Meet Me Halfway

A few posts ago, my friend Alex wrote about how you need 120 hours to graduate, letting all you reading this blog know to be sure you have 120 hours so you can graduate.

Well, I knew that. I thought I knew everything about what I needed to graduate. Freshman year I started an excel spreadsheet of the classes I needed, putting in bold each class upon completion. When I added a double major another tab went on the spreadsheet. When I got into my 5-year BA/MA program, another tab created.

Then I decided that I wanted to take an additional master's class this spring. And this required a petition to take that class.

I wish I woulda known to talk to your adviser/get a graduation check at the beginning of senior year.

If I had not requested this extra class, if I had not been super confused about my master's program, I would not have known that my spreadsheet was somehow off and that I needed a different 3 classes than I thought to graduate. I've been having heart palpitations for a few hours now after finding out this news.

Registration for classes for me is Monday, and its Wednesday. I found out fives days before registering that I needed not what I thought - completely unacceptable. I wish I woulda known to check this against the school records earlier so I would've known this earlier and planned better for this year in general, not just class wise.

GW doesn't require a graduation check before your final semester, and I think that this is stupid. Plain and freaking stupid. There are probably tons of students, like myself, who have kept track of their classes and thought they had everything. I even matched up all my classes against a "balance sheet" they gave us at the end of first semester junior year. So I thought I was right - I was so sure I was right.

But I was wrong, but I never would've known because you don't have to go in and meet with your adviser. Most people do, and I always email with questions, but it was my wanting to get ahead in my master's program that led to me learning what I really need to get my undergraduate degree. I had to go the extra mile - GW doesn't even meet me halfway.

In the end, I'm going to graduate because I still only need 3 classes, just different ones than I thought. My heart attack is slowly subsiding and going back to normal. Which is good.

Always,
Caroline