Quarters vs. Semesters

[lifetimestudent]

Discuss.

Edited March 2, 2010 by lifetimestudent

[Joe Lordan]

Discuss.

Quarters have speed, but semesters have reach - in my experience it has always been the guy with the quickest fists that comes out on top. Long arms lead only to poorly fitted suits and awkward hugs

[Sparky]

Nobody was ever executed by being hung, drawn and semestered.

Advantage: quarter.

[Pants]

Nope nope nope. Quarters are horrible: I've gone through both. Too much to do, too little time!

[woolfie]

I am not in history (English) but I think it's the same across the board. I have a lot of friends who complain about never getting assigned papers that are long enough for publication. I think that is a big turn off for my top school, Ohio State, which is getting rid of quarters but not for another two years.

[Dr._Robotnik's_Shadow]

I've never been on a quarter system so I can't really speak for that. I love the semester system of course.

Here are what I think the major pros and cons are:

Semester system:

Pro: Easier since it's a slow pace. You have 16 weeks to stay in a course and go over stuff. At Christmas you are done and start fresh in the Spring with new classes and this is usually after a long winter break. Also, with the semester system you start earlier (August a lot of times) but end earlier (early May) so you get a head start on the job hunt etc.

Cons: You hate a class=you are stuck in it for a long time. It's easy to procrastinate here and when you do you got a lot to do at the last minute.

Quarter:

Pro: Hate a class? No prob, it's over in 10 weeks.

Cons: It's fast paced so if you miss a class you miss out. A lot of people I know have midterms or homework during their short winter breaks because they are in the middle of their second (winter) quarter. With the quarter system I think it's so hard to adjust to a new class, professor and subject material. I like things at a slower pace. It's about quality not quantity so the semester system wins for me!