As someone who works full time and also attends school full time (or tries to), I take every opportunity I can find to get the classes I need. My schedule allows for evenings and weekends, so I usually register for weekend classes if I can.

Most of the classes available during these times are the basics: Psych 1, Sociology 1, English 1A, etc. Unfortunately, many classes I need are not available during weekends as they are more "Sophomore" level classes. This leaves me to fight the rest of the Chaffey non-traditional student population for a place in these classes during the evenings, which more often than not leaves me waitlisted.

Sometimes, however, classes are available on Friday evenings. I can see why. No one wants to be in class on a Friday night, especially those like me who work 40 hours a week and really just want to relax. However, often I am left with no choice but to take these classes because they are the only ones not waitlisted.

Usually, when I register, the classes don't even have a teacher assigned. The faculty section just says STAFF and I can't employ ratemyprofessor.com to know what to expect until the week before the class starts. By then, it's too late to change classes and you are kind of stuck.

I have twice registered for Friday night classes, and twice have had to drop. This semester's casualty? Biology 1 with Lab. I found myself dreading this class, and not enjoying it as much as I have enjoyed pretty much everything else. This time, unlike Math-425, I didn't wait until the midterm to drop. I knew by understanding my own way of learning and being true to myself that I would just not thrive in the class.

However, the decision to drop didn't come lightly. I struggled with it for about a week, as dropping the class meant I'd have to take it next semester, and it went against my goals of having Statistics and Biology done by the end of this semester. Dropping the class would leave a considerable hole in my school schedule, leaving me with only taking one class. But the truth was, I wasn't going to be successful in this class.

Here is how I knew this class wasn't going to work out for me:

The professor and I were not a good fit.

In case this is the first time you've read my blog, I'll give you a quick insight into who I am and how I learn. I am introverted, but in the class, I like a good discussion and debate. I like hands on, engaged learning but can tolerate traditional "here's my detailed Powerpoint" lecture-based classroom settings (otherwise I would not have passed most of my classes, and with As to boot). I am also 35 years old, respectful, but understanding of my freedom as an adult (I haven't been in High School since year 2000). I will copy down Powerpoints word for word if I can, and I utilize all material for studying. I appreciate a good study guide from the teacher but I can make do without one as long as can work with these materials. I can tolerate a few group projects a semester, but honestly do better on my own to better results (but I do know that group work is how the world turns, so I am not completely against it, nor do I think it is realistic to expect to have a class without at least one group project).

That being said, the professor for Friday night Biology did not provide any study guides, moved through Powerpoints way too fast, did not elaborate on anything within the Powerpoints (which were an outline of concepts at best, and did not delve into material, relied on small group projects multiple times each class session, and had a lot of rules for governing the class that made me feel like I was in 9th grade again. She also played a lot of Youtube videos that were hard to understand, in place of lecture. Moreso, I felt as if we were "talked at" for the duration of the class period, which is different than "teaching to."

The professor did not utilize the entire class period and we were often let out early.

If you're thinking, wow, that's awesome! It's...really not. I don't want to be there late on a Friday night, or spend 3 hours of my Saturday in school, but I had already resigned myself to these sacrifices. When we are let out an hour ahead of time and I still feel like I have more questions than answers about the material, I don't think it's a good thing. I do ask questions, too, but still felt as if I left with more questions than answers.

The class was taking too much energy on my part that was detracting from my other class.

I found myself not only falling behind in Biology in trying to guess everything that was required since there was so little guidance that I was starting to suffer in Statistics. Both are higher unit courses, so I expected them to have an equal amount of work. This was the ultimate deciding factor in dropping Biology. I decided to cut off the dead weight and move on with Statistics, with a professor that everyone fought to have, who engaged the class, utilized the entire class period, and allowed us to ask questions and participate in discussion.

Freeing myself from Biology allowed me to do stuff I wanted to do, like a volunteer opportunity and take on other classes during Track 2 Fast Track.

