<p>After you complete your first semester, if your GPA is a 3.0 or above, you can request permission to overload.</p>
<p>[Overloads</a> : Center for Academic Support](<a href=“http://www.rochester.edu/college/ccas/AdviserHandbook/Overloads.html]Overloads”>Overloads : Advising Handbook : College Center for Advising Services : University of Rochester)</p>
<p>With permission, students may take up to 23 credits/semester. (Above that you’ll owe extra tuition.)</p>
<p>You can take your cluster coursework at any time during your college education. </p>
<p>D2 took her cluster courses when they best fit into her schedule. With a double science major, there were some semesters when she needed to take 4 or 5 science/math classes because of course sequencing necessities and because of when required classes were offered. </p>
<p>(You should realize that because UR is a small school, not all courses are offered every semester or even offered every year. Many upper level classes are offered only one semester every other year. You’ll need to sit down a create a ‘roadmap’ to make sure that you fulfill your major requirements. D2 set up a spreadsheet about halfway thru her sophomore to make she got all the classes she needed. Then she had to change it midway thru last year when one of required classes was unexpectedly cancelled at the last minute and rescheduled for the next year.)</p>
<p>D2 has taken 21-23 credits/semester pretty routinely. She says 5 science classes (with
required labs and recitations) a semester is exhausting. 3 or 4 science classes plus 1-2 non-science classes is much more manageable. </p>
<p>And don’t forget that academics is only part of the demands on your time–you’ll also need to figure in time for a part time job, social activities, sports, hobbies, lab research, community service, etc.</p>
<p>D2 didn’t take any summer classes–summers were for either working or doing internships.</p>
<p>And you should take a look at UR’s summer course offerings–there are not many upper level courses offered. And if you want to take courses to fulfill your major at a different school, you need to get written permission in advance from the department.</p>