Summer classes remain popular at Iowa universities

Kendra Bogert spends her summer days in University of Iowa classes from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

She takes a language class in the morning - two semesters' worth of Russian in an intensive eight-week course - and spends her afternoons in a ceramics class at the Studio Arts building.

Bogert, 21, loaded up on summer credits to stay on track for graduating in May.

“Also, I thought I should take some summer classes, so I can free up more time to take more ceramics classes in the fall that otherwise I wouldn't have time to take,” said the Drakesville native and ceramics major. “A lot of my friends take summer classes.”

Summer study remains a popular choice for students at the UI, Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa.

“Summer has been really popular and has remained really steady over the past decade or so,” said Doug Lee, UI associate dean for continuing education.

In the past decade, Iowa's three regent universities have seen summer enrollments remain steady, with slight fluctuations of a few hundred each year. Summer 2009 enrollments - official counts for 2010 haven't been taken yet - were 11,012 at the UI, 9,119 at ISU and 5,585 at UNI. At UNI, the majority of summer students are undergraduates, while it's more evenly split between undergrads and graduate students at ISU and the UI.

Flexibility is one reason so many students choose the summer option, officials said. The universities offer different summer sessions of varying lengths. Students can take three-week, six-week or eight-week courses that start at different dates during the summer.

The UI has three official summer sessions but also offers some “off-cycle” courses that contribute to a total of 1,930 summer offerings. ISU has seven sessions that run eight, six and four weeks in length, and offers about 1,100 courses. UNI has three main summer terms, each four weeks long, with three six-week offerings as well.

“The best thing is to have a good variety of offerings at times when students want to go to school,” ISU Registrar Kathy Jones said. “They're not going to want to have a 4 p.m. class five days a week in the summer, so it needs to be attractive to students.”

Summer school can be attractive for faculty, too. Mat Rude, UI assistant professor of ceramics, is teaching atmospheric firing (ceramics firing techniques that use soda ash, salt or wood) this summer. It's a subject he's passionate about but doesn't have time to teach during the regular academic year.

“I see summer courses as a great opportunity to really offer some specialized techniques and maybe even traveling courses,” Rude said. “You kind of have the freedom to develop them.”

Natasha Hovey, 22, is taking Rude's ceramics course. Hovey, a senior from New Hampton majoring in ceramics, has taken summer courses before. She had planned to take this summer off, but the specialty class caught her eye.

“I think it's a good way to get a few extra credits in or to take a class you really want to focus on without having 14 other credits to worry about,” Hovey said.

She hoped to set up a small studio outside, so she could bask in the summer sunshine while going to class.

“That makes it a little easier,” she said.

Kendra Bogert spends her summer days in University of Iowa classes from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

She takes a language class in the morning - two semesters' worth of Russian in an intensive eight-week course - and spends her afternoons in a ceramics class at the Studio Arts building.

Bogert, 21, loaded up on summer credits to stay on track for graduating in May.

“Also, I thought I should take some summer classes, so I can free up more time to take more ceramics classes in the fall that otherwise I wouldn't have time to take,” said the Drakesville native and ceramics major. “A lot of my friends take summer classes.”

Summer study remains a popular choice for students at the UI, Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa.

“Summer has been really popular and has remained really steady over the past decade or so,” said Doug Lee, UI associate dean for continuing education.

In the past decade, Iowa's three regent universities have seen summer enrollments remain steady, with slight fluctuations of a few hundred each year. Summer 2009 enrollments - official counts for 2010 haven't been taken yet - were 11,012 at the UI, 9,119 at ISU and 5,585 at UNI. At UNI, the majority of summer students are undergraduates, while it's more evenly split between undergrads and graduate students at ISU and the UI.

Flexibility is one reason so many students choose the summer option, officials said. The universities offer different summer sessions of varying lengths. Students can take three-week, six-week or eight-week courses that start at different dates during the summer.

The UI has three official summer sessions but also offers some “off-cycle” courses that contribute to a total of 1,930 summer offerings. ISU has seven sessions that run eight, six and four weeks in length, and offers about 1,100 courses. UNI has three main summer terms, each four weeks long, with three six-week offerings as well.

“The best thing is to have a good variety of offerings at times when students want to go to school,” ISU Registrar Kathy Jones said. “They're not going to want to have a 4 p.m. class five days a week in the summer, so it needs to be attractive to students.”

Summer school can be attractive for faculty, too. Mat Rude, UI assistant professor of ceramics, is teaching atmospheric firing (ceramics firing techniques that use soda ash, salt or wood) this summer. It's a subject he's passionate about but doesn't have time to teach during the regular academic year.

“I see summer courses as a great opportunity to really offer some specialized techniques and maybe even traveling courses,” Rude said. “You kind of have the freedom to develop them.”

Natasha Hovey, 22, is taking Rude's ceramics course. Hovey, a senior from New Hampton majoring in ceramics, has taken summer courses before. She had planned to take this summer off, but the specialty class caught her eye.

“I think it's a good way to get a few extra credits in or to take a class you really want to focus on without having 14 other credits to worry about,” Hovey said.

She hoped to set up a small studio outside, so she could bask in the summer sunshine while going to class.

“That makes it a little easier,” she said.