The purpose behind an add-drop period is to allow students to explore various classes and determine whether the workload, subject matter, material taught and time slot of a particular class appeal to them or not. It enables students to truly explore their own interests, consider the other intellectual endeavors they are missing out on for a particular class and make informed decisions on which classes they take for an entire semester. Add-drop period allows Amherst students to be the intellectually curious students that we are supposed to be. Exploring different classes and professors and determining interests, students are given a rare opportunity to explore the range of subject matter that can be studied. It gives students the intellectual freedom to maximize their options. In a sense, it represents the ideal of a liberal arts education.
But, practically speaking, an add-drop period also presents a difficulty for the professors. Professors must begin lecturing during the first week of classes because the semester is relatively short, and having to wait for the official class roster to come in two weeks after lectures have started may not only interfere with lectures but also with the intellectual relationships that professors and students develop. As a result, many professors automatically drop students who miss even a single class meeting during add-drop period.
This presents a difficulty for students who find classes that fit their interests but then are shut out of a class, or who may be interested in a class class but was motivated to explore other class options scheduled for the same time slot. While this appears unjust to students at first glance, it has an easy solution. If students were to talk to professors beforehand about sitting in on the lectures and deciding after two weeks whether or not to enroll in the course, the professors would most likely permit them to sit in and "shop" their class.
Amherst could also adopt a new registration system. After students have enrolled in four classes, perhaps an add-drop registration system could be put into place. This system would allow students to add as many classes as they desired that did not conflict with other classes' time slots and allow professors to identify which students were decided on taking the class and which were still uncertain. The system could be used reciprocally, allowing the student to add and drop the classes he or she wishes to add or drop within the first two weeks. Such a system would resolve the add-drop dilemma facing both professors and students and leave everyone in a much happier intellectual environment.