Pros and Cons of Attending Part-Time My First Semester?

[drunkenduck]

I'm starting a Master's program in Experimental Psychology in the fall, and when I was discussing my course options with my advisor, she mentioned that I could take 6 credits the first semester instead of 9. I honestly had not even considered that. I'm trying to figure out if there are any potential downsides to going part-time for my first semester.

Additional details:

I need 30 credits to graduate

There are only 3 courses in my program being offered next semester, and they are all required for the program

My advisor thinks one of those courses is not relevant to my area of study and we could request to swap it with a different course

So, is there any reason you can think of that attending part-time might somehow come back to bite me in the butt? Thanks guys!

[rising_star]

It could come back and bite you if you aren't able to get enough courses/hours in future semesters and end up falling a few credits short of graduation. I'd also enroll in the required courses until you're told otherwise. Just because you can request to swap something doesn't mean that your request will be honored.

[bhr]

This is a conversation to have with your DGS and advisor. First, six credits is likely still considered full-time (particularly if it's a 30 credit program). Second, your advisor usually has the ability to authorize those swaps. I would sit down and plan out what all four semesters would look like.

My program is 30 credits as well, and suggests that we never take more than 6 credits of seminar classes (the onboarding class is 3 credits, but no major research is required, and most people do a 3 credit practicum or take a summer course).