When the semester started, I was invited to take part in a volunteer opportunity that I really really really wanted to participate in. But since Biology took out a chunk of my Saturday, I had to pass. By dropping Biology, I was able to re-enlist. This excited me so much! I actually have my first meeting this Saturday, which I would not have been able to do if I kept Biology. I felt immediately better, and as if the decision was more in line with my purpose (why I want to be a teacher in the first place). Plus, this opportunity will get me some hands-on experience with teaching.

But since I did drop the class, I had a huge gap in my school schedule. I decided that I was going to take two Track 2 Fast Track classes which start up in October. These classes are faster paced, like Summer classes, with one being online and one being in class. I may only keep one, but I am hoping by then I will have regained my footing in Statistics (I spend the whole past weekend getting caught up and feel so much better), and can focus on these classes.

If you aren't learning in a class, it is probably not the right class structure for you.

And lastly, Friday night classes are just not a good thing for me.

I've decided that two strikes is out for me. No need to try a third time! I figured I could just suck it up and take a Friday night class and just deal with it, but the truth is, I can't. I've given it a good try. But Friday nights, I just want to curl up with my cat, some Netflix, and a glass of wine. I need to let go of the notion that if I am not doing something that I am not being productive, and thus, it is not good. This is not my idea. It is a product of my upbringing that I have struggled with all my life. I basically need to force myself to relax, and I think this whole experience just means that I really need to do just that. And I'm OK with it.

What's the takeaway?

I've said it before and I am saying it again: Not all professors will be the right fit and sometimes you have to bite the bullet and drop (if feasible, sometimes you cannot because of credits needed for financial aid or the class is a prerequisite). I do know there are a handful of people in that class who thrived of this type of class structure, and I wish them all the best of luck. But what works for one person won't necessarily work for me (or you). And that is OK!

In the end, I need to be true to myself. I've already been through one frustrating college journey in the early 2000s, and I want to emerge from this experience knowing that I actually learned something, and am proud of myself for this effort. But the end message is: if you aren't learning, the class has no point. You are in college to learn, and that that is the ultimate goal for your future success.

Did you ever struggle with dropping a class? What did you do and why did you do it?

When I first selected my Math 425 professor in Fall 2016, I didn't do any research on him. I took the class because it was available Friday nights, and I wanted to have my Saturdays open, but that should have been my secondary concern. Things did not go well, and I, along with most of a student population of 30, dropped the class. Unfortunately, I dropped after the midterm, and got stuck with a W on my record (a grade of W does not count towards my GPA, but it shows when I transfer that I waited until half the class was over to drop).

After I left, I made an appointment with counseling because now I had to postpone taking Math 425 to the next semester, and thus postpone Statistics to Fall 2017. I told my counselor about how the teacher did not collect homework, do reviews, or teach like the book, and how most of us were very confused. Everyone failed the midterm in that class. The counselor said to me, "Didn't you check ratemyprofessors.com?"

I didn't, seeing as I didn't know that was a thing at the time. After the counseling session I immediately went home and checked the professor's score on the website.

Red up and down. Ouch. If I had seen that before I had registered for classes, I wouldn't have taken his class!

If I had seen this before I had attempted Math 425 the first time, I would not have taken this professor. All the things that make for a teacher-student incompatibility were there! Disorganized, didn't collect homework, didn't teach effectively, didn't let people know what was on the tests...come to find out that he would require a certain format of answers on the test that were not taught in the book! Some students may be able to work with this environment but you don't need the added anxiety of trying extra hard to cover what your professor should be doing.

Well, I was sure to reference Ratemyprofessors.com from then on out and the results have been great. I've made sure I got classes with teachers that not only have good ratings but also teach in ways that correspond to my learning style. I selected my new Math 425 professor based on his rating, and not only was I able to follow along and get feedback on my homework, I did so well that I got an A in the class!

But going to Ratemyprofessors.com doesn't just mean look for people with all green ratings and blindly taking their classes. There are other factors to consider! Follow my guide when planning to register for classes below:

First, consider your learning style.
I have had the pleasure of taking class 3 times with an amazing professor. He has the room arranged with chairs in a big circle, and lecture is discussion based. The whole group gets in on the learning and no one really has the chance to get distracted with their phones. I found this learning experience to be very helpful because it helped me to remember everything just in how novel the setting was. We related the textbook material to real life stories, and learned from each other. For the most part, he has great reviews on Ratemyprofessors.com

But there's one bad review. They complained about what they considered was an inappropriate college class setting, and that the homework didn't seem to help them relate to the class content.

