There is more to planning your education than choosing your school, faculty, major, and minor. University attracts learners from a range of diverse experiences: mature students, little ducklings fresh out of high school, and those who opted to take a year (or two) in between high school and university for travelling, work, or a combination. The flexibility that university provides ensures that students have the freedom—to a certain extent—to map out their own unique timeline.
At McGill, we have an eclectic mix of students coming from CÉGEP, Advanced Placement (AP) programs, or the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, all of which have the potential to shorten your time as an undergrad. Indeed, there are significant advantages to advanced programs: students can come into the classroom with a better idea of university workloads and with experience in how students are tested at post-secondary levels.
We all dream about the day we’re going to walk across the stage, snatch that diploma from HMB or some other relevant McGillian, and take some really pretty pictures on campus with our parents and pals. But how fast do we want that day to come? Should we be rushing to complete our undergrad degree, when the post-graduate employment rate is grim anyway? As far as I know, you won’t be forcefully dragged off of campus, kicking and screaming, if you decide to elongate your college era just a little bit longer than originally prescribed. (Just a little, though).
After consulting my peers, polarizing evidence suggests there are both significant pros and cons to ‘taking your time’ with your degree. Allow me to outline the most palpable advantages and disadvantages to the victory lap, and perhaps I can push you closer to making that tough decision between a four-course semester or not.
First and foremost, adding an extra semester to your degree allows you to take four courses instead of five for a total of five semesters, (and more than five semesters if you choose to take a course in May — which you should, because May in Montreal is beautiful.) A lighter course load has several advantages, the most obvious being a bigger window of time. What you choose to do with a four-course semester can directly impact your success; whether you choose to have a part-time job to relieve stress-inducing financial burdens of school, to engage in an extra-curricular opportunities to enrich the community and bulk-up graduate school applications, or more simply, to enjoy the peace of mind that you’ll have one less midterm, one less exam, and one more open timeslot during the week to finish readings, lab work, or assignments.
A four-course semester decreases the probability of experiencing debilitating stress levels that can really get you and your morale down in the dumps as soon as the inevitable storm of work piling up commences. Most importantly, a lighter course load carves out time to enjoy other, equally important aspects of your educational experience. This increases the potential to enrich your undergraduate degree beyond your courses.
The extended undergraduate degree is sometimes brushed off as a sneaky way to exploit the sense of security that comes with school. While society—or your parents—aren’t pressuring us to have a big, important job, there is a sense of comfort that comes from knowing your main task is to attend lectures, complete the tasks outlined on the course syllabus, and attain the course credit. But beware: the looming anxiety of the alternate universe known as “adulthood” smashes into your consciousness violently the moment you wake up and realize “oh, I’m graduating this year.” Adding an extra semester can lighten the impact of this “uh oh” moment—but should we sacrifice the joys of comfort, if comfort invites the risk of jeopardizing the natural progression into adulthood?
The most notable disadvantage of extending your undergrad is the financial burden. It will inevitably cost more money—although there won’t be a big difference in tuition price (as we pay per course), all other expenses incurred with attaining an education will be extended for another semester. If you are lucky enough to live at home you may not have to worry about rent and groceries—but the price of STM passes, gas, or that hard-to-kick Sinfully Asian sushi habit are some of the inevitable expenses that assault the bank account.
Still can’t decide what path is right for you? Make your own list of pros and cons, see where your strengths and weaknesses lay, consider how necessary it is to graduate quickly, calculate the extra costs, and ultimately decide how long you want to extend one of the greatest periods of your young adulthood.
