Elusive Classes Worries the Next Generation of Students

BY: JAMES SGOUPIS / STAFF WRITER

LIU Brooklyn Campus (Photo Credits: LIU)

As the semester comes to a close, college students know what time it is: it’s time to choose classes for the next semester! A flawless combination of five classes, leaving Mondays and Fridays off, taking classes with your friends, and graduating with a bachelor's degree in a few months.

 You already nailed that job interview, getting the job of your dreams. Everything is looking perfect… until it’s not.

You meet with your guidance counselor for help registering for your last semester. They say that one of the classes you were planning on taking won’t be offered this semester, or even the next one, while another class isn't offered at the school in general. 

This news catches you completely off guard. What happens now? Your graduation date gets pushed back. You aren’t able to work when school ends, so you forfeit any possible wages you could have earned from your job. You end up spending another year completing requirements to graduate. 

All that time and money. Gone.

This may feel like a dystopian nightmare, but it’s reality. College students everywhere are realizing that some classes they need to graduate are not being offered when they should be, forcing them to take more time and spend more money in order to graduate. 

Seawanhaka interviewed a few students who are facing such odds. Viktoriya Vasylyk, a sophomore student here at LIU, is working on her double major in finance and accounting. As you can imagine, juggling two majors can be taxing. During our interview, we discussed how she feels about certain classes not being offered. 

She says that the reason she chose this combination of majors stems mainly from her love of math and drive to learn more. However, as with anyone in the world today, she finds it challenging to find a job. 

“It has always been hard to find internships, difficult mostly due to the job market.” 

With most majors within the School of Business, the add/drop date for this major is not competitive. 

“It’s either that they don’t offer the classes or they don’t fill up fast.”

Another issue that Vasylyk highlighted in our discussion was the difficulty in enrolling in certain classes. Since LIU is primarily a pharmacy school, other majors may find it a little bit more challenging to enroll in classes they need. She comments that finding classes for finance is easy, but finding classes for accounting is hard, mainly because some of the higher-level classes aren’t offered at this campus, but at the Post Campus instead. 

She has also expressed frustration with the lack of class availability affecting her graduation date. She says that the lack of higher-level accounting classes could result in a delay in her graduation. 

She hasn’t had any difficulty enrolling in classes due to them being full, mainly because most business classes don’t fill up. 

In response to asking if she needed to or had thought about changing her major, she simply responded with “no”. Vasylyk believes that she shouldn’t have to change her major because the classes aren’t offered. 

“I’m not a quitter,” She expressed.

As if right now, she hasn’t needed to go to another school to complete her requirements, and hopes that she doesn't need to do that in the future. 

When it comes to how the school can better help with ensuring students graduate on time, Vasylyk’s answer boils down to one simple word: communication. If a four-year plan lists that a student has to take an art class in order to graduate, and they do not offer it, they should tell them that. 

“It’s a bad look for me when I am applying for jobs and cannot say when classes are offered. I don’t want to delay my CPA time because the classes I need aren't offered. In my books, it’s unfair to me.”

 Vasylyk is also aware of the fact that many students are taking longer to graduate. 

“Yeah. I’m so aware. With a double major, they say to expect not to graduate in 4 years. What the heck do you mean by that? It should take me the same amount of time. It’s not my fault you're not offering the classes.”

She does comment that it’s important that students advocate for themselves and get what they need done. 

According to The Earnest Blog, students are taking more than four years to graduate with a bachelor's degree, often needing five to six years instead. Among listing students who work part-time and change majors as part of the reason, they also list that students have trouble getting the classes that they need. 

According to The New York Times, Syracuse University has cut some of its courses, too, citing cost concerns and lack of enrollment. Out of the 460 majors offered at the school, 93 will be affected, with 84 being completely discontinued, and the remainder will no longer accept new students. In addition, out of the 20,000 or so students attending the university, only 258 were in these affected classes, with no students being in 55 of these majors. 

Isabela Rangel, a journalism student here and Editor for Seawanhaka here at LIU, struggles with finding classes that are related to her major. 

She has set strict deadlines for when she intends to graduate. As part of the interview, Isabela wishes that schools would “show a sense of urgency” regarding students getting the correct classes offered to graduate. During our interview, we discussed how she views the way she isn’t offered proper classes. 

Isabela’s reason for choosing her major stems from her aspirations. Since she wants to become a magazine editor and likes the freedom that comes with writing, it made sense for her to choose this major. Despite this, she says that she feels that her reasoning behind choosing this major may have changed. 

“When I applied, I was under the influence that I was coming here for the George Polk School of Communications. When I got here, I realized it was a much smaller school than they boasted about on their website.”

Much like the school of business, the school of journalism also doesn’t have competitive add/drop dates for classes. Not many people are in this major. 

Unlike what was discussed in the interview prior, it was found out that students who have difficulty enrolling in classes are sometimes offered substitutions in place. 

Sometimes, the classes they offer in substitution often feel like an uneven trade of some sort. Rangel comments that the classes that are substituted often feel that they are ones that should be needed to say that you have completed the major. 

“They offered me a social media class in place of a law and communications class.”

Much like Vasylyk, Rangel could also have a delayed graduation date due to the failure of availability of classes. She states that she only needs two or three more required courses she needs to take, offering unnecessary classes in between her wait for the required classes.

Rangel has not had any difficulty registering for classes due to them being full, mainly because her major doesn’t have many students in it. In addition, she has not changed or thought about changing her major as a result of not getting the classes she needs. 

She has considered the idea that she may need to go to another school, like a CUNY, in order to get the classes she needs. Rangel added that LIU makes it challenging to transfer credits, meaning that even if she takes a class, she might not be able to transfer it over here for credit.   

“I have thought about doing it at Post campus, but the commute is a bit crazy.”

When it comes to what schools can do to ensure students graduate on time, Vasylyk says that schools need to properly staff the majors they offer. 

“Students get roped into putting tuition down and signing up for a program that they actually don’t have or support.”

Like Vasylyk, Rangel knew that students were taking longer than four years to graduate. She commented that it’s crazy to think that, with the cost of tuition and dorms, students will end up paying more over the years. 

“As a success coach, I have seen this issue before and understand that it can be frustrating for students when they can’t find courses they need or want to take,” Mackenzie Otterson, the guidance counselor for the Honors College, said when asked about how she felt about students having a difficult time finding classes to graduate. 

“However, I do think our departments on campus are willing to work with students and meet them where they’re at. It sounds corny, but we all want our students to succeed! If I could give a piece of advice to students, I’d tell them to advocate for what they need and speak directly with their department if they notice a course they need isn’t being offered.”

This generation of students can no longer enjoy the luxury of being whatever they want to be. In the face of reality, they no longer have the freedom to choose something they’re passionate about, but rather something that’s available and relevant. In our ever-changing world full of needs and expectations, options for majors become elusive. Graduating becomes a chore, classes become a task, and work becomes a priority. 

With work, siblings, and millions of other factors that we need to juggle, it should at least be guaranteed that the classes students need for their majors are offered when they need them to be.