How many classes can you take in every semester of college in your freshmen year?

Hello Paige,

So great to hear that you want to prepare for your first semester in college! As you may have well heard college work is different than the school work you did in high school. You will need to learn good time management techniques, as well as learn good study habits to help you succeed in college. As for the number of classes that you should start out with, I recommend the students I advise to start out slow in their first semester. Start as a part time student and then as you get accustomed you can increase the case load. There is one thing you need to take into consideration if you choose to start as a part time student, and that is your financial aid. If you are anticipating financial aid then I highly recommend to speak with the financial aid department of the college you will be attending.

From personal experience, when I first started I took 12 credits, which was four classes. I did well at the end of the semester, but it was difficult for me to manage. At the time I was receiving financial aid so I was under the impression that I would always need to go full time. I spoke to the financial aid office of my school, and they were able to tell me that I would still get aid even if I went part time. After that I took three classes a semester until I graduated.

A final tip, go over the course descriptions for the courses you are interested in taking. Some courses will require more preparation time. For example, if you are not too good in math you may want to consider taking a lighter caseload that semester.

Good Luck!

Hello! The minimum you can take in order to be full time is 12 hours. The max at most colleges is 22hrs but that requires special permission. Most will let you schedule 18 hrs on your own

Hi! It really depends how many units each class is, and how much you want to do. You can start with a comfortable 3-4 classes. If they are low unit classes you might take a few more, or if you really want to go full steam ahead and put other parts of life on hold you can go nuts. I think the most I ever took at once was 5 classes.

I think it depends on the college and your major. As a freshman, I would recommend no more than 15 credit hours as you are getting used to college life. It helps to get acclimated your fist semester by taking 12 credit hours and getting into a groove before taking on any more credit hours. I would recommend speaking with an academic adviser first before taking on more than 12 credit hours. If you have declared your major or course of study already, maybe reaching out to the deans of college offices to see what they recommend might help as well. What an exciting time ahead of you- best of luck in all your future endeavors!

For me, it depends on the load you think you can handle. I always say start out with 15hr. It’s challenging but you have a cushion just in case it’s too much. Too much idle time can lead to a lot of freshman mistakes so step up and take the challenge.