On Tuesday, April 14 at 9:57 a.m., while sitting in my Comparative Economic Systems class, I pulled out my laptop and went on StagWeb. At exactly 10:01, I registered for the six classes I was interested in, checked to make sure all six were processed correctly, and put my laptop back in my bag and resumed class.
Your computer is the oracle of the karmic registration gods.
I loved the new registration system. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone from the Administration and the Registrar who put together this plan and system.
I would also like to thank in particular whoever chose to have students with last names beginning with E and F have the first registration time slot.
For me, registration was a glorious experience. I registered for some of the most unattainable classes outside of my major and got a seat with no difficulty.
For the first time in my Fairfield career, I even registered for two visual and performing arts classes, so that I can save myself a seat in both as I take extra time to decide which course I’ll keep and which I’ll drop. There was no running to the registrar or waiting in line. I didn’t have to assure the registrar that I do have three minors even though the computer doesn’t display more than two and I did not have to rearrange my schedule in the office when I found that the courses that I wanted were filled.
Best of all, I did not have to leave class to register and I did not have to miss my registration time in order to attend class because skipping class to register is explicitly forbidden, so obviously no one ever skips class.
The Old System
I cannot remember one semester at Fairfield where I did not have some sort of problem registering for classes, aside from the semester when Dean of Freshmen Deb Chappell prepares your classes for you. As a freshman with the worst lottery number, I quickly learned that if I was going to get the classes I wanted, I would have to work for it and get to know professors as I tried to get written into classes.
When the wait-list system was enacted, I was heartbroken because it killed all my techniques of getting into classes. I could not imagine getting any of the classes I needed freshman year if I could not get written in. Furthermore, there are always the students who somehow find a loophole, a means to trick the system into getting exactly what they need, or to save a seat in several classes while you decide what you want. I know that some of the problems I have had getting into classes were because students were saving seats before I could register.
You Can’t Always Get What You Want…
But is there really a problem with all of that? As students ranging in age from 18-23, everyone should know that nothing is perfect, and you cannot always get exactly what you want – if you don’t understand this, it might be time for you to learn it. The registration system has never been perfect, admittedly, but it never will be. Getting into the PH 10 section I wanted freshman year was a struggle, but if I did not get it, I still had more time to take it in future.
I understand that the cost of one student’s struggle with registration was paid for by the ease of my registration. I understand that there are other rising seniors who could not get seats in their preferred major classes because I took them to fulfill my minor. And before anyone comes after me with pitchforks for saving myself seats in two classes, know that both classes are still open and students can register for them. But I also believe in the karmic gods of registration, who understand the struggles I have faced with registration and are now finally letting me have everything I want and need for my senior year.
Has this new system corrected all the problems with registration? It’s too soon to tell. A lot of students are struggling with it, but that comes with any transition. Yes, I lucked out, but is it really worth it when you consider the stress it caused so many other students when StagWeb crashed, or when students signed on to register at 5 p.m. only to discover they were shut out of their major courses? If the Banner system can be improved to handle the loads of students who will be registering at any given time, then the system might be successful. That is, if the karmic registration gods will set a balance to ensure that over time you’ll be able to take all the courses you need to graduate. In addition, if Banner can handle it, then online course shopping is a lot easier than going in to see the registrar both for us and for them.
In the meantime, I sympathize with everyone who struggled, but I’m going to sit back and enjoy my stress-free registration. After all, the karmic gods may make me pay for it next semester.
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