2008 Woodie Awards
Quarters system defines Seattle U
Issue: 5/28/08 Section: Opinion
Additionally, semesters require students to take more classes at the same time, potentially negating any added benefit of more time spent in the classroom by eliminating time spent on subject matter outside of the institution. Further, there exists no empirical evidence that suggests that semester systems encourage greater interaction between students and faculty. Fragmentation of classes should not present a major concern, especially considering that any class broken up over two quarters will provide five more weeks of exposure to a subject than a semester would.
Finally, graduates from Seattle University are not at a severe disadvantage in the job market due to later graduation, given the fact that peer institutions throughout the region function on the same system as ours.
Quarter schedules provide more exposure to a greater number of classes and opportunities than that of a semester system, and provide students the flexibility to schedule their classes around jobs and increasingly important internships and practicum work opportunities. Seattle University's current calendar provides more students the means to graduate on time than on a semester system by guaranteeing that classes can be offered three times throughout the academic year, instead of twice.
Though the debate as to whether a university should embark upon a path of profound institutional change often digresses into back and forth bickering as to which system is academically and institutionally superior, the debate should instead pose the question of whether it is in the institution's best interest to make such a substantial change, while so many other elements of Seattle University are held in flux.
There exists no evidence that semesters are better than quarters or vice versa; they are instead elements of institutional identity. Seattle University has devoted decades to the development and implementation of the quarter based calendar, the switch to a semester system will undoubtedly require the unraveling and rebuilding of an unbroken system. Quarters are a critical component of what Seattle University is and offers; they are not something that should fall by the wayside to conform to the status quo of other universities.
Finally, graduates from Seattle University are not at a severe disadvantage in the job market due to later graduation, given the fact that peer institutions throughout the region function on the same system as ours.
Quarter schedules provide more exposure to a greater number of classes and opportunities than that of a semester system, and provide students the flexibility to schedule their classes around jobs and increasingly important internships and practicum work opportunities. Seattle University's current calendar provides more students the means to graduate on time than on a semester system by guaranteeing that classes can be offered three times throughout the academic year, instead of twice.
Though the debate as to whether a university should embark upon a path of profound institutional change often digresses into back and forth bickering as to which system is academically and institutionally superior, the debate should instead pose the question of whether it is in the institution's best interest to make such a substantial change, while so many other elements of Seattle University are held in flux.
There exists no evidence that semesters are better than quarters or vice versa; they are instead elements of institutional identity. Seattle University has devoted decades to the development and implementation of the quarter based calendar, the switch to a semester system will undoubtedly require the unraveling and rebuilding of an unbroken system. Quarters are a critical component of what Seattle University is and offers; they are not something that should fall by the wayside to conform to the status quo of other universities.
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Nina Arens
posted 5/30/08 @ 3:14 PM PST
I transferred from a semester system into Seattle University, and I'll say it was definitely a good choice. At Loyola University of Chicago, I took up to five classes a semester (the highest number then possible, which included some lengthy science labs), and I was still bored. (Continued…)
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