If you look at your curriculum carefully, you’ll notice that you have room for something called a “general elective.”

Some majors even have room for several! Here’s the crazy part: your advisor will tell you that you can choose any class at Auburn. Auburn has a lot of classes. There are a lot of variables in play. This makes finding the right elective quite a task.

You must first decide if you want to take an actual class or an easy A. Let me help you: go for the easy A. If you need further convincing, look at your entire curriculum. Something tells me you will be sufficiently challenged during your time at Auburn. Don’t take yourself so seriously. Let loose! Take a fun class! 

That’s all well and good, but how do you find the “fun” classes? Well, these gems are hidden among layers and layers of undecipherable CRN’s (what does that even mean?) and split up among their respective subjects. (In case you were wondering, there is no “fun electives” subject.) Unfortunately, the only way to find these classes without getting lost in the CRN shuffle is to know exactly what you’re looking for. Ask an older (and, therefore, wiser) student what electives they’ve taken to get you started.

Great news! I’ve done that for you. I’ve asked two students and a new alumna about their “fun elective” experiences. This is, by no means, an exhaustive source for electives, but it is a sample of some of the most popular. This is what they had to say:

Art of Floral Design; HORT 2250

Grace Jenkins, Senior

 I am taking Floral Design this semester. I chose Floral Design because I was looking for something to fill up my schedule, and I have always wanted to learn how to arrange flowers.

The class meets twice a week for an hour and fifty minutes. There is a fee associated with the class, but that is because everything you make in the class, you get to take home! You are paying for the cost of the flowers and materials you use in projects. There is also some studying involved because, believe it or not, there's a lot to learn about flower names, arrangement shapes, floral maintenance, etc.

My favorite thing about the class is bringing my work home. My professor, Dr. Robinson, makes sure that you are proud of what you create in her class. I am always so excited to bring home what I worked so hard on that day! I would recommend this class to anyone who is looking for a fun class and is in any way interested in flowers and floral design. Dr. Robinson is a fantastic and fun teacher—it is so obvious how much she loves teaching the class. The class is also a huge stress reliever after I've had a long day. I love coming into a calm class environment and smelling some flowers. I get so excited for the lab!

Aquatics: Beginning Kayaking; PHED 1710

Jeremy Williams, Class of 2016

I’d heard that you go on a kayaking trip and then the class is over, which turned out to be true. The class meets once a week until you go on a weekend-long kayaking trip, and there’s no homework. The class is pretty big, but they split it up into five trips so there only ends up being ten or so people per trip. The trip is really fun—you kayak during the day and then camp out by the river overnight.

There’s an extra $300 fee (outside of tuition) that covers rentals and equipment for the trip. I would definitely recommend taking this class if you get a chance. It’s a great time, and if you get an earlier trip then you get an A in the middle of the semester and never have to think about it again. 

Team Sports: Badminton; PHED 1400

Malik Robertson, Senior

I am currently enrolled in badminton. I really enjoyed playing the game in high school. It’s very relaxing, and with my major, electrical engineering, you need a class to take your mind off things. 

There are some assignments, but they’re not particularly difficult or time-consuming. Basically, there are a few online quizzes to complete throughout the semester. You can take them as they approach or, as I did, knock them out all at once.

My favorite thing about badminton is that it’s very competitive, but I’ve also made great friendships through it. I’ve met some amazing people that I think I’ll stay in contact with well after this semester is over.  

I really enjoy going to this class. It’s something that brightens my day when things aren’t going particularly well. Even when I’m having a good day it’s nice to have fifty minutes of downtime in an otherwise rigid schedule. That being said, I would absolutely recommend this class to my peers. It’s a lot of fun and it’s something everyone can do.

Like I said, these are just a few of the fun electives Auburn offers. Ask around! There are so many great options. Have you taken a great elective? Share it with us in the comments below. We’d love to hear about it!

Be well, Auburn.

Photography: Julia B.