Summer study offers access to high-demand courses

Has your student complained about not being able to register for all the classes he or she would like to take? Summer Session courses are a practical solution for students looking for smaller classes and better access to high-demand courses.

“We try to make every attempt to see there are seats available in courses impacted during the academic year,” says Gary Ford, associate vice provost of undergraduate studies. “There’s a lot of discussion, both by faculty and students, about making better use of summer.”

Summer Session I runs from June 20 to July 29, and Summer Session II goes from Aug. 1 to Sept. 9.

More than 600 courses will be offered during the two sessions, including general lab courses in chemistry, microbiology and organic chemistry; courses in advanced composition; and a selection of classes in everything from music and foreign languages to history and literature.

The courses and class schedules are posted on the Summer Sessions website as they become available. In addition to courses on campus, offerings include courses (with earlier deadlines) at the Bodega Marine Laboratory and UC Center Sacramento as well as field studies in California soil science, geology and anthropology.

Many students take summer classes to complete a series of major prerequisites that can be tough to get into during the school year. Other students need to catch up on prerequisites when they change the focus of their studies. Still others appreciate the opportunity to squeeze in coursework while working part-time and staying in Davis over the summer, Ford said.

Last year, almost 11,000 students enrolled in Summer Session classes, with most students taking two classes at a time.

“Typically, they take eight units in six weeks and in a regular quarter, they take 15 units in 10 weeks, so it scales out about right,” says Ford.

Registration and fees

Registration begins on May 2 and closes during the first week of instruction, June 24 for Session I and Aug. 5 for Session II.

Fees for regular summer courses are $247 a unit, plus a $290 campus fee per session. The campus fee goes toward such services as Unitrans, recreation and counseling. The cost works out to be about the same amount per class that students pay during the traditional academic year.

Summer Sessions are open to students of other universities, some high school students and members of the general, but those other than continuing UC Davis students must submit an application.

Financial aid and housing

Limited financial aid funds are available to Summer Session students who filed a 2010-11 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and are:

• enrolled for the spring quarter and have not filed to graduate for spring 2011;
• on an approved Planned Educational Leave Program during the spring quarter: or
• are admitted for fall 2011.

Applications for financial aid will be available as early as May 2. The deadlines to apply are June 13 for Summer Session I and July 25 for Summer Session II.

Housing options include summer sublets in the community as well as housing on campus. Conference Housing, which manages residence halls in the summer, will be renting rooms in Wall Hall in the Tercero area. Rates are $2,148 for single occupancy and $1,820 for double occupancy per session, and the fees include three meals a day in the dining halls. More information and an online housing application for Summer Sessions housing will be available in May.