Those students staying in Sacramento this summer might want to consider the expanded version of Sacramento State?s summer semester. This semester operates from June 4 through August 26 and offers a wide variety of classes in several different fields of study.

This is the second summer that Year Round Operation has been operating at Sac State.

Last summer the only courses offered through YRO were classes in the education, nursing and social work fields. This year, Sac State has increased the number of courses offered during the 12-week summer semester.

Although classes are still being offered through the old system of Regional and Continuing Education, students can get more for their money by taking multiple courses through YRO.

YRO fees for undergraduates are $445 for six units or less and $745 for seven or more units. The reason for the lower cost of YRO is that many of the miscellaneous campus fees are reduced during the summer semester. These summer semester fees are considerably lower than the fall and spring semesters, which range from $635.50 to 935.50.

Enrollment for the summer semester has increased greatly from last year. Approximately 2,650 students are expected to take advantage of the lower fees and extra semester so they can finish their education more quickly than before. This number is more than double the number the students that enrolled last summer.

It is projected that by the year 2002 Sac State will have 4,000 students participating in YRO, and that number should increase by about 25 percent each year after that.

“YRO and RCE combined should reach a total of about 5,000 students this summer,” said Larry Glasmire, director of special programs and enrollment analyst.

With enrollment increasing at a steady pace, the number of courses being offered must increase as well. Most courses are either offered through RCE or YRO, but not through both programs at the same time. This issue could pose scheduling nightmares for the student trying to juggle a course load in the summer.

Another issue is the number of seats offered for the more popular courses. General Education requirements such as English 20 only have two courses available this summer. With the enrollment increase, these types of classes will have to be increased during the summer, as well.

“Sac State has tried to offer courses in the summer that have either had a high demand in previous summers or that have had a high demand during the fall and spring semesters,” Glasmire said.

This will be the last summer that a combined RCE and YRO schedule will be in effect.

“Next summer, all of what is offered will be under the state-supported YRO program,” Glasmire said.

Course schedules are available at the Hornet Bookstore or can be viewed online at http://www.csus.edu/webpages/schedule.htm.