Summer classes in full swing at Wright State

Nearly 2,000 Wright State students, including Nick Van Zandt, a materials science and engineering major, are taking advantage of the 20 percent tuition rebate on summer courses. (Photo by Chris Snyder)

Wright State University students are taking advantage of summer courses to help ensure they graduate on time, resolve scheduling conflicts and save money.

Amy Barnhart, director of financial aid, said students who take summer classes can “get ahead for the rest of the year” and lighten their workload during spring and fall semesters.

Because the summer semester, which began May 8, is divided into A and B terms, students can complete a whole sequence of classes during the summer. For example, a language requirement for a degree could require a student take Spanish I and II. Spanish I is offered in the A term and Spanish II is offered in the B term.

A lot of students take summer classes this way, Barnhart said. “It’s a great idea,” she said.

Registration this semester, Barnhart said, is “a mirror image of last year,” with about 2,000 students enrolled both last summer and this year.

Wright State offers a 20 percent tuition rebate for continuing students who take classes during the summer, saving students a total of over $1.5 million in tuition.

Jennifer McCamis, director of admissions, said the rebate is a great opportunity for students to take advantage of discounted courses. The summer rebate is available to undergraduate students who have successfully completed 24 total credit hours in the fall 2016 and spring 2017 semesters.

Summer classes can assist any student with their college career, as well as grant more time for honors research.

Megan Neumann, a junior biological sciences major, is taking two classes during the summer semester. She is grateful for the rebate because it makes classes “much more affordable,” she said.

Because of a schedule conflict during the spring semester, Neumann was not able to take two classes she needed. But thanks to the summer semester, she can still graduate on time.

Along with her two classes, Neumann will work on her undergraduate honors research project on the function of mitochondria in a particular type of mouse. The class associated with the research project does not take place until the fall 2017 semester, but Neumann said that with the amount of work her research will take, she doesn’t expect to finish within one semester.

Nick Van Zandt, a freshman materials science and engineering major, is also taking summer classes to reduce his course load next academic year.

Without the summer courses, he would have to take 16 or 17 credit hours in fall 2017 and spring 2018 semesters, along with working 20 or more hours a week. Additionally, he said his two summer classes, Calculus II and Physics II, are difficult courses, and he did not want to take them on during a full semester’s workload.

He said that he thinks the tuition rebate is a good idea, and was excited to receive it.

He said the classes would be a challenge but is looking forward to them. Since the summer semester is shorter, Van Zandt said, there will be “faster-paced material.” He anticipates using time management and planning to make sure he completes his work on time.