College General Courses: When to Take Them

While to some, taking your required generals in your first few semesters of college may seem obvious, I chose a different path. As I pondered over what courses to register for, I let the interesting courses that were available within my major, sway me from taking 'frivolous' courses such as math, writing, or science.

I found myself asking such things as "When would I never need to write a paper in the real world" or "When would I ever need to use calculus in my field of interest3." Instead of seeing how generals could be beneficial and engaging, I questioned the reasoning for required generals and decided I would just take them "at the end."

Yet, as one who chooses to take the less obvious path will soon discover, generals can actually be beneficial and applicable to your field of study.

I myself am a sociology major. For what seems like the million years it has taken me to get to this point in my academic journey, I have been required to write paper after paper for class after of class. Most of those papers were argumentative papers which forced me to try and sway a PhD educated instructor, that what I thought (as a mere sociology undergraduate student) was more accurate than what they thought (the highly educated and highly experienced).

Had I taken Writing 2010 prior to these courses, or even simultaneously, I could have been better suited to know HOW to write the paper - appropriate structure, what is essential to support my argument, how to prepare a thesis/claim, etc. Further, I perhaps would have known how I (the undergraduate sociology student) could support and present myself, thus leading to a victorious triumph - an A on the paper, and an instructor who was forced to think deeper just from reading my paper.

If I had chosen to take my physics of the human body course prior to my final semester of college, I may have perhaps discovered my hidden love for nutrition and health earlier. Discovering this early in my college career, I could have chosen to supplement my major with a minor in nutrition, allowing me to learn more about my 'new found love', and also facilitating myself to be more marketable upon graduation.

Furthermore (while I challenge the idea that I will ever use calculus in my field of study), had I taken calculus back in 2002 when I first started college, I would have been 'fresh' out of high school enough, that I would have at least remembered something from the dreaded days which math was forced upon me. However, I now find myself in 2009, where it's been at least 7 years since I last tried to quadratic-ally equate a function, graph a solution, or even understand when letters replaced numbers. I now have earned myself the upheaval of being forced to learn something, that I have no remembrance of, nor will ever use again, for the mere pleasure of finally obtaining my degree.

In all seriousness, however, I examine my choice for class selection, and I conclude that if for only the above stated examples, take your generals early. You will benefit at least by remembering what you're doing from a high school perspective. Instead, because I chose to take my generals my last semester of college, I find myself staring at a blackboard confused beyond belief - which translates into weekends and holidays spent at home, trying to study something I don't even comprehend.

In my defeat, I have hope that at least I shall now be more refreshed in my general studies, for preparation of the GRE.