It’s that time of the year again, Bulldogs, advising is just around the corner. As a senior, I am very grateful for not having to endure this dreadful process again. Every semester, no matter the amount of credit hours I had accumulated, my enrollment appointment was always the last day, and last time for my grade. Each year, more anxiety built as I raced to enroll in the classes I wanted to ensure my ability to graduate on time. As much as I hated the enrollment process, I have learned a few things that I think will help. Here are my tips and tricks to conquering the four horsemen of the Butler Enrollment Apocalypse:
My.Butler
Navigating my.butler is difficult, but the self service student homepage will be your best friend. Here you will find the Student Center, task notifications, and the college schedule planner. The first thing to do is go to the Student Center and find your enrollment appointment date.
Next, look underneath your current schedule at the enrollment shopping cart. From there, click on next semester to view all of the classes being offered. I like to use the “search by my requirements” just to see what exactly I still need before I start searching for classes. Once you have a general idea, you can start browsing and adding classes to your cart. Don’t just plan the end-all-be-all single schedule. I would try to have enough classes in my cart that didn’t clash too much that I could substitute if I needed to rearrange after my advising appointment or if the classes closed.
From there, I would work on clearing any holds on the account. The last hold you will have is from your advisor(s).
Advising
Hopefully your advisors will be reaching out to you with a schedule for you to sign up for advising. Some like to use canvas, others will send out google docs or forms. You can always reach out to them yourself to ask about when they plan to start appointments.
Once at your meeting, your advisor will help you plan out your next semester and/or year based on your interests, requirements, study abroad, and other opportunities that apply to you. This is your designated time with a faculty member who is here to help you, answer questions, discuss how things are currently going and changes you would like to make in your routine! Over the past four years, I have built an incredible relationship with my advisors and they have helped me with far more than just building my class schedule.
Many faculty are willing to offer time to non-advisees during this time to help answer any questions or guide you in fields of interests. One of my now advisors, Dr. K, offered me advising before I was even a major. I had a class with her first semester freshman year and she helped me get a Classics minor, and then turn that minor into a major, while remaining on schedule to graduate!
If all else fails, or you are unsure about anything, Amy Arnold is always willing to help and offer guidance!
Enrollment Period
Sometimes your enrollment period is far from the ideal time. I’ve had mine become available during classes, at 7 am, and on the last day at the last time slot. If your period becomes open during a class, reach out to your professor ahead of time so they know. I always try to look at my cart at least an hour to half hour before my enrollment period so I can see what is available. Looking a little early helps so you are not completely surprised when you go to register. It can prevent you from scrambling at the last minute to find a class that fits.
My first registration was at the last time, on the last day, during a class. I didn’t know that classes would fill up, I didn’t understand waitlisting, and I didn’t know how to prepare a second schedule. When I opened my enrollment cart, panic settled in and I immediately left my classroom with my computer in hand to find a secluded corner of Jordan to quickly throw classes together and cry. I didn’t get half the classes I wanted and I wasn’t sure if the schedule I made checked any boxes I needed to graduate. I quickly emailed my advisors and went back to class, completely disappointed. My advisors told me my schedule looked great, I was still getting the credits I needed, and they helped me figure out how to waitlist for some of the classes I wanted.
It will work out.
Waitlist
Do not be afraid of the waitlist! And don’t be afraid to stay on that waitlist all the way through the first week of classes. I have gotten into almost every single class since that first enrollment that I waitlisted for. Different departments have different waitlist policies, but many work with their majors to make sure they are getting into the classes they need. Each professor and department is different, so make sure you reach out to your advisors about your options and check in with the department’s administrative specialist, Amy Arnold!