Social Science and Policy Studies- C and D Terms

Course Planning Specifics: Social Science and Policy Studies

You will register for C and D term classes in November. 

In addition to the course recommendations below that are specific to your major, each student must complete 4 PE courses in their four years at WPI. You are welcome to add a Physical Education and Wellness course to any term. PE courses are worth 1/12 unit, unlike major subjects discussed in course recommendations which are worth 1/3 unit, and can be taken in addition to the 3 courses recommended below. 

For more information on the degree requirements for your major click here.

C Term Recommendations

Students interested in these major programs should begin by choosing a social science course of interest as your first course. The available subjects are:

  • Economics (ECON)
  • Environmental Studies (ENV)
  • Government, Political Science, and Law (GOV)
  • Psychology (PSY)
  • System Dynamics (SD)
  • Sociology (SOC)
  • Social Science (SS)
  • Society/Technology Studies (STS)

GPS stands for Great Problems Seminar is a course that is exclusively for first year students and allow students to learn about a problem in the world and work with a group on how to fix it. These courses are helpful with the transition to college as well as useful for students when preparing for projects such as IQP and MQP in junior and senior year. GPS courses run for both A and B term, so you will only need to choose one. For more information click here.

Every student at WPI must complete the Humanities and Arts (HUA) Requirement. This consists of 6 courses in HUA subjects. The subjects available for HUA are:

  • Art (AR)
  • Music (MU)
  • Drama/Theatre (EN/TH)
  • Foreign Language- Spanish (SP), German (GN), Arabic (AB), Chinese (CN)
    • For Spanish Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Angel Rivera (arivera@wpi.edu)
    • For German Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Daniel DiMassa (ddimassa@wpi.edu)
    • For Arabic Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Mohammed El Hamzaoui (melhamzaoui@wpi.edu)
    • For Chinese Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Wen-Hua Du (wdu2@wpi.edu)
    • For English Language (International Students) Information, Please Email: Professor Althea Danielski (amdanielski@wpi.edu) and Professor Esther Boucher-Yip (efboucher@wpi.edu)
  • Literature (EN)
  • Writing/Rhetoric (WR, RH)
  • International Student English (ISE)
  • History (HI)
  • International Studies (INTL)
  • Philosophy (PY)
  • Religion (RE)

 

Students interested in pursuing a degree in Social Science should consider taking a Math or Science course as their third course. 

If you are considering a science, please consider an introductory course in Biology, Chemistry, or Physics. Some examples include CH 1020, PH 1120/1121, BB 1001, and BB 1025. 

D Term Recommendations

Students interested in these major programs should begin by choosing a social science course of interest as your first course. The available subjects are:

  • Economics (ECON)
  • Environmental Studies (ENV)
  • Government, Political Science, and Law (GOV)
  • Psychology (PSY)
  • System Dynamics (SD)
  • Sociology (SOC)
  • Social Science (SS)
  • Society/Technology Studies (STS)

Every student at WPI must complete the Humanities and Arts (HUA) Requirement. This consists of 6 courses in HUA subjects. The subjects available for HUA are:

  • Art (AR)
  • Music (MU)
  • Drama/Theatre (EN/TH)
  • Foreign Language- Spanish (SP), German (GN), Arabic (AB), Chinese (CN)
    • For Spanish Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Angel Rivera (arivera@wpi.edu)
    • For German Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Daniel DiMassa (ddimassa@wpi.edu)
    • For Arabic Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Mohammed El Hamzaoui (melhamzaoui@wpi.edu)
    • For Chinese Placement Information, Please Email: Professor Wen-Hua Du (wdu2@wpi.edu)
    • For English Language (International Students) Information, Please Email: Professor Althea Danielski (amdanielski@wpi.edu) and Professor Esther Boucher-Yip (efboucher@wpi.edu)
  • Literature (EN)
  • Writing/Rhetoric (WR, RH)
  • International Student English (ISE)
  • History (HI)
  • International Studies (INTL)
  • Philosophy (PY)
  • Religion (RE)

 

Students interested in pursuing a degree in Social Science should consider taking a Math or Science course as their third course. 

If you are considering a science, please consider an introductory course in Biology, Chemistry, or Physics. Some examples include CH 1020, PH 1120/1121, BB 1001, and BB 1025. 

Once you go through the above recommendations, please be sure to review Registration Information so you know how to register on November 15th.

Registration Information

To build your schedule you should use the Course Listings page and the WPI Planner. Below are instructions on how to use the Planner tool and how to search for courses before inputting this information into Workday, WPI's registration platform.

  1. Navigate to the WPI Planner.
  2. On the first tab, select the class subject area you are interested in (ex. Chemistry, Mathematical Sciences). Note: Great Problems Seminars are listed under First Year.
  3. Once you select the subject, the available courses will appear. As you select courses, they will appear in the box at the bottom right.
    • You should select three courses for each term. It is also a good idea to identify some back-up schedules in case your first choices are full when you register.
    • You can also select a Physical Education course, and 1/6 unit music courses, as an additional fourth course in addition to your three courses. This is common for first year students.
    • ROTC Members: please select your Military Science course in addition to your three courses. Your Physical Training will count towards your physical education requirement, so you do not need to select PE courses.
  4. On the second tab, Time, you can eliminate times of day you do not want classes. Note: This may limit your course options, so use this one sparingly.
  5. The third tab, Schedules, shows all the possible schedules that can result from your course selections. Make sure you are looking at the correct term, and look to see if there is any overlap between class times. You can change the term you would like to take the course by clicking on the term bubbles.
    • When you are satisfied with how your schedule looks it is time to identify the sections of the classes you plan to register for.
    • At the top of the Schedules tab, you will see two boxes, one labeled “Grid” and another labeled “Detail.” Click the “Detail” box to see a listing of selected courses with information including course name, course section, professor, location, and meeting days and times.

PRE-REGISTRATION PREP​

  • Watch the 10 min. overview video
  • Login to Workday​
  • Use Find Course Sections to build at least one Saved Schedule for C-Term, D-Term, and if you're taking any 10 or 14 week classes, Spring Semester (instructions)​​​

November 15, 7AM ET: REGISTER​

  • Login to Workday​
  • Open a browser tab or window for C-Term, D-Term, and Spring Semester (if you have any 10 or 14 week classes) and View My Saved Schedules for each​
  • [Optional] Open tabs for alternate course sections from other Saved Schedules or search results​
  • When registration opens, click Start Registration, then click Register (instructions)
  • Open View My Courses, scroll right to Drop or Swap (instructions)​
  • Waitlisted? If a spot opens, a notification will be sent to your WPI email asking you to login to Workday and take action