Q. Should my student consider enrolling in Winter Session?

10:03 a.m., Oct. 9, 2003--A. Winter Session is entirely optional, but it's an extremely popular option that gives students a degree of flexibility that other schools don’t offer. About half of our students are enrolled each winter. Many choose winter as the time to focus on a particular course that they know will be difficult for them so that they can give it their exclusive attention every day and succeed to a greater degree than if they were to take it during a full semester with three or four other courses competing for their attention.

Other students, recognizing that their degree demands an average of 15 credits per semester, would rather spread out their work by including Winter Session. Some take a Winter Session course only when they see a particularly hard semester coming. Other students routinely take winter courses because it suits their learning style.

Achieving a double major, or a transition between fields of study, can be greatly facilitated by the Winter Session option. Winter Session also provides an extra chance for students to explore a personal interest or take a particularly popular class that they may not easily fit into their standard semester schedule.

Some students and parents see the cost of Winter Session as a barrier to participation. On the contrary, depending on how you use it, it can considerably reduce the overall cost of a UD degree.

The basic tuition cost of each Winter Session credit is identical to the rate in fall and spring. Those who take two courses (six to seven credits) enjoy a 25 percent discount from that base rate. There is no additional housing charge for those in the residence halls.

All things considered then, a student who lives on campus and takes two winter courses, in place of one final 12-14 credit semester, will save the cost of three credits’ tuition and that semester’s housing fee. For Delaware residents, that's about $2,500 in savings; for non-residents, $3,700.

For more information about Winter Session, visit [www.udel.edu/winter], e-mail [fanjoy@udel.edu], or call 831-2853.

—Allan Fanjoy, administrator of special sessions, Office of Professional and Continuing Studies

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