DIY post bacc: getting a seat in class

[litmajor]

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Hi all! I searched for this exact question but couldn't find it on the forums.

I registered as a non-degree seeking student at my local CC to complete my pre reqs. I am concerned about getting seats in the classes I need in the sequence that I need them.

1. Should I register as a degree-seeking student, to get slightly better registration priority, and then just cut out when I'm done? When that shows up on my transcript, will med schools freak out because it's an incomplete degree?

2. Can anyone share any tips and tricks for begging your way into a seat in the class? What can I say to a professor to convince them I'm worth a place?

 

[DocWinter]

Yes, I was a post bac, degree seeking student. It was recommended to me by the prehealth comm. for the reasons mentioned. I obviously had a bachelors, I obviously took all the required pre-reqs and nothing else; adcoms are pretty intelligent.

Go to office hours, speak to the professor, tell him/her your situation in a mature, sincere manner. Wear a shirt and tie or female equivalent, speak like an adult and be gracious and thankful. CCs are full of riffraff and the prof deals with dopeheads on a daily basis. Stand apart from that and you will be noticed.

 

[LupaCupcake]

Just pick a degree that encompasses the classes you need and don't finish it. I already have my first degree, I ended up signing up at a CC as a "pre-chemistry major" which happens to encompass the chemistry and physics classes I need plus calculus . My biology is done although I do want to take an extra biochem course which also fits into this degree program.

You might be surprised how much people will help you if you sit and talk to them. In my experience, professors like it when they find a student that is passionate and committed and they will usually help you if you are respectful and thankful.

 

[heartsink]

As a non matriculant at a big state school I know exactly what you've been going through trying to get classes. The above advice is solid: if you can become matriculated in some way you will be higher priority.

Barring that, talk to departments of disciplines and email professors explaining yourself and introducing your self. By making it more personal you'll get farther because upwards of 90% of their freshmen weed out classes in intro bio chem and physics are students fresh from high school who signed up because they didn't know what else to do and don't care about the class. By showing your vested interest in the class the professor may have more interest in you.