Generally, these people would rather face a single, highly challenging task than two or three simpler ones.



For them, a one-course-at-a-time academic structure makes more sense than a traditional semester system. Almost all offer degree programs in which students take a single course in a reduced time frame rather than taking several courses simultaneously during a traditional sixteen week semester.

It might surprise you to find out that three relatively small liberal arts colleges also employ calendars designed to allow students to pursue a degree one course at a time. Colorado College, one of the three, developed what it calls the Block Plan more than thirty years ago. The plan divides the traditional academic year into eight blocks of three and a half weeks each. Depending on the material to be covered, a student may be enrolled in a single course for one block or more.

At Iowa's Cornell College, the academic year also consists of eight terms of three and a half weeks, with students enrolling in a single course per term.

Tusculum College, in Greeneville, Tennessee calls its system a focused calendar. The Tusculum calendar consists of four blocks per semester, with a four day break between blocks. Three optional blocks are offered during the summer.

There are lots of differences between the three aforementioned colleges. Colorado College is far more selective than the other two, and Cornell is more selective than Tusculum. The cities or towns in which they are located offer very different environments, as do the campuses themselves. But, the websites of all three tout the same potential advantages of their academic calendars; the time to focus on and learn a subject, the luxury of keeping a lab project or interesting discussion going longer than would otherwise be possible, and the chance to study with a professor who does not have to devote time and energy to other classes.

If you like the idea of taking one course at a time, and if the advantages of a block schedule appeal to you, one or more of these three unique colleges may be good options for you.