On the new 15-week semester system, some students are gearing up for spring break a little differently.
Prior to its 2012 semester conversion, Ohio State spent about 90 consecutive academic years on the quarter system, with each year split into 10-week quarters that roughly corresponded with the seasons. Final exams were taken at the end of every quarter, and students were free to commence winter and spring breaks without the burden of schoolwork.
But this year, that isn’t the case for some.
Samantha Jackson, a fourth-year in agriculture who plans on travelling to Chicago and New Hampshire while on break, must take extra steps to prepare for the resumption of classes this spring.
“I have three exams when we come back,” Jackson said, “and I feel a little bit stressed out about going on break and then coming back, because I don’t know exactly how to prepare.”
Because of her travel schedule, Jackson said she isn’t anticipating studying much over the course of spring break.
“I’m planning on studying this week … and then cramming right when I get back,” she said.
She isn’t the only one with that strategy.
Other students, such as Mary Noakes, a third-year in dietetics, plan to take the week off even though they aren’t traveling anywhere exotic.
“I’m honestly not planning to do anything over break,” Noakes said. “I have a project due the Monday we come back and then I think something due Tuesday, but I’m going to try to get stuff done this week so I don’t have to worry about it.”
While students like Jackson and Noakes figure out how to adjust to a spring break on semesters, some instructors said they have been able to keep their students’ study schedules free during the lull from classes.
John Shimko, an OSU lecturer in chemistry and biochemistry, said while other faculty members have scheduled work to be due during break or after classes resume, he has worked to accommodate the students he teaches.
“I purposely made it so exams were before spring break,” Shimko said.
Shimko also gave one of his classes the opportunity to turn in a lab report on Wednesday, or keep it until the conclusion of spring break to be turned in on that Monday. Shimko said his class agreed to turn the assignment in that Monday.
“But that was specifically an exception,” he said. “I actually told them the reason why I wanted to do it Wednesday was because I didn’t think they would want to have to worry about it over spring break, but that was how it played out.”
Not every student has had to alter preparations for the upcoming break. In fact, some said the mid-term break won’t be different from any previous breaks they’ve had while at OSU.
Jack Worth, a third-year in medical laboratory science who plans on visiting South Carolina over spring break, said he has exams this week. Worth said he has no class obligations over break.
“I have three exams this week … it feels like finals week for me,” he said. “But I won’t have anything due. I’m lucky in that sense, because I know a lot of people who have something due when we get back.”
Despite the workload, Noakes said she is looking forward to returning to school after break whether assignments are due or not.
“I’m kind of excited about it though, because we’ll have break, then we come back and there’s like, a month of school left whereas on quarters, we’d come on break and then we had another quarter left,” Noakes said. “I just feel like this will make the year seem shorter.”
Spring break begins after classes conclude this Friday. Classes will resume March 18.