So, you’ve made it to college and now have a world of amazing courses at your fingertips — exciting! While coming to college and adjusting to new, rigorous classes is scary, being a first-year student gives you so much freedom to explore. Coming from someone who had no clue what she wanted to study in college and was overwhelmed by all of the course options, if there’s any time to take a random class, challenge yourself, or bomb a course, it’s your first year. 

Going into your first year, it might feel like you need to have your major and career all planned out, especially at a rigorous school with highly motivated students. But don’t fret. So many students are in the same boat as you, still figuring out which subjects they are passionate about. In my first-year dream world, I wanted five minors so that I did not have to commit to any major. While most of the classes I took in my first year don’t count for my major or minors, I can still use them to complete my Arts & Sciences requirements, and my year of exploration greatly informed my major decision. While I do not have everything figured out or know what I want to do post-grad, all of my college classes have shaped me in some way, and I highly recommend taking time to explore college and enjoy the experience of learning.

Note: Since fall registration has already occurred and classes may have filled up, these options work for both the fall and spring semesters. 

First-Year Seminars 

Take First-Year Seminars! They are so fun, and you only have one year to participate in them, so take advantage of those opportunities. Typically, these classes have around 15 students, and they range from being interdisciplinary to focusing on very specific topics. Whether you want to explore a broad interest or dive into a niche class about a passion of yours, these courses are perfect. I took Literature and Justice with Wolfram Schmidgen, which was such an interesting pairing of a wide range of literature genres with legal conflicts, both past and present. No matter your academic interests, there’s a class for you. Some course listings include: Pleasure and Pain: European Fashion as (Art) History, Unearthing the Science of Climate Change, Literature of Addiction, and Power and Persuasion: The Courts and Laws of Ancient Athens. There are so many unique First-Year Seminars with which to engage, and there’s no limit to how many you can take! I’d recommend trying a couple since they offer a great chance to get introduced to the University in a low-stakes way, and you can meet other first-years who are all eager to make friends. 

Introduction to Cultural Anthropology 

As one of the most popular classes at WashU, Cultural Anthropology not only fills a Language and Cultural Diversity (LCD) Arts & Sciences IQ requirement but also provides a broad introduction to anthropology. If you have an interest in the humanities but are thinking of being pre-med, the Global Health and Environment track in the Anthropology major is a great option, and this class introduces a lot of fundamental concepts. It’s also a pretty large class, so it’s great to take with friends or meet new people, which will especially come in handy when it’s time for exams. 

Foundations in Public Health 

With the opening of WashU’s new School of Public Health, courses in this discipline have become exceedingly popular among students from all majors and schools. This class provides a broad overview of the field of public health, exploring both its history and modern-day questions of intersectionality, ethics, and human rights. Foundations in Public Health also features a lot of guest speakers from St. Louis, as well as national and international figures, which is pretty unique for a college class. If you’re pre-med, this class can provide insights into health equity and the impacts of medicine, topics that can inform your path in medicine and generally contextualize what you learn in other STEM classes. However, you definitely don’t need to be pre-med or even a public health student to take classes within the subject. 

Beyond Boundaries courses

These classes are only open to first-years and have an interdisciplinary focus. They are typically taught by two faculty members from different schools, and they usually have class sizes of around 70, which allows you to meet more people and get a sense of the atmosphere of a larger class. My favorite Beyond Boundaries classes that I took, both in my first semester, were Morality and Markets and Designing Creativity: Innovation Across Disciplines. These classes were both super interesting and very different from one another, helping to diversify my class schedule, especially since each course combines two subjects. The Beyond Boundaries course offerings change frequently and are typically designed to fit current events. 

Introduction to Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) 

Intro to WGSS (pronounced “wigs” by many) is a popular class at WashU for all majors. This interdisciplinary course broadly covers topics within the field of women, gender, and sexuality studies, including subjects like the history of feminist movements, queer identities, sexual and domestic violence, and relevant politics. While this is an intro class, the sections are capped at 20 students, so you get the experience of introductory lessons in a smaller environment. However, since the class is broken into smaller sections, the class experience may vary by instructor. The instructor’s style and projects assigned may differ, but no matter what, you are likely to leave this class with an understanding of global gender issues and their connection to current events in health, politics, and social justice. 

Any course in a subject that you are even remotely interested in! 

During the spring semester of my first year, I took Introduction to Microeconomics. It was not a course that I planned to take, but I had never taken an Economics course, and thought I should give it a try to get a general understanding. While the class was a struggle at times because all of the material was new for me, I kept up with the course and learned a lot. That same semester, I also took Introduction to Psychology. Again, I had no business taking it and didn’t necessarily need it for anything, but I thought it would be interesting. I took the class pass-fail just to learn without the pressure of a grade, and I took away a lot of useful information and helpful study tips. During each semester, you can pass-fail one class, which means that your GPA won’t be affected by your grade in the class. If you are feeling uncertain about how a class is going or want to take a risk with a class, you can pass-fail it and change it back to a grade up until a certain point in the semester. 

Your first year is a great time to take random classes and pass-fail them before you have to commit to a major. You can also determine what class size you like best. Personally, through trial and error, I’ve found that I am best suited for small, socratic-style humanities classes. However, you might really love the vibe of a large lecture hall. Take random classes, but take them with intention and with the goal of finding out something about your learning style and subject preferences. And don’t forget: have fun! Balance your classes so you can still hang out with friends, join clubs, and take care of yourself.