That workload may sound like a lot to someone who is practically just coming out of HS, but by your senior year that workload will appear as a joke in your brain. I thought the same thing my freshman year when I was taking a chem lecture plus lab for the honors college that those 4 credits seemed to take up 20 hours a week between the lecture and lab combined. At the time it seemed like a heavy workload, but within two years I would have dream to have that class again instead of my senior level biochem and physio courses. I don't know much about Spanish courses, but why is there a lab class? Or is it more of a "recitation" class?
Is there a reason you are taking the Spanish class? Are you trying to get a minor in Spanish? The thing I learned in my degree was: Understand your goal path early, take the classes for your degree first, and if you want to take electives pick your goal route's grad school pre-reqs. I screwed ove r myself big time because for my degree the 450+ level Biochem1 and Physio2 courses were ONLY offered in the Fall semester and the second course in the Spring. When I talked to the advisor early in my Sophomore year she never mentioned this to me. Yes, I should have studied it up on myself on when these courses were actually offered. During my summer before my junior year one of my classmates asked me about my fall schedule. I was already taking 17 credits (Developmental Anatomy, Orgo2+Lab, Physics1+Lab, Pscyhology) and didn't expect the Biochem or Physio classes to be as challenging as they were so I just dealt with that course load. That fall semester of 17 credits was actually my best semester in undergrad. I had two semesters of 13 credits in my senior year simply because I was taking four senior level Biochem and Physio classes. It had less to do with the amount of credits but the CLASSES themselves that will be challenging.
In my opinion, taking just those 12 credits (Trig, Bio, Chem) is more likely to screw yourself over in the future than adding a Spanish course to make it 16 credits. You would rather be taking 16 credits when you are taking intro level courses than taking your senior level courses. An exception, would be if you do plan on taking that Spanish course during the summer. If you do plan on taking just 12 credits of intro level courses you should take summer courses next summer. One thing going for you is that you are taking the safe financial move of taking the intro level courses at a community college and then transfer over to a 4yr university. So if you take 4.5 or 5yrs it won't be as much of a monetary burden. YOUR GPA SHOULD BE YOUR MAIN CONCERN!!!!!
