Although the last day to add a class was on Friday, students who took advantage of this deadline might now realize they have bitten off more than they can chew. Anyone who added a class last week is already behind on three weeks worth of reading, problem sets and other homework — a daunting task for students who must also keep up with the current and future work assigned for the course.

The current Add/Drop system forces students to choose their courses quickly, while preventing them from taking academic risks and sampling a wide variety of courses. The University should take steps to ensure that students have an adequate system for finding suitable courses.

Alongside course descriptions and teacher evaluations, syllabi should be made available for all courses. Syllabi go a step beyond course descriptions by providing details about the angle the class will take, the homework assigned, preparation needed and the testing procedures. Students need this information in advance to best plan their semesters. Some students hope to avoid multiple-choice tests, while others hope for a balance of classes that assign papers and have prelims. Still others look to distribute their workloads evenly throughout the semester.

Despite the benefits of public syllabi, they cannot compare to sitting in on the actual class. In the classroom, a student can meet the instructor, see how quickly he or she goes through material and observe how the content is presented. Only in class can a student discover if the professor moves through the information too quickly or slowly, or presents the material in an unintelligible way. Some students take notes best when the professor is aided by a PowerPoint presentation, for example. In smaller classes, it may be beneficial to experience how the students and the instructor interact.

One way to help students find the best classes would be to institute a “shopping period” for courses at the beginning of each semester. A shopping period would involve placing a ban on assigned readings, problem sets and other homework during the first week of classes. Doing so would allow students to try out multiple courses that meet at the same time or to add classes more than a week into the semester without falling critically behind on the material.

With less pressure on students to fix their schedules in the first few days of the semester, students will be better able to select courses based on their needs and interests. Accordingly, instructors will not be held up by students who add the course late and fall behind.

As it is now, students are hindered from exploring academically. The University should take steps to ensure that students can more easily find the classes that are best for them — even if it takes a few weeks.