Obviously my experience and their experience was very different despite the fact that this professor runs all his classes in a similar way. This student did not mesh well with the teaching style, which doesn't necessarily denote a failure on the part of the professor or student. It just means it was a bad match. The student probably should have dropped the class and taken it with a professor who was more orthodox.

And while I am OK with formal learning environments with the class sitting forward and the teacher reading from Powerpoints, as they don't necessarily hinder me in any way and I've walked away with an A in those classes, it's just not as memorable an experience for me. So far I've had two professors (one Child Development and one Philosophy) who has conducted class in the circle format, and not every professor will even consider it.

But there are other factors to how I learn. I love to write, so a teacher who assigns a lot of essays will be a good fit for me. I enjoy professors who give feedback, answer questions, and call on me during class. The one class where even though I did well I would have given the professor a bad rating if I did not understand that we just didn't mesh was a class where the teacher read off Powerpoints through the whole class and didn't accept questions or call on people.

For some students, this class method would really work for them. For some, it wouldn't. I sat next to someone in that class who had a hard time concentrating on the 3 hours of non-stop lecture. She told me she was ADHD and I could tell that she was spending as much time fighting to concentrate as she was learning. Obviously that class was not a good fit for her.

Why say all this? Because when you go on Ratemyprofessors.com and you see what everyone is praising or complaining about, you need to give these ratings context but also consider how they fit in your learning style. I've noted before that if a bunch of students complain that a professor gives out a lot of essay assignments it won't necessarily be a bad thing for me because I love to write essays. To each their own!

Then look at the professor's ratings.
If you look on a professor's page on Ratemyprofessors.com, you'll notice a little section with a rating number and certain categories that students select about the professor. 


This section provides a snapshot of the professor and some details that students may not put in their rating paragraphs because they only have so many words they can post. 

• First is the Overall Quality number. This number is a rating average of all the individual ratings given. Great professors are going to have a rating of 4.0 or above, but I generally pick people with a 4.5 or above. 
• Would take again. This isn't a dealbreaker for me because for many professors, students don't need to take a class with them again unless they are majoring in the subject. It's nice to see something there but if you don't, it should be ok.
• Level of difficulty. This number sort of breaks down how well a teacher instructs so students can "get it." It doesn't necessarily mean a teacher is "dumbing it down." I would look at this number if you are taking a course that you consider hard. For example, say math isn't your strong suit. If you are looking at a professor for a required math class and the difficulty rating is 4, then it probably isn't the class for you. That 2.1 rating may be more your style. The same subject and material will be covered, but students are reporting that this teacher makes it easier to understand.
• Hotness. I never fill this out because I don't really care how hot a teacher is, but some students might. It's not a deciding factor for me when selecting an instructor, because they could be Chris Hemsworth for all we know but a bad teacher.
•  Top 20 tags. I pay attention to this instead. This may be the most crucial part of a professor's rating header, alongside Overall Quality and Level of Difficulty. It gives you a better idea of what to expect from the instructor and weeds out complaints from a bigger picture of what the professor is like. For example, the image above shows that this professor gives lots of homework, as rated by 6 people. I think it's a safe bet to expect a lot of homework from the professor! Many people may not like that, but for me that's not a dealbreaker. On the flipside, only one person said this professor is a tough grader. This may show you that this professor is only a tough grader from that person's perspective. The professor may not be a tough grader at all! The student may have been expecting to get away with doing the bare minimum, or may not be used to college grading. Who knows? Try not to take lesser ratings like this sway your decision too much.

That being said, there are some things you should not accept from a professor or "take with a grain of salt."
Now we move into the individual ratings or paragraphs under the rating header. You're going to get individual insight from each person that expands on the rating header. For the most part, you're going to see some great ratings like this:

This teacher seems very respectable and a good teacher to boot!

But you may run into a page full of these:

You do not have to put up with a teacher who belittles you in class.

