By Diedra Eby
Pima Community College West Campus. Photo courtesy of the Pima Foundation Events Archive.
Two times a semester I get so excited – wrapping up the semester knowing I’ve finished another term, and registering for the next session. It’s that time of year again. What courses do you have on your mind? You’ll want to sign up as soon as possible, because the best ones fill up quickly! Here’s some ideas for those wondering what classes to enroll in:
ANT 110: Buried Cities and Lost Tribes. I know this one personally; I took it my first semester here at Pima. Dr. Claypatch’s enthusiasm was so infectious that I’m thinking of majoring in anthropology/archeology when I transfer to the University of Arizona. I could quote to you the nitty-gritty the catalogue says, but the fun stuff is that you get to examine really ancient artifacts and talk about myths and scams that have happened in archaeology.
Did you know people made fake mummies and tried to pass them off as real and actually got away with it? Eventually, of course, they were found out or I wouldn’t be telling you about it now. In this class, you’ll find out which ones were faked and how the scammers did it. And yes, you get to examine arrowheads and skeletons from ancient hominids! Well, I could write this whole article on just this one class, but for those interested in other fields, there’s plenty more to discover!
Some people are more into recent history. That would be covered in AJS 205: Forensic Pathology Death Investigation. This class does have a prerequisite of AJS 204: Criminal Investigations (which has a prerequisite of AJS 115: Criminal Procedures, which has a prerequisite of AJS 101 and 109: Intro to Administration of Justice Systems and Criminal Law, respectively). Once you get through all those, you can look forward to learning the principles of forensic pathology including identifying postmortem changes, sudden and unexpected suspicious and violent deaths, postmortem identification, use of autopsy findings and death scene investigation to determine the cause and manner of death for “deaths that fall under the jurisdiction of the medical examiner in the state of Arizona.” Not for the faint of heart… or stomach, I imagine.
If you’re feeling a little queasy, perhaps you should get in touch with someone in the NRS 110: Introduction to Practical Nursing program. It’s my understanding that the high quality of PCC’s nursing program means that it is full well in advance, so apply early. Don’t wait until January and expect there to be room left in these classes!
Perhaps while you’re waiting for an opening, you can turn your mind to existential problems with a philosophy class. I suggest PHI 155: Wisdom of the World, where you will be introduced to the “founding philosophical traditions of the world.” You will be studying both male and female philosophers and their anthropology and theology. It includes metaphysics, epistemology and ethics.
That class will you give you plenty to write, and speaking of writing: take JRN 185: Media Production and write for The Pima Post! Have your story posted next to mine. If magazine production is more your style, sign up for WRT 162: Literary Magazine Work. All that philosophizing may have put you in the mood for poetry. Try WRT 125 Beginning Poetry Writing or WRT 205: Introduction to Poetry Writing (Prerequisite: WRT 102).
There are also some more specialized writing courses here at PCC:
PAR211 Legal Writing. This course offers the principles and techniques of legal writing, including litigation documents and correspondence, editing and proofreading (Prerequisite: PAR 105, 202, WRT 102).
WRT 254 Adv Professional Communication. Business writing and communications strategies and practices for professionals.
GTW 101 Writing for Trades/Tech Occupation. Reading trade and technical text critically and applied writing components.
Need something different to write about? Try one of the POS Political Science classes or even a Political Science Internship with POS 290 at a governmental or other political office or advocacy group. (Prereq. WRT 101).
You could also write about what you learn in PSY 101: INTRO to Psychology. I can tell you from firsthand experience that this is a fascinating class. You remember those experiments undertaken at Yale University (the Milgram experiments) in the 1960s to investigate obedience to authority? You’ll get to find out more about them in this class. If you don’t know about them, now’s your chance. Ask your parents or your grandparents. These experiments tell you why the Nazis were so easily able to acquire people to do their dirty work. Yes, I know that was a nasty little teaser, but everyone with a cell phone is always wanting to look up something on Google. I’ve just given you something to research. Go for it.
I’m assuming PSY 101 is pretty tame because PCC also offers PSY 214: Abnormal Psychology (Prerequisite: PSY 101 – may be waived with instructor’s consent).
But wait, there are plenty other interesting Psychology classes. I’d just like to point out this one: PSY 262: Positive Psychology. “Overview and application of psychological principles relevant to the nature of happiness and psychological well-being as opposed to dysfunction and symptoms of mental disorders.” Sounds interesting!
Don’t forget to sign up for your language classes:
Japanese, Chinese, German, French, American Sign Language, Arabic and Spanish.
Finally, a reminder that some of you will need to take STU 100: College Success/Career Planning or STU 107: University Transfer Exploration & College Success as you plan your path to the University of Arizona or another university, or STU 210: UA University of Arizona Transition. It’s recommended that you speak to a counselor or advisor prior to enrolling in this particular course.
If you haven’t done so yet, STU 106: Choosing Major/College Success can help you choose your major.
You might also consider taking STU 102: Personal Finance to keep your finances on track. The knowledge you gain in this class will serve you for the rest of your life.
Remember that some classes fill up quickly, so don’t wait until the last minute to sign up for your favorites. Good luck, and see you next semester!