As We Approach Course Enrolment...

REMINDER: For first-year students in Arts and Science, your course enrolment is on July 22nd! Log in to your ACORN to check your enrolment time.

As I select my courses and schedule my timetable again and again, I can’t help but to worry about my future. Some days, there are a lot of “what if” in my mind. What if I end up not liking my courses? What if I want to change my program and I don’t have the prerequisites? What if my grades are not enough to get into the program I want? What if…? Once I get into the process, it’s hard to stay away from my computer. I kept browsing through the calendar, checking my programs and courses, and remaking my schedule. It felt like an endless cycle. So first years, if you feel like this, you’re not alone!

There’s no special advice from me. However, if you’re worried about so many issues, I can tell you one thing: You’re in UofT for a reason and I know you’ll pull through this. Feeling anxious is probably something inevitable and I deal with it by going to sleep. No, seriously, go back to your bed!

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If you have a schedule crafted already, STOP browsing your courses!

Of course it’s good to have everything clarified, including your program requirements and electives. If you’re feeling anxious, talk to an upper year student. They will help you! There are several discord servers, Whatsapp group chats, and Instagram pages that can provide you with resources. Also, to feel more grounded, I suggest you write down what your plan is or what you’re thinking. In that way, you’re “throwing” your worries down to the paper and it also helps to clarify your thoughts.

Once you’ve had your timetable down, download it into a pdf.

You can make it accessible by placing it on the desktop or printing it out. Whenever I feel the urge to arrange my timetable again, I look at my already-planned schedule. You’ll eventually realize that your planned-timetable is as good as it can be, so there’s no need to worry about it.

Lastly, if there’s too many programs that you want to do, there is one way that can help you (maybe) to eliminate those programs. Think about the subjects.

For example, I did Economics in high school and I know for sure, I won’t enjoy learning Economics again in UofT. This means that although I’m interested in doing social science programs such as Ethics, Society, and Law, Political Science, International Relations, and others, I won’t be able to meet the program requirements because I am not planning to take ECO101+ECO102 for my first year at least. So, there you go! Another way to help you decide.

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Important links:

Art Sci Academic Calendar for 2021-2022 : https://artsci.calendar.utoronto.ca

- You’ll find all programs, their requirements, and courses offered this year through this page.

Art Sci Timetable for 2021-2022 : https://timetable.iit.artsci.utoronto.ca

- This is where you can plan your schedule. Search your courses here to see what times are being offered. Locations and instructors are not fully updated yet.

Program Toolkit : https://sidneysmithcommons.artsci.utoronto.ca/program

- If you need additional and/or more detailed assistance in program planning, check this webpage out!

Degree Explorer : https://www.acorn.utoronto.ca/degree-explorer

- Plan your credits that lead to your graduation here. This is a good way to track your breadth requirements. You are not required to schedule your second year and above courses yet. You can also plan your program credits through the ‘planner’ tab. You can create several plans to see how it fits across the four university years.

Syllabus Finder : https://www.syllabusfinder.com/schools/university-of-toronto

- Use this page to help search your course syllabus. If you’re worried about the workload, looking through the syllabus may help. Make note, not all courses’ syllabus are uploaded.

Reviews on Instructors : https://www.ratemyprofessors.com

- If you didn’t know, this page is widely used by students to find reviews about their professors. However, everyone has a different experience so it’s important that you evaluate these reviews critically.

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