Registration Time: Again

It’s almost time to register for next semester’s classes, so I’ll take this opportunity to talk about some of the course offerings here at Mudd, as well as some of my favorite classes so far! 

For some background, before we register for classes, Mudders browse courses on hyperschedule.io, a convenient website designed and maintained by a Mudder. In terms of what we actually register for, in addition to the Core Curriculum classes we’re all required to take, we have elective slots where we can choose to take major requirements, humanities, or anything we feel like! 

An example schedule on Hyperschedule. Photo credit: Serena Mao

For example, HSA 10 is one of our required humanities courses, and although we have no choice in signing up or not, each section revolves around the discussion of a different topic. For example, the section I’m in is about Free Will and Fiction with Prof. Thompson, where we’ve discussed everything from the (non?) existence of free will to Ted Chiang’s famous time-travel stories. My friends and I were going through existential crises after half the classes—it was hard to believe that it was a required course or even a class that I was taking for a grade! 

Another class I chose to take this semester was Breakdancing/Hip Hop with Don Sevilla, located in the LAC here at Mudd. Every week, we learn new breaking moves, and we’re encouraged to participate in class ciphers where we take turns performing our own set. Even better, B-Boy Don (as he calls himself) lets us drop in on his Tuesday/Thursday classes at Pomona, where we learn dances to the hottest pop songs like Fine China by Chris Brown or Big by Rita Ora. It’s a great way for me to unwind with my favorite songs after a stressful day of classes, and it counts towards my PE requirements! 

As for next year, I’m taking full advantage of my ability to enroll in classes across the 5C’s as a Mudd student. For example, the CASA Program at Pitzer is a community change-focused package of two classes and an internship with a local organization. Students in the program will take a class and practicum on community engagement, then collaborate directly with a local organization in Ontario at CASA’s nearby community center. As fellow members of the Claremont Consortium, Mudders are free to sign up and participate! Since I’ve always been heavily involved in community change, I’m really glad this opportunity exists for me even at a STEM oriented college.

Since I’m only a freshman, I can’t speak from personal experience for a wide range of classes here, so just keep in mind: there are far more interesting classes than what I’ve mentioned. What this also means, though, is that even after just a year at Mudd, you’ll be sure to have a great time with quite a few of your courses. So, if you’re a current Mudder, good luck with registration—and if you’re a future Mudder, get hyped!