Oh, IUPI. I spent my entire life dreaming of coming here. My mom graduated from here, my sisters did too. You were my dream. I was ecstatic when I finally got my acceptance letter. Now I’m here, studying Political Science and enjoying college life. There’s just one thing that terrifies me…It’s Pre-Matricula week and though many already got their classes set, some of us (*cough cough* prepas *cough cough*) have to wait until the 20th. Doing the pre-matricula for the first time can be tricky. You have to remember which classes you have to take and, if you’re like me, that I took the advanced exams and no longer have to take English or Spanish, you have to figure out wether or not you need more spanish credits or if it’s literature courses. Then there’s the classes we got on our first semester and we still don’t know what part they play in the end. Figuring out the time is also fun because you still haven’t gotten your credits for this semester, if you took the APs you don’t know if they count the credits for the pre-matricula or even if they matter. It becomes the IUPI version of “The Hunger Games” and it eventually ends in panic attacks and meltdowns. Well, collegiette, don’t worry. I’m here to tell you you’re not alone.
The first part is figuring out the classes. Prepas, good news, you don’t have to worry about losing your spot in your basic classes because most have a second part, and you’ve already got a secured spot. Classes like CiSo 3121 or, sometimes, Humanities, have a second part and your spot is already reserved in those, meaning you don’t have to re-choose those classes. But if you want to change the time or professor, you can drop out of the class and take another one.Then the fun part comes… the first time logging into the world of Puttytel (or Telnet or Teraterm, they all work the same). I haven’t tried this myself, but I’m told logging with a Mac crashes the system for some reason. Nonetheless, logging into the web isn’t as hard as it seems. When I first asked about it I was told it was a horrible process and that it was Hell. Good news! It’s not as hard. I took a crash course with my Estudiante Orientadora on how to log in and all the different codes and tricks. (Stephanie, I love you for that.) If you know the codes, you should be okay. So here I’ll post the codes!1CP –> Ver Programa de clases1CS–> Ver cursos1S4–> Dar Altas y Bajas11M –> Datos Personales13D –> Direccion Personal1VE–> Ver ExpedienteFIN –> Regresar a pantalla de InicioSO –> Salir
Lastly, the system crashing and the classes being full. As first year students, we get the last turn at choosing our classes. That means we get the last classes, and most times they’re already full. Sucks to be us, right? Well, you can always go to the professor you want and ask them if they accept “sobrecupo”, meaning they let more people into the class than is permitted. But in case they don’t want to or have already accepted too many people in sobrecupo, remember to have a backup class to substitute the first one until you can take it next year.Amidst the breakdowns, meltdowns and panic attacks, remember it’s all worth it in the end and that you are not alone. We are all going through the same system crashes and we are all fighting the same battle for sobrecupo. My advice? Do your pre-matricula with friends so you don’t feel so alone. Make sure to have your class schedule ready and to have backup classes in case you don’t get your first choice. But more importantly, remember it’s a tough process but if you look at it in the right way, it can also be fun. You’ll look back on it and laugh one day… Maybe in 59 years, but you will.
Happy Pre-matricula Week, collegiettes, and may the odds be ever in your favor.