How to Survive the Quarter System in College

By Ryan Dunbar

There is a strange phenomenon that can be witnessed on select college campuses across the nation – the bizarre sight of midterm season overlapping with finals. Indeed, one only needs to check Yik Yak to witness the firestorm of student lamentation that lasts from the fourth week of class all the way until the end of finals week to appreciate how truly horrifying this is. There is always someone suffering from the plague of exams. There is no break, there is no mercy. Welcome, my friends, to the quarter system.

The institution of 10-week quarters is not quite as rare as some may think; though a majority of schools in the US adhere to the more standard two semester academic year that we all fell in love with in High School, around one fifth of colleges use quarters. The quarter system counts Dartmouth, Northwestern, and the majority of the UC schools, including the illustrious UCLA, as some of its adherents. Traditional arguments in its favor tend to focus on its flexibility and the greater potential for a more varied course load, including wider opportunities to pursue double majors and minors. Criticisms tend to follow the line that one might expect, mainly that the 10 week terms elapse too quickly for a truly comprehensive learning experience, and that it’s pretty easy for students to fall behind.

If you find yourself beginning your freshman year at a school on the quarter system, or are contemplating enrolling in such an institution, no doubt you’ve already been amply-warned about what to look out for. However, it’s never too late for some more advice, so here are some of my offerings of wisdom.

1. Read the syllabus. Then read it again

I can’t emphasize this enough. Usually, all the information you’ll need to know about the class, from tests dates to instructions for specific essays, is all on the syllabus. This information becomes even more important to keep in mind when you’re living through quarters, so print it, save a file to your computer, take pictures with your phone, just always have the information available. You have to jam a lot into just 10 weeks, so it’s pretty safe to say that you’ll have a plethora of things to keep track of day-to-day. I can’t count the number of times I’ve almost missed a date on an assignment. The syllabus is all-important in making sure you stay on top of your scheduling.

2. Do your work as it is assigned.

Procrastination, while never ideal, is especially hazardous when you have so little time to waste. Putting off an essay for a week is almost sure to lead to dangerous work pile-ups later down the road, especially as finals approach. The pace for your courses never slows, and so you really won’t have any down time to catch up on work that you’ve put off. Getting work done as soon as possible is essential in keeping your schedule from becoming a miserable, bloated mess in the latter half of the quarter.

3. Don’t overdo it!

The typical course load at UCLA is three classes, sometimes four if someone is feeling adventurous. There’s a reason for this- rather than spread a large number of classes over a long period of time, quarters concentrate on a smaller number at one time. This means that each class has comparatively more work per week. Ergo, do not take a ridiculous amount of classes. At the very least, limit yourself to the minimum number of classes your first quarter just to get used to the pacing, adding more in subsequent quarters as you feel ready.

4. Remember the benefits

There is a payoff for this hard work. I realize this may sound a little crazy, but I actually love the quarter system. You get to focus on a small number of classes at once, and I actually believe this enables a more in-depth experience than one would have if the coursework were spread out over a longer period of time and between a greater number of classes. You get to choose new courses about every three months, and this quick turnover is extremely refreshing for the weary college student. Also, if there’s that one class you end up hating, you don’t have to endure it for an entire semester. Perhaps most importantly, quarters allow your schedule to be much more responsive to new developments in your life, from the realization that maybe 8 am classes aren’t for you, to the decision to pursue an entirely new area of study. If you suddenly decide to switch majors in February, for example, you only have to wait until March for the opportunity to get new classes that better fit your goals. As a freshman who had no idea what he was doing when he first started school, I really appreciated this flexibility.

The moral of the story: the quarter system, though definitely presenting unique difficulties, can definitely be conquered with the proper effort and technique. What’s more, I personally find the benefits of quarters to outweigh the detriments, and I can’t imagine ever going back to semesters.

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