Spring Semester Courses at AACC: A Comprehensive Guide

Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) offers a diverse range of courses each spring semester, catering to students with varied academic and professional goals. Whether you're embarking on your college journey or seeking a new direction, AACC provides accessible and career-focused programs. This guide provides essential information to help you navigate the spring semester at AACC, from registration to course formats.

Registration Information

When to Register

Early registration is highly recommended to secure your preferred courses and class sections. Spring registration typically opens in November. Winter term registration begins in October and registration for summer classes begins in March. Keep an eye on the AACC website for specific dates. For instance, registration for winter classes opened on Oct. 8. Now that you’ve applied, taken your placement tests and met with an academic advisor, you can register for credit courses at AACC!

How to Register

Registering for classes online is the most efficient method. Access Student Planning, Scheduling, and Registration through your MyAACC account. This platform allows you to register for classes, track your progress, set up payment plans, make tuition payments, and check your financial aid status.

Late Registration

While it is critical to finalize your schedule well before the first day of class, AACC understands that unforeseen circumstances may necessitate schedule changes. If a class remains open in the course search, you may be able to register after the first scheduled day of the session. For online, online sync, hybrid, and hybrid sync classes, you generally have until the end of the first day of the session to register. Note that registering during this later period often requires department approval.

Dropping a Class and Refunds

Students have a limited window to drop a class and receive a full refund. Specifically, you may drop the class for two calendar days after the date of the first scheduled class meeting to be eligible for a full refund.

Read also: Understanding AACC Tuition

Course Formats

AACC recognizes that students have diverse learning preferences and scheduling needs. To accommodate this, a variety of course formats are available:

Online Courses

AACC's online credit courses are delivered through Canvas, a learning management platform. Online noncredit courses are also offered through Canvas, and the college partners with outside vendors to provide an extended catalog of noncredit classes.

Online (Asynchronous): These courses offer flexibility, allowing you to complete coursework on your own schedule. You are not required to log in or meet at scheduled times. All essential instruction is provided through the learning management platform and may use other online tools, resources, and activities. However, it is not self-paced.
Online Sync (Synchronous): These courses meet regularly online at specified dates and times, requiring online attendance. Further instructions regarding required online attendance will be included in a section note. These classes have some scheduled online meetings and then all additional instruction delivered online with no scheduled meetings.

Keep in mind that some online courses may require you to take exams at a testing center. Others may have proctored exams that will not be accessible on a mobile device and will require the use of a webcam and microphone. If you are new to online learning, you will be automatically enrolled in "Virtual Campus Orientation" (VCO-101).

Hybrid Courses

Hybrid courses combine on-site meetings with an online component. The online portion can be either online (asynchronous) or online sync (synchronous). If online, then the online portion of your class does not have real-time, virtual meetings. If online sync, then there may be times that you are required to meet virtually in real time. For these courses, you are not required to log in or meet at scheduled times online. However, you are required to attend the specific on-site meeting dates and times. All essential online instruction will be provided through the learning management platform and may use other online tools, resources and activities.

Face-to-Face Courses

Traditional face-to-face courses meet in a classroom setting.

Course Lengths

AACC offers courses in various lengths to suit different schedules and learning styles:

15-week session: These are traditional-length courses that begin at the start of the fall and spring terms. For example, a 15-week session might run from Aug. 25 - Dec.
13-week session: These courses often start two weeks after the start of a term. For example, a 13-week session might run from Sept. 8 - Dec.
Eight-week courses: These accelerated courses allow you to complete classes in almost half the time of traditional courses. These courses will have longer class meeting times and can master course content at an accelerated rate. Examples of eight-week sessions are: Aug. 25 - Oct. and Oct. 20 - Dec.
Four-week courses: The most accelerated option, often offered during the winter term.

Regardless of the course length, the same amount of information will be covered, and the same amount of coursework will be completed.

Important Dates

The following dates, extracted from the provided information, are relevant for planning your spring semester:

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Winter registration begins: Oct.
Spring registration begins: Nov.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Jan.
15-week session: Aug. 25 - Dec.
First eight-week session: Aug. 25 - Oct.
13-week session: Sept. 8 - Dec.
Second eight-week session: Oct. 20 - Dec.
Winter classes start: Dec. 15 and Jan.

Equivalent Hour Courses

Courses numbered 000-099 are equivalent hour courses designed to support success in college-level work. Academic credit is not awarded for these courses, and the grades earned are not calculated in the GPA. Equivalent hour courses cannot be used towards graduation. However, hours spent in these courses are included in computing enrollment load and tuition.

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