The month of April is a hectic time for seniors, who are in the midst of completing their theses — the Princeton rite of passage. For all other students, however, the regular grind of the academic schedule continues as they attempt to navigate their way through the labyrinth of course selection.
Over the next few weeks, University students will fret and fuss over the many choices in the course offerings handbook. For some — particularly B.S.E. students — the academic plan for next fall is all but set in stone.
"I'm not allowed to take interesting courses," said Jackie Ng '06. "I'm an ORF major."
For those with fewer departmental requirements, however, elective classes are far from easy picks. A number of factors may play into the decision-making process: the quality of the professor, feedback from friends, the length of the reading list, workload, class times and more.
But for others, the staple of a good class is a little less scientific.
Take John Williams '06, who realized his appreciation for POL 319: Law, Politics and Violence was justified when his fellow football teammate, Paul Daou '06, expressed similar enthusiasm for the course.
"If it gets Paul Daou to class after morning-running twice a week it must be interesting," Williams said.
So how does the average Princetonian pick out the best classes? The fall 2004-2005 course selection guide may be an intimidating 154 pages, but a few courses already stand out as interesting choices for next semester.
The arts
Though many visual arts classes require an application, students should not let the enrollment process intimidate them, said Willow Sainsbury '04, president of the Stella Art Club.
The main purpose of the interviews, she said, is to give the professors an opportunity to meet with prospective students. For those willing to undertake two hour and fifty minute labs twice a week, the results can be rewarding.
"I especially recommend VIS 201: Introductory Drawing (LA), 202: Introductory Painting (LA) and 207: Intoductory Sculpture (LA)," Sainsbury said.
Instead of essays, exams or traditional assessments, students in VIS 202 get a chance to work with live models and build color wheels and canvases. Students enrolled in VIS 207 will also get the opportunity to tackle a broad selection of mediums, she said.
"Sculpture is amazing because you cover a huge range of work, from making clay heads to solving abstract problems," Sainsbury said. "It's great for people interested in engineering and architecture, because it's all about thinking about space."
Another strong class related to the arts is ART 242/ARC 242: The Experience of Modernity: A Survey of Modern Architecture in the West (LA), taught by Esther da Costa Meyer. The class will cover modern architecture after the late nineteenth century and also analyze related cultural issues.
"Anything with da Costa Meyer will be great," Kyle Detweiler '05 said. "She's perhaps the best lecturer I've ever had for any of my classes."
Social sciences
For the less artistically inclined, there is the popular ECO 101: Introduction to Macroeconomics (SA), with professor Elizabeth Bogan. The course focuses on domestic issues in economic theory.
Students interested in contemporary American politics and particularly the upcoming November elections may want to check out a new course in the politics department, POL 330: Campaigns and Elections (SA), with Markus Prior.
According to the course guide, students will concentrate on the political theory behind campaign elections and their impact on the public. The class enrollment cap is 30 and it will not be open to freshman.
Merging politics, economics and the NFL is going to be a challenge in Michael Danielson's new course POL 344: The Political Economy of Sports (SA).
"The course will appeal to a broad range of students," Sarah Lyman '06 said. "From economics majors to casual viewers of Monday night football, everyone will be able to get something out of it."
Humanities
A perennial favorite is PSY 207: Abnormal Psychology (SA) or, as affectionately coined by many students, "Nuts and Sluts." The class, taught by professor Michael Litchman, explains a broad range of abnormal conditions and delves into the various types of treatments available.
While the "material was really fascinating," it was Litchman who made the class, Heather Robbins '04 said.
"Professor Litchman was really great, he interacted with the students a lot and the lectures were really lively," she said.
HUM 459: Humor Writing (LA) with Joel Stein, a humor columnist at Time Magazine, also promises to be an exciting new course. The reading list includes work from famous humorists such as Dorothy Parker and Mark Twain.
While the class will have no exams, there will be regular writing assignments. Students will also get a chance to visit the offices of Time Magazine and interact with guest speakers throughout the semester.
For a more traditional study of English literature, there is ENG 363: American Literature 1930-Present (LA), taught by Benjamin Widiss.
The reading list includes such modern classics as Don DeLillo's "White Noise" and "As I Lay Dying" by William Faulkner.
Nuts and bolts
Finally, for the tech-savvy, there is COS 402: Artificial Intelligence, with Robert Schapire, a specialist in the field.
The course will expose the "fundamental principles, algorithms and techniques of modern artificial intelligence research and practice," according to the student course guide.
"Schapire is a great professor and the possibilities of artificial intelligence [were] really interesting," Ryan Teising '04 said of the class.
Unfortunately for the casual Futurama fan, the course is limited to serious COS department concentrators — both COS 226 and COS 217 are prerequisites for the course.
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