Teachers are people too, and they have their quirks and make mistakes like the rest of us. But being a professor requires some level of professionalism that students depend on. We're here to learn, and learning is already a process as it is. Plus, we are paying for these classes and deserve to get our money's worth!

As a non-traditional student, we're working hard not only at school but at home and at work too. Some of us have kids. And even if we didn't have any of that stacked against us, if we have to do extra work because a professor isn't carrying their weight, that's a bad thing. Here's a few things to look out for in reviews that will tell you to steer clear of a professor:

• They talk about themselves or topics that have nothing to do with the subject matter. Ok, I had one of these. Business was the first class I enrolled in when I decided to go back to school. The professor was...interesting to say the least. She made inappropriate and flirtatious remarks to the young male students in the class on the first day in front of everyone. She talked about how great she was and all about her family. I spent the whole class there that day - the first and last day I attended her class - and she spent maybe 20 minutes on the class subject out of 3 hours. I didn't use Ratemyprofessors.com back then, but looking at it now, for her, most of the students complain about the same stuff that I had a problem with. She spends most of the semester talking about stuff that has nothing to do with the class, leaving students to fill in the gaps and learn on their own. Why take a class if you have to do that? But, I suppose I should thank her. I dropped that class and turned my back on business once and for all, and have been able to dedicate myself to Child Development whole-heartedly.
• Bad organizational skills. If students complain about a teacher who is always flustered and doesn't seem to have their stuff together, pass them on by. If they can forget to do their job right, how do you know they've graded you right? Remembered you turned something in? Didn't lose your papers? And no one wants to waste time during lecture meetings to wait for a teacher to get their material going.

• Doesn't collect homework on time or at all. I find this very annoying. I am busting my butt to go to college and get my As and you are going to treat my hard work in such a disrespectful manner that you aren't even going to collect or grade it? Pass.
• Not only do they not give constructive feedback, they are rude, angry, or belittling. You do not need to put up with this. I had an art teacher the first time I went to college who treated me this way. I was in a class of mostly guys, and the teacher liked to put the girls work up front and pick it apart. His tone was not constructive, and was very belittling. He had nothing but praise for the work the guys did. One time he pulled my art in front of the class and asked, "What were you thinking?" in such a condescending way that I decided I had had enough and left. At the time I had been told that I should have stayed with the class and not drop it, but I respected myself too much for that. You don't go to college to get abused.
• They don't show up most of the class, show up really late, or leave really early. There's a rule at school where if the professor doesn't show up in the first 15 minutes of class, its cancelled, even if they don't email you or put up a sign in sheet. I've heard of some people having professors who did this on a regular basis! I understand things come up, but if a professor can't be arsed to show up most of the time, it's just disrespectful. I get myself going and manage my time, and I expect someone with the title Professor to do the same, especially if I am paying out of pocket for my education. 
• Students complain that they get graded for stuff they weren't aware of. I once had a teacher who marked anyone who looked at their cell phone at all with an F for the day (back before the age of smart phones and most people treated their little Nokias like watches). I was surprised to see my grade lowered by all these mystery Fs! Some other students complained as well, and she revealed her unspoken rule. I've also had professors knock points off stuff like writing an essay in MLA when they had wanted us to write in APA but had not stated this requirement (we automatically refer to MLA unless requirements ask for it). This may not be a deal breaker, and it wasn't for me, but it may be more of a hassle than you want to deal with. I asked for my points back because these rules weren't made known to me and I got them back, but I noticed a lot of other students were too intimidated to do so. No matter what the case, stand up for your needs. This isn't high school, and you can get those points back!
• They are inappropriate and lack a teacher/student boundary. Like the example of the business professor, class time is not your professor's personal Match.com session. What a professor or student does on their private time is none of my business and I don't care (and also, people meet in real life situations like that, and at work, and rules to keep it from happening are archaic at best), but if that kind of behavior happens in the classroom, that's not a classroom you need to be in. Even though I stayed the entire class session that first day with the business professor, other students walked out in the middle. You're at school to learn. You shouldn't have to put up with a professor who clearly lacks maturity, tact, and boundaries.