If the thought of a long, much-needed and well-deserved summer break provides the mental motivation you need to survive finals week, your reluctance to attend summer school is understandable. While there’s a great case to be made for taking a scholastic break to unwind, decompress and refresh — an equally good case can be made for taking a course or two over the summer semester. Here are four solid reasons why you should consider summer classes.
1) It’s a great way to knock out your hardest courses.If courses such as statistics, organic chemistry or calculus cause you to break into an anxious sweat, tackle them during the summer session. Although the accelerated format is more intense, it’s also over more quickly. A semester is typically 15 weeks in length, but compressed summer classes are often just four or six weeks long,
notes Time Magazine.
By taking your hardest courses when you have a reduced load, you also reduce the stress. You’ll probably get a lot more support from the faculty because summer classes tend to be smaller. This facilitates more one-on-one interaction with both your instructors and your classmates. The intimate, more individualized learning environment may be exactly what you need to excel in your most challenging classes.
2) You get a GPA boost.If you’ve struggled or fallen behind in the academic year, taking a summer class is an effective way to do some GPA repair. You’ve got more time and energy to devote to one or two courses, and you also have more daylight hours and better weather on your side. While the coursework is condensed, you may find the more leisurely pace and uplifting time of year better suited to academic achievement.
This is especially important if you failed a class during the regular school year. By retaking it over the summer, you stay on track and graduate on time. You might even find that a different instructor teaches your summer session — one whose teaching style better suits your learning needs.
3) It’s a productive use of time if you’re away from home.Perhaps you’re too far from home to travel back over the summer break, or maybe you just want some independent “me time.” Opting for a summer school course or two keeps you mentally sharp, so you’re primed for success when fall rolls around again.
It also answers the question: “What will I do with all that free time on my hands?” Organizing your weekly schedule around classes and study time adds some regularity, structure, and discipline to your summer break. And remember — campus is quieter. There’s less waiting in line for meals, less competition for parking spaces, and better access to the library, learning labs and other campus resources.
4) You graduate sooner.If nothing else motivates you to attend summer school, the reward of an early graduation might. By taking your required or most challenging courses during the summer, you free up time and energy to focus on your degree program during spring and fall.
This typically makes it possible to shave off a semester or two, which could find you graduating in the winter or spring. You’ll be getting a career head start on your college peers who won’t be tossing their caps in the air until June.
If you’d like to learn more about professions that enable you to serve wholeheartedly and faithfully in your life’s work or want to learn more about a biblically based,
Christ-centered education at Geneva, we’d love to chat with you. For more information on how
Geneva College can help you pursue your education goals, please phone us at 855-979-5563 or email web@geneva.edu.
Opinions expressed in the Geneva Blog are those of its contributors and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official position of the College. The Geneva Blog is a place for faculty and contributing writers to express points of view, academic insights, and contribute to national conversations to spark thought, conversation, and the pursuit of truth, in line with our philosophy as a Christian, liberal arts institution.
