Editorial
Registration causes problems for students
November 10, 2006
It’s that time of year again. Students across campus are flooding faculty offices and incessantly logging on to eSIS in an effort to get their degrees in the most efficient way possible. Yet the preparation process for semesters to come can be frustrating, largely due to technology and ever-changing curricula.
While the eSIS upgrade last March was aimed to improve the program for student use, it also caused visible problems when it comes to registering for class- es, clearing holds and rolling over the $100 deposit.
These issues come to the forefront during registration each semester and bring about much stress on campus. For some, registering for classes is the only time students log in to their eSIS account, and for first-year students, this registration period is likely the first time they will use the program since orientation without help from faculty and staff.
The organization of courses on eSIS needs improvement. When a class is searched, it should be easy to understand where it fits into each requirement for gaining that eventual degree. But the online program is complicated, often interpreted as a series of useless, repetitive steps.
Still, students don’t even have a visible second option to fall back on -- new catalogs have not been printed since 2003 due to drastic changes within many general education requirements for undergraduates.
But technology is not the only perceived enemy of students continuing their careers at UWRF.
The advising procedure set for students at UWRF is intended to ease the process of registering, yet for some it seems to be a nuisance rather than a step toward the ultimate educational accomplishment -- graduation.
Departments on campus have the ability to change the date, time, and even the option of offering each class for a given semester -- often up until the day before registration begins. With the possibility of last-minute changes to vital courses, students are not receiving the fundamental message that conscientious planning is essential to success in life.
It also seems to be a trend among academic departments to completely revamp their curricula. Many are changing for the better, yet alterations leave behind students who fall between the new and old programs.