It comes twice a school year: that giddy feeling students get when they start to select their classes for the next semester. Some will choose all afternoon classes so they don’t have to wake up as early. Some will hunt for classes with a particular professor or an area of interest that catches their eye. But most, hopefully, will carefully select classes that work to turn items from red to blue on their advancing degree audits.

While there are specific majors at Iowa State where students are not given their registration access number, known as RAN, before personally sitting with an adviser, there are other areas that give students a high degree of freedom to schedule their classes independently. When making the tough decisions on which class you’ll take next during your time at Iowa State, understanding how it will contribute to your goal of graduating is an important, if not the only, thing to consider.

Unfortunately, some students still find themselves in an uncomfortable place when they’ve reached what they believe to be their final year of school, but discover that they will not be able to meet all requirements to graduate on time. This can be a hard thing to accept, but there are many ways to make sure you don’t find yourself in this position.

The first thing to keep in mind is that you should be careful when taking advice on classes from your peers. Different majors have different requirements for graduation and what worked for one student might not be the right direction for you. When looking for advice, the best option is to always go see your adviser first. This individual should be someone you can create a plan with, that will help you get across the graduation stage in the time frame you are hoping for. If you are struggling to work with an adviser, or even get an appointment scheduled, don’t be afraid to ask to switch to someone new or take up the issue with someone else in the department. Graduating on time, which will certainly save you money and time, is not an issue to take lightly or be shy about.

And no, it is not OK to look toward your adviser during what you believed to be your final semester of school and pass the blame of not graduating to them. College is the time to take charge of your own life, which includes making responsible choices in what classes will lead you to wearing a cap and gown in the foreseeable future. Don’t understand the requirements to graduate within your major? Set up a meeting with a knowledgable source, research and take responsibility of your own future.

It also most likely won’t fly to complain or throw a fit if you discover too late that you are not on graduation track. It won’t magically change anything, and no, the school will most likely not look the other way on a class that you failed to pass or take in time.

Creating a four-year plan is really not that difficult. Advisers are there to help you when needed, all you have to do is ask. Don’t just look for the easy, conveniently timed or fun classes. Look for right mix of courses that will see you reaching your educational goals in a timely fashion. Go over your degree audit, which can be found on your Accessplus account, frequently to make sure that there won’t be any surprises later on.

Meeting graduation requirements is your own responsibility. Take the time to make sure that you are headed in the right direction when it comes to courses, so you can get that diploma you’ve been working for.