The first sim I put through university started out with four courses his first term. At first I felt very overwhelmed, and despite finishing off that term with straight A's he had no social life to speak of and wasn't doing too hot overall. Second term I decided to tone it down a bit and picked two courses + one elective. But due to how hectic the first term was and I managed, the second term felt too empty since I was already in the mindset of a full course term. Third term I reverted back to four courses, but this time it was a breeze. His last term he only needed one credit to graduate so I also shoved him into the spirit corps, and he finally developed more of a social life.
His brother started out with three courses, but due to his scholarship he had to join the esports team on the side which was not so much hectic as it was annoying, poor thing only had Sundays off. I didn't re-enroll right away for the second term and he worked on his robotics skill on his own for a while before continuing his studies, without the esports scholarship. He finished his remaining terms in threes, and partook in robotics.
I'd say my happy medium is 3 courses (or 2+1 elective) if I'm also joining an organisation or have some sort of other activity on the side, otherwise I definitely prefer a full term.
3 classes, but I have 2 sims attending. I actually think 2 would be best if you want to experience everything Uni life has to offer. I feel that I should also mention my sims are struggling, with the 3 classes...one of them is on academic probation lol
I just got the pack for Christmas so I've just barely dipped my toes into the pool of all DU has to offer. My first student started out Rags to Riches basically living in the Commons and Library. Once she hacked her way to a tidy bundle of simoleons, I had her apply for scholarships. She was awarded 2 of 3 and qualified for a Distinguished degree in Computer Science at Foxbury when accepted. She's currently living in a room by herself in the Tidal dorm with seven other all female dormmates.
So far she's only attended each class once so a long way to go yet. I'm having a lot of fun with it so far. One of a few flies in the ointment is how other Sims are constantly pestering her to chat. I've resorted to locking her dorm room door to everyone, including her, just so she'll stay put and do her coursework and can hack in peace. o.O She has a bike, but I tell her to walk to class and so far she's made it on time or early to two, but a tiny bit late for one since two classes are scheduled only 5 minutes apart and in different buildings. Sheesh! How do they expect her to get there on time without cheating?
All the food her dormmates pull out of the bathroom mirror is annoying, they're all slobs, won't fix anything, constantly are dancing with the music on full blast and two of them play the violin at all hours. I've read that's realistic for a college dorm, but it seems a bit over-the-top to me. *shrugs*
Anyway, we'll see how it goes from here on out. I might just have her live off campus for the next semesters. Or rent out rooms in her own house if she can afford it by then. We'll see...
First semester she took three classes and, while it was doable, I felt like there wasn't time to have any fun at all, so now she's taking two per term and it feels about right.
In an established household with a pet, a spouse, high quality furniture and decent skills 4 classes are perfectly doable. I wouldn't do that to beginner sims, least of all if they lived in the dorms.
Three classes is what I can handle. Also, that is four "years", which at least over here is as long as it usually takes IRL.
My Sim changed major after the first year though, and lost two of three credits. So she's doing three classes a year and five years total.
I had a hard time deciding between 2 and 3 classes. I have tested having 2, 3 and 4 classes.
I hated 4 classes because my sims were too busy and really could not socialize. I guess if I wanted to rush a sim through University, I would choose 4.
Three classes felt like a good balance but I couldn't imagine adding anything else to the mix like an organization, secret society, soccer, etc. There would probably be no time to socialize.
I think I am going to stick with two classes. When I did it the first time, I almost felt like my sims had too much time. I have added an internet cafe\bowling alley\arcade to the town. Now they have more things to do and more places to hang out so I want them to enjoy Uni before they have to start working and be responsible...LOL
Edit: I also pause aging because I consider University like a different age stage.
Three classes felt like a good balance but I couldn't imagine adding anything else to the mix like an organization, secret society, soccer, etc. There would probably be no time to socialize.
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Edit: I also pause aging because I consider University like a different age stage.
I find three classes + one (1) Society / Organization is very doable. My whole system would break down if I joined another one, tho. So I went for the Bot Savants and that's it.
And yeah... I can't imagine playing on Normal Lifespan without paused aging. That's like half of your YA period just... gone. On Long Lifespan, where you have 90+ days as YA, 28 of them is still a lot. So I pause it for just that reason; IRL four years in your 20's is hardly as impactful as four weeks in the Sims, even on Long Lifespan.
After playing DU for a month now, I realized that 3 classes per term is the ideal number for my style of gameplay. Usually 2 main ones and 1 elective, so they can work on some skills.
3 classes (either 2 core and 1 elective or 3 core) for most cases. This gives the proper pressure for my game style that's fun. Sometimes they fall behind and do badly but at 2 classes I'll have an A+ in every class with no real pressure.
I do 4 Classes per Term for the first two Terms, then I do three per Term and then one or two and two or one Class per Term till it runs out; it depends on whether i'm ready to leave, what the GPA looks like and if I've finished everything I set out to do, lol.
Comments
His brother started out with three courses, but due to his scholarship he had to join the esports team on the side which was not so much hectic as it was annoying, poor thing only had Sundays off. I didn't re-enroll right away for the second term and he worked on his robotics skill on his own for a while before continuing his studies, without the esports scholarship. He finished his remaining terms in threes, and partook in robotics.
I'd say my happy medium is 3 courses (or 2+1 elective) if I'm also joining an organisation or have some sort of other activity on the side, otherwise I definitely prefer a full term.
So far she's only attended each class once so a long way to go yet. I'm having a lot of fun with it so far. One of a few flies in the ointment is how other Sims are constantly pestering her to chat. I've resorted to locking her dorm room door to everyone, including her, just so she'll stay put and do her coursework and can hack in peace. o.O She has a bike, but I tell her to walk to class and so far she's made it on time or early to two, but a tiny bit late for one since two classes are scheduled only 5 minutes apart and in different buildings. Sheesh! How do they expect her to get there on time without cheating?
All the food her dormmates pull out of the bathroom mirror is annoying, they're all slobs, won't fix anything, constantly are dancing with the music on full blast and two of them play the violin at all hours. I've read that's realistic for a college dorm, but it seems a bit over-the-top to me. *shrugs*
Anyway, we'll see how it goes from here on out. I might just have her live off campus for the next semesters. Or rent out rooms in her own house if she can afford it by then. We'll see...
Happy Simming!
I just pause aging.
My Sim changed major after the first year though, and lost two of three credits. So she's doing three classes a year and five years total.
I hated 4 classes because my sims were too busy and really could not socialize. I guess if I wanted to rush a sim through University, I would choose 4.
Three classes felt like a good balance but I couldn't imagine adding anything else to the mix like an organization, secret society, soccer, etc. There would probably be no time to socialize.
I think I am going to stick with two classes. When I did it the first time, I almost felt like my sims had too much time. I have added an internet cafe\bowling alley\arcade to the town. Now they have more things to do and more places to hang out so I want them to enjoy Uni before they have to start working and be responsible...LOL
Edit: I also pause aging because I consider University like a different age stage.
I find three classes + one (1) Society / Organization is very doable. My whole system would break down if I joined another one, tho. So I went for the Bot Savants and that's it.
And yeah... I can't imagine playing on Normal Lifespan without paused aging. That's like half of your YA period just... gone. On Long Lifespan, where you have 90+ days as YA, 28 of them is still a lot. So I pause it for just that reason; IRL four years in your 20's is hardly as impactful as four weeks in the Sims, even on Long Lifespan.