Union College is a very unique institution. It was the first college chartered by the state of New York in 1795, it is the mother of fraternities, and it is a school with 2,200 students witha National Championship-winning Division 1 hockey team. Another interesting asset to Union College is its trimester schedule. Most colleges and universities opt for a semester schedule, allowing students to have a winter break in January, a spring break in March, and a long summer that starts in the beginning of May. Union has chosen another route with three ten-week terms, each with three classes. Fall Term begins after labor day and goes to Thanksgiving. Then you have a break from Thanksgiving to right after New Years. Winter Term commences at this point and goes until about the second week of March where you then get a ten day spring break. Finally, Spring Term lasts from the end of March to the beginning of June. Many people from home ask me how I feel about the schedule of a trimester school, so here are the many pros and cons of the three term life.
Pro: Taking three classes at a time
This may vary depending on major/program, but overall, taking three classes is seems a lot less stressful than having to take five in addition to labs.
Con: The work that comes with these classes
While taking three classes may seem like a piece of cake, it is important to remember that the class is only ten weeks long. So that is a lot of information to cram into ten short weeks which makes the workload almost equivalent to taking five classes total.
Pro: A LONG winter break in December
I for one would much rather be off in December than January. December means that I can sit at home and bask in the holiday glory and not have to worry about going back to school and taking finals between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Also, the six weeks of nothing gives you the perfect opportunity to get a job, work out, go on a mini-term, read a book, watch TV, etc.
Con: The boredom of a long winter break
Six weeks feels like a very long time to be off from school. It is really only three weeks shy of a summer vacation. That being said, it can get very boring, especially when your home friends who go to a normal semester school have to go back to take finals. There is only so much TV to be watched and work to be done.
Pro: Being at school during the nice weather
Spring Term at Union is widely known and accepted as the best term of the three. The weather is beautiful and everyone is in a much better mood than they were in the previous winter term. Spirits are very lively and there is so much to do. Plus, while all you're home friends are rotting away at home, you still get to have fun at college.
Con: Being in school until June
It can be frustrating to have to take a final in the first week of June while it seems that everyone else is heading to the beach. Also, getting out so late makes it extremely difficult to get jobs/internships because all the other college kids who aren't in school anymore already got them!
Regardless of the schedule, our time at Union is very short, so while the trimester system may be a burden to some, we should enjoy every minute of our time as college kids! Plus, when is the next time you're not going to have any obligations for the month of December?
