When students register for undergraduate classes for the fall semester, on both the Main and Ambler campuses, they’ll discover new course times designed to maximize their flexibility in planning their schedules.


The first class of the day will begin at 8 a.m., rather than 8:40 a.m., and the last class will end at 4:50 p.m. for 3-credit courses, 5:10 p.m. for 4-credit courses held on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and 5 p.m. for 4-credit courses on Tuesday and Thursday. See www.temple.edu/ssm for the full details.


“This new matrix, part of the campus master plan, will accommodate large incoming classes and maximize scheduling flexibility so schools and colleges can meet student needs. By adding a time block to each day, the plan optimizes space and time,” said Bill Wilkinson, associate vice president for budget and space management.

The change was motivated, in part, by student responses to surveys, which showed that with more students living on campus, many want the option of both earlier and later classes.


Kristen Watkins, a senior psychology major who has worked in the scheduling office since she was a freshman, understands the change from both a student and administrative perspective.


“The best advantage is the flexibility added by the extra time block, an hour or more each day, and extra time at night, too,” said Watkins.


Evening courses will now begin at 5:30 p.m. See www.temple.edu/ssm for the full details.


“The time slots in the evening used to be one amorphous block. The classes ran into each other. Now, there is a potential for up to three classes in one evening,“ said Dan Astran, assistant director of scheduling and space management.


Another important benefit of the change is that the added time enables schools to spread courses throughout the day.


“Now, it will be easier to schedule all the needed classes. With more times for courses I’m hoping we’ll see less mid-day congestion in Anderson Hall,” said Teresa Scott Soufas, dean of the College of Liberal Arts. Soufas’ voice is one with the other deans who unanimously endorse the new matrix.


Other motivations for the change included the need to accommodate 4-credit Gen Ed classes, have room for non-art classes for the approximately 800 Tyler School of Art students now on campus, and have capacity for a student population at Temple that is currently predicted to grow or, at a minimum, stay the same.


Project Manager Marlene Chachkin, who does the master scheduling, explained that the new finals schedule, which is a by-product of the new course matrix, has its own clear advantages. “In the past, students could have two common finals scheduled for the same time and they would need to work it out with faculty. Now, beginning fall 2009, that shouldn’t happen, because each common final will have its own time slot,” she said.