As second semester begins, so do the requests for schedule changes. Students race down to the packed guidance counselors’ offices. It looks like they might be waiting for an hour, but they have to get back to class soon. They wait, hoping that by the end of the day, they will have the promise of a new schedule.

Every year during second semester, students plan out their schedule for the next school year. Students give suggestions on which electives they want to take. They keep in mind what graduation route they want to take, which can guide them in the schedule making. These factors help the guidance counselors create and specifically modify the schedule for the individual student.

Students need to change their schedules for various reasons. The changes may depend on needing to take a different class crucial for academic purposes or graduation requirements. Students may no longer want to take a continuing elective, or an elective may conflict with other courses the student needs to take. Although it isn’t allowed, students still try to switch teachers or rearrange their schedule to get the same lunch as their friends. “They want to be with their friends and pick their teacher,” said guidance counselor Claudia Ontiverous. The changes might have nothing to do with the individual student, and the changes happen because of the class itself or an error from the guidance counselor. “Too many students or errors on my part. I put them in the wrong class they didn’t sign up for and there were too many students, so the class got dropped and now they have an empty slot,” said Ontiverous.

Schedule changes can be made for first semester and second semester. As a result, the guidance counselors can get busy. “There were a lot of students. I would say I saw seventy-five to a hundred students,” said Ontiverous. The process of schedule making can be difficult as, “It can become pretty challenging, not all classes can be changed. Some classes are offered only two times while others are offered five times a day. A lot of variables go into it,” said Ontiverous. 

Freshman Alice Jin went to her counselor to change her English class taught my Mrs. Koler to Ms. Swinney, but ended up getting her personal finance class changed from Ms. Freeman to Mr. Zivanovic. “It was only for English at first because for first semester I had Ms. Swinney and I wanted to stick with her, but they had to change Ms. Freeman to Mr. Zivanovic for the change to work,” said Jin. 

Students go down to switch teachers or lunches, although it isn’t advised. Depending on the situation, the guidance counselors go ahead and make exceptions. “Say the student had the teacher before and there was a conflict. This might be a reason to change their schedule,” said Ontiverous. The changes not only have many variables, but there can be exceptions depending on the situation of the student’s request. 

Numerous students go down to the guidance counselors for a schedule change around the time both semesters start. There may be an abundance of students coming down, but, “The semesters are pretty balanced. Students email you during the summer and those corrections can happen before they are in school,” said Ontiverous. The schedule changes can benefit students’ academic course or make school more enjoyable. “I feel like the teachers I have now are able to help me understand the material better,” said Jin. The best way to make a schedule change is to, “Either during the class they are having an issue with a pass or during homeroom,” said Ontiverous. 

Don’t be afraid to visit your guidance counselor and make important improvements if necessary.