Cal Shin

Dartmouth Debunked, Part 5: Courses and the Quarter System

As September rapidly approaches, course selection is likely on a lot of people's minds. For first-year students, the prospect of transitioning to a new environment with a quarter system may add to the stress. In this post, I aim to reduce some of those worries by providing you with information and advice about how to best tackle course selection with a quarter system. 

What is the deal with the quarter system, a.k.a. the D-Plan? 
The D-Plan is Dartmouth's way of implementing the quarter system. During your first year, you will be "on" — that is, taking classes — during fall, winter, and spring. Following your first year, you will have more flexibility on which terms you want to be "on" and which terms you want to be "off." Each term lasts ten (10) weeks, and students typically take three (3) classes per term. Some people opt to take four (4) courses in a term, but I do not recommend that during your first-year fall. Given the fact that you will be adjusting to college and have ten weeks to learn what would normally be a semester's worth of content at other schools, I encourage you to choose your courses wisely. 

Your D-Plan during your first year will look like this.

What does course selection look like? 
Course selection at Dartmouth is not a fight to the death as it may be at other schools. Normally, course selection happens over the span of a week or so, and it is not first-come, first-served. You will select three (3) courses you want to take for the next term within that week. Then, there is a week-long wait, during which an algorithm will match people up to classes based on prerequisites met, year, declared major, whether the class is a major requirement, etc. After that week, you will find out whether you got into 0, 1, 2, or 3/3 of your classes. The next day, course selection opens up again and this time, it is first-come, first-serve. If you haven't gotten into all three of your classes, you will find a class that has space remaining and sign up for it. If you don't get all three classes, do not worry! Oftentimes, people end up dropping a section of a course due to timing or professor, which will open up a spot for you. 
Course selection during first-year fall is a little different in terms of the timeline. The entire process will take a couple of days as opposed to a couple of weeks. Everything else remains the same. 

How do I know which courses to pick? 
Pick courses that interest you. The EXPLORE. ENGAGE. EXCEL. catalog from the Undergraduate Deans Office is a good place to start. Domestic students should already have a copy, whereas international students will receive their copy upon their arrival. Take the time to do some research and explore your options! Utilize the timetable of class meetings, the Course Assessment Portal, Course Enrollment Priorities, upperclassmen (including your UGA), and the Undergraduate Deans. Does anything stand out as something you would like to learn more about? If you already know what you might want to major in (and it's okay if you don't!), get those introductory prerequisites out of the way as soon as possible. Speaking of prerequisites and requirements: Dartmouth has a language requirement that may differ slightly based on how you score on your language placement test. Make your life easier by getting those requirements out of the way early! Your future self will thank you. 

What's the deal with the first-year writing requirement? 
All first-year students have a writing requirement they must fulfill. First, you will take a writing placement test over the summer. Depending on how you do, you will be placed into Writing 5 (which is typical), Writing 2-3 (for those who need a little more support with their writing skills), or Humanities 1-2 (which is voluntary and needs an additional application). After you take your writing course, you will take a first-year seminar during the subsequent term. There are a variety of course offerings within Writing 5, Writing 2-3, and first-year seminars, so it is easy to find something that fits your interests. 

What are the other distributive requirements? 
Learn more about "distribs" here. Don't focus on meeting the distribs as quickly as possible, especially in your first year. You will end up fulfilling most of them naturally over time. 

Help! I'm having trouble soaking up the material. What are my next steps? 
Dartmouth is amazing at providing you the resources you need (for free!) to succeed and there are many, many opportunities to ask for help. Professors are very good about hosting frequent office hours where you can drop in and ask questions. Some classes also have TAs (student teaching assistants) who will host their own office hours. Depending on the course, the Academic Skills Center (ASC) offers free peer-tutoring programs. The ASC offers peer tutoring for lots of introductory classes, such as Math 3, Math 8, and ECON 1, pretty much every term. Of course, this is a non-exhaustive list. 

What's the deal with the NRO? 
Learn more about the Non-Recording Option (NRO) here. 

What's with the PE/Wellness requirement? 
All students must take 3 PE/wellness courses during their undergraduate career. This requirement can be easily fulfilled by participating in club or varsity sports, being in a dance group, taking PE or wellness classes, or courses offered by the Outdoor Programs Office! Some courses cost money, others do not. Don't worry — financial aid is available for courses with a cost! Learn more about your options here. Do note that a PE/wellness course does NOT count as one of your three courses for a term, and registering for these courses works slightly differently. 

Wow, all of this information slightly scares me. Is the quarter system that bad? 
I won't lie and say it's a walk in the park—it's not. Coming from a school where coursework was done in a full year rather than a semester, the prospect of learning lots of material in merely ten weeks was daunting. Don't let that scare you! As long as you utilize the resources at your disposal, plan out your time wisely (ideally with your preferred calendar system), and not procrastinate, you will be fine. 

I am a first-year student with other questions unrelated to course selection and the quarter system. Where can I get them answered?
Dartmouth Debunked is a multi-part series I have created to answer common questions first-year students may have, and you are currently reading part 5! I have written posts about Dartmouth's dorms, packing, traveling to Dartmouth, and important locations to know upon your arrival.