While classes are already underway for the spring semester at Copiah-Lincoln Community College, it’s not too late to enroll and get started.

Registration for the spring semester has been extended through Friday.

Samantha Speeg, director of enrollment services, said with all the cold weather and rain, it’s been difficult to think spring. So they’ve pushed the deadline back a few days to give students a chance to sign up for spring classes.

“We wanted to give people a bit longer to get enrolled if that’s what they wanted to do,” she said.

Students enrolling by Friday will need to make up the work that they’ve missed to get on track with their classmates, she said.

With Co-Lin’s class setup, students don’t necessarily need to be in a classroom setting to make that happen. Students in 2018 have many options available and the challenge is finding the best class to best fit their needs, Speeg said.

Besides traditional onground classes, Co-Lin offers online, hybrid, night and fast-track classes.

Hybrid classes have become popular with students, who participate through a combination of onground and online classwork.

“You still get the face-to-face instruction,” she said.

Students meet with their instructor 50 percent of the time in a classroom setting, then complete coursework online.

For classes that are strictly considered online study, students don’t get the classroom instruction, but have the luxury of completing the work online within the instructor’s guidelines. Instructors are available to answer questions. Most of the online classes at Co-Lin are taught by staff instructors, Speeg said.

The number of online classes available is growing.

“Almost anything we offer onground we offer online,” she said.

Online classes at the community college are also more affordable than at a four-year college.

“Classes at Co-lin are a third to half or less than a university,” Speeg said.

While online courses can be easier to fit into a student’s schedule, fast-track classes are much more structured. The intensive classes meet weekdays in a classroom for eight weeks. Classes are available in two rounds in the semester — Click A is the first eight weeks, while Click B classes meet the second nine weeks.

Some students prefer the short-term classes because they meet every day.

“Some people just process it better if they meet it every day,” she said. “It’s faster paced, but you meet every day so it keeps it fresh.”

Short-term classes are also available online.

“Online fast-paced classes allow students to do the work in half the time,” she said.

Night classes are also an alternative for non-traditional students.

“We have people who work full-time and come at night,” she said.

Speeg said she’s also seen full-time mothers taking online classes while their children are at home so they’ll be ready for a career when their youngsters are ready for school. Several students at Co-Lin work off-shore and turn to online classes to continue their education, she said.

Co-Lin’s enrollment is steady in Wesson as well as the Natchez and Simpson County campuses. In spring 2017, the college’s enrollment was 2,753. Early indicators reveal the college’s enrollment of 2,427 is comparable to last year at this time, Speeg said.

In fall 2016, the college headcount was 3,006, and in fall 2017 it was 3,100.

To enroll by Friday, visit the Office of Enrollment Services, which was previously called the Counseling Center. It’s in the Henley Building on the Co-Lin campus.

“Co-Lin has streamlined the admissions process to better serve its students by restructuring the admissions and counseling offices to form Enrollment Services on the Wesson campus,” Speeg said. “We are excited about this new system and have had positive feedback so far. If anyone has questions about the admissions process or in enrolling in classes, we are happy to help.”

Students can also call 601-643-8490 or visit www.colin.edu and go to “Future Students.”

To participate, students must have an application for admission, high school transcript or official GED scores, and official ACT scores or take a placement test on the day of orientation.