

Registration took 10 minutes for me this year (on a second-day time, no less.). And that was only because I had to switch into a different section for a class. The 3 days prior, I made sure to check the “seats remaining” for every class that I wanted. If it looked unlikely that I’d get in, I’d choose an alternative.

Last year, I had to pick an elective at the last minute and I watched the one I wanted change to 0 seats left. I just kept refreshing the page until one opened up. The point is if you didn’t get everything you wanted this go around, keep checking. Timetables are in a constant flux right now as people change their minds or pick up other commitments. It’s likely that you’ll be able to switch into the sections you want right up until the first few weeks of school.