By Josh Smith, Contributing Writer

Let’s face it, taking any college course is difficult in its own way. There’s loads of homework, tests and quizzes, and probably the hardest of them all, just getting up to go to class! Each course is different, and some require more work than others. This why most college students tend to take an average of 15 credit hours a semester.

This number is seen as very reasonable; however, there are a select few (and I mean few) who mentally and physically need to take more credit hours. I am one of them, and until this semester, I had to pay a fee to take more classes at WLU.

For the past few years, students at WLU who wanted to take over 18 credit hours a semester had to pay a “credit overload fee.” Paying this fee allowed students to take up to 23 credit hours. Unfortunately, this fee cost students $300. I, myself, have fallen victim to this fee two times during my college tenure. That’s $600 out of my pocket. However, starting this fall semester myself and any other student looking to take more credits will no longer have to pay, as WLU recently removed the credit overload fee for students. I could not be happier!

I have many friends who ask me every semester, “How do you take so many credits?” and “Why pay more money for classes?” Two years ago when I was a freshman, I was saying the same thing. I would have never thought of taking more than 18 credit hours. But the more I matured and became an upperclassman, I realized it comes down to organization and mental stability.

I have taken 21 credit hours the past two semesters, and yes, it is a lot of work. But my organizational skills keep me on track, and being in the right mindset allows me to balance my class load with my personal life. I managed to get a 3.85 GPA last semester, while making the Dean’s list. So in the past, I can say I have been willing to pay the $300 fee. But I am ecstatic that it is gone!

I am not the only WLU student who is loving not having to pay the fee any longer. Morgan Campbell, an Education major, could not be more excited. “I have spent over $750 over the years to take extra classes. I will definitely not miss the overload fee!”

Some may think that taking over 18 credit hours a semester is unnecessary and too time-consuming, but to me, taking more hours keeps me sane. I enjoy having to stay organized for my classes and always being “busy.” If I only had a few things to juggle, I would most likely do nothing at all.

Bye-bye credit overload fee. You will not be missed!