Decisions, decisions, decisions…
Posted October 31, 2017 by Giuliana Gilbert-Igelsrud
Enrollment has rolled around for Spring 2018, and I’m completely torn apart.
Okay, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but I’m definitely struggling. Every semester there seems to be at least six classes I want to take, even though I’m limited to four, and self-limited to three due to money. It feels like I can see infinitely branching paths in front of me depending on what I decide. Young adult collections? Collection development? Information services for diverse users? Everything sounds so great!
Let’s say there are six classes I’m interested in, none of which create scheduling conflicts (totally hypothetical, definitely NOT enrolled in three classes and on three waitlists right now…). We can determine the amount of possible course combinations by using a non-ordered combination formula.
This results in a whopping…twenty combinations. Okay, so not quite a staggering number, but maybe an almost-tripped-but-caught-myse
Anyway, each of these twenty paths could lead me to a totally different future, depending on my classmates, my professors, my assignments, and of course, the content. One of these combinations would be the least stressful. One would be the most. One might set me on a track for success. One might feel like a huge waste of money and time. How can I choose with such uncertainty???
Maybe I’m putting too much stock into this (read: I’m definitely putting too much stock into this). With only twelve courses needed for a degree, I’m bound to miss out on something good no matter what I choose. No amount of math is going to change that.