Fairmont State University students have faced many new experiences over the last two semesters – from remote learning in the spring to masked, in-person classes this fall – they have adapted to the evolving landscape of higher education during a global pandemic. And now, as students have left campus for an extended winter break, many have chosen to enroll in Fairmont State’s first-ever Winter Term.
The new, optional Winter Term provides current and transient students a chance to earn credit-hours online over the course of a five-week period, from November 30 through January 6.
“Adjusting the academic calendar provided us an opportunity to do something I have been wanting to do since my arrival – create a Winter Term that will afford our students yet another opportunity to succeed,” said Fairmont State President Mirta M. Martin.
Winter Term courses provide several benefits to students including the opportunity to retake a challenging course, ease course loads in upcoming spring or fall semesters, receive more one-on-one attention from instructors or satisfy requirements for a degree to trim the path to graduation. Students may enroll in one course during Winter Term or choose to earn internship or field work experience.
Taylor Griffith, a senior healthcare management student, said she chose to enroll in a human resources management course over the Winter Term so that she can graduate sooner.
“I chose this class because I have a plan to graduate a year early and for me to do that, I had to load down on seven classes each semester, but I was left with one extra class. The Winter Term helped me reach my graduation goal date,” Griffith said.
Sharon Carpenter, who is studying history at Fairmont State, chose to use the Winter Term to complete her general education requirements.
“I’m enrolled in Math 1407 and I wanted to get it knocked out so I can just focus on my major-related classes for my last two semesters,” Carpenter said.
Griffith said the virtual class format from the spring semester in addition to the blended format in the fall have enhanced her comfort level with online classes.
“Out of the seven classes I took this fall, six of them were online, so I don’t think the virtual format will be hard to understand considering I have a whole semester of it under my belt,” Griffith said.
The deadline to register for Fairmont State’s Winter Term is Tuesday, December 1. Costs are consistent per-credit hour with spring and fall semester tuition rates: $885 for undergraduate courses and $1,254 for graduate courses. For more information and to view a full list of available courses, visit www.fairmontstate.edu/winter-term.
