Trimester vs Semester: What’s the Difference?

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• ‘Trimester’ vs ‘semester’ are terms that describe different teaching or curricular periods in an academic year.
• The semester system divides the academic calendar into two terms of 15 weeks each.
• The trimester system divides the academic calendar into three terms and the length varies by institution.
• Neither one is universally better than the other – each has its pros and cons.

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‘Trimester’ and ‘semester’ refers to the terms of teaching periods in an academic year. The semester is a more traditional system, which includes the fall and spring semesters vs the trimester system which has three teaching periods. Most colleges still follow the regular semester system, although the trimester system is becoming increasingly more common in recent years.

Each type of academic calendar has advantages and disadvantages. When looking for colleges, it helps to understand the difference between trimester and semester. This will help you choose one that is a better fit for you, especially when deciding between two colleges that are equally matched in all other aspects.

What is a Semester?

A semester is the traditional academic structure. You’ll likely be familiar with this system as most high schools plan their calendar around this structure.

In the semester system, the academic calendar is divided into two terms of about 15 weeks each. The first is the fall semester or fall term, which starts in August and ends in December.  The second is the spring semester or spring term, which starts in January and ends in May. If you enroll in a college that uses the semester system, you will take about four to five classes on average per semester. The final exams are scheduled at the end of each semester.

Most students find it easier to adapt to the semester system as it is the same system they would have followed in high school.

What is a Trimester?

A trimester divides the academic year into three terms instead of two terms as in a semester. In this case, the academic calendar usually starts around early to mid-September and ends around mid-June. The start and close of the term are generally much later than schools that use the semester curriculum.

In the trimester system, the academic calendar is divided into three terms. How the terms are divided varies by institution. For example Carleton College operates on 3 terms of 10 weeks each. Other colleges have a 12 weeks – 8 weeks – 12 weeks distribution.

Like the term distribution, the number of credits you take each term also varies by college. Take the same example of Carleton College. At Carleton, you’ll take three courses per term. At other schools, you may be required to take 4 to 5 courses per term. So again, you’ll need to check with your academic advisor to see how many courses you’ll need to take to be considered full time and graduate on time.

Colleges on a Trimester Schedule

Institution Name	Location
Albizu University-Miami	FL
ASA College	NY
Bryn Athyn College of the New Church	PA
Cambridge College	MA
Carleton College	MN
College of the Atlantic	ME
Colorado State University Global	CO
Empire College	CA
Empire State University	NY
Fielding Graduate University	CA
Franklin University	OH
Glasgow Caledonian New York College	NY
Golden Gate University	CA
Graceland University-Lamoni	IA
Granite State College	NH
Hodges University	FL
International Technological University	CA
Lawrence University	WI
Nova Southeastern University	FL
Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology	OK
Parker University	TX
Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico-Miami	FL
Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico-Orlando	FL
Southern California Seminary	CA
Union College	NY
Union Institute & University	OH
United States Merchant Marine Academy	NY
University of Massachusetts Global	CA
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	MI
University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma	OK
University of Silicon Valley	CA
Wade College	TX
William Carey University	MS
Wilmington University	DE

Data pulled from IPEDS.

Pros and Cons of the Semester System

Pros:

• It’s easier to adapt to. Incoming college students generally find it easier to adjust to a semester-based system. This is because most high schools plan their curriculum around a semester calendar, which makes for a smoother transition from high school to college.
• There’s more time for in-depth instruction. When comparing a semester vs. a trimester, a semester’s calendar is less hectic. With classes spanning over a longer period of 15 weeks, students have more time to explore and master topics of interest in a particular course.
• You have additional time to get caught up. The extended semester calendar allows students more time to get caught up if they fall behind for any reason. The additional time also helps students to better understand and expand their thoughts on challenging college material.
• There are more opportunities to collaborate with professors. With the way the semester curriculum is laid out, you’ll be taking more classes with each professor. This will give you ample time to interact with your professors on a personal basis and get to know your professors better. Building strong bonds with your professors can benefit you in many different ways even after you graduate from college.
• It could be less stressful. The familiarity with the semester calendar, extended time to complete the required classes, and additional time spent with professors, all contribute to making this system less stressful than the trimester or quarter calendar.

