By Lindsey Heckman
Pulse Staff Reporter

Too busy to attend college? For Palo Alto, that's NOT a problem.

Palo Alto College makes attending school and juggling life just a little bit easier with its flexible scheduling. Students have 40+ options to take college courses in one academic year.

For those students who have families or work during the evening, Palo Alto College has an extensive list of classes that are available during the day. The same classes are offered on different days and different times to make it easy to fit into your schedule.

For those students who work during the day, evening and weekend classes are also available. For those who want to work from home, online classes are also an option. Though the options are fewer than the daytime classes, these choices allow those who work full-time during the day the opportunity to attend school.

If you prefer working really hard on only a few classes at a time but still want a full-time load, then the Flex classes that Palo Alto offers are for you. Flex classes begin in August at the same time regular classes do, and they end eight weeks later. After taking finals, students then have the opportunity to take another Flex class, which lasts from 16 week classes midterms until the end of the semester. This allows you to take two courses over the 16 weeks, yet you only have to worry about one class at a time.

For those students where distance education is preferred, Palo Alto participates in Interactive Video courses. This is where according to PACs website, A videoconferencing system utilizes real time audio and video between instructor and students. These courses are offered either to or from a distant site or sites. These courses, though unconventional, still allow for that much needed two-way conferences between an instructor and students.

Palo Alto offers Internet courses. For those of you who cannot attend face-to-face classes for one reason or another, or for those of you who have a constantly changing schedule, this option allows you to go to college in the comfort of your own home. Some associates degrees may be completed entirely online.

If complete Internet learning is not for you, then there are blended courses (hybrids) that combine lecture and Internet: one day on campus and one day online.

Student Success Specialists Louisa Vallejo and Belinda Corley both said that problems with scheduling are not affecting the decisions to attend college. There are so many classes and options to choose from, that there are virtually no excuses. They mentioned that financial reasons are the main cause for students not continuing on to college.

There are too many options to name them all, and over the years, more and more courses have been added to accommodate students schedules. One could only assume that as the school and the needs of our students grow, so will the options.

So, for those of you worrying about how to attend college and deal with the daily struggles of life, dont worry! Palo Alto can work with your schedule to meet your individual needs.