Cons

• A longer time commitment for each class. Under a semester curriculum, you’ll commit about 15 weeks to any course you choose. While this is great for better understanding and deeper exploration of a topic, it can be problematic if you don’t enjoy a particular class.
• Fewer chances to take electives. A semester calendar offers fewer chances to take electives as compared to a trimester or quarter calendar. If you’re studying under a semester system, you must be very careful when choosing your electives.
• There may be a reluctance to explore classes in new subjects. As we said earlier, you have to commit about half a year to any class you choose. This long-term commitment could make students less likely to explore new subjects because of the fear of being stuck grappling with a subject they don’t like.

Pros and Cons of the Trimester System

Pros

• Fewer classes per term. With more terms per academic year, students get more opportunities to take classes in the trimester curriculum. Under this system, some students take on average only 3 classes per term. Fewer classes mean you’ll have more time to focus on each subject instead of dividing your attention between more classes.
• Shorter time commitment for each class. The trimester calendar requires only a 10-week commitment for each class. With the shorter time commitment, students have the opportunity to explore new interests.
• More opportunities to take electives. The trimester curriculum gives students additional opportunities to take more electives as compared to the semester curriculum. You can use this to your advantage to enhance your learning in any topic you’re interested in.
• An unexpected opportunity to boost GPA. Under the trimester system, you can take on many more classes throughout the academic year. This gives you an unexpected opportunity to boost your GPA. With so many classes, one or even two bad grades won’t lower your average by as much if you earn good grades in your stronger subjects.
• Choice of two graduation dates. Colleges following the trimester academic calendar have two graduation dates in a year. This can be an advantage for students who haven’t managed to earn the units required for a degree. If you miss the first graduation date, you can still graduate within the same year, just a little later.

Cons

• Faster-paced learning. While taking fewer classes per term can be an advantage, the downside is that classes are intensely-paced. The amount of information packed into a shorter trimester class is the same as that of a longer semester class. If you are finding a particular course difficult, this faster pace could make it harder to keep up.
• Not enough time to delve deeper into topics of interest. The shorter term may not give students enough time to dig deeper into topics of interest. This could be problematic when you have to write critically important papers on that topic.
• Conflicting schedules. Schedule conflicts are among the more notable downsides of the trimester calendar. Few colleges follow the trimester curriculum vs the more common semester schedule that most colleges, high schools, and study-abroad programs follow. So enrolling in the trimester calendar could create scheduling conflicts with study abroad plans, internships, summer plans, or family vacations.
• Higher textbook costs. The cost of tuition is generally the same under the trimester and semester systems.  However, with the trimester calendar, you’ll have to buy textbooks three times a year as opposed to just twice a year with the semester calendar. College textbooks are expensive and this can increase the total cost of attendance when you enroll in the trimester system.
• Higher vulnerability to burnout. Taking a full course load for each term in the academic year can be grueling under the trimester calendar. You can expect to put in more work as compared to students taking on the same course load under the semester system. There could be a higher risk of getting burnt out and letting your grades slip if you’re not careful.

Semester vs Trimester: Which One is Better?

When it comes to determining which is better, there is no single answer that’s right for everyone. It comes down to personal preference.

If you find schedule changes difficult to adjust to, you may be more comfortable enrolling in a college with a semester calendar. That way you’ll continue with the same schedule that you followed throughout high school.

If you find it easy to adjust to schedule changes, it doesn’t matter whether you enroll in a college with a trimester or semester calendar.

Ultimately, when choosing a college, whether it follows the semester or trimester system should not be your highest priority. Instead, several other factors are more important when shortlisting colleges that are a good match for you.

The degree program, electives, minor course of study, cost of attendance, campus location, and extracurricular facilities are important factors to consider when choosing a college. The only time you may want to use the calendar system in your decision is when comparing two colleges that are equally matched in all other ways.

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