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It's that time of year again
UL Registrar describes registration
TO: the Cardinal Editor
FROM: Gary Morrison, Director of Academic Services and
Registrar
Although each of the units has some variation on procedure for
registration, I have chosen the College of Arts and Sciences as an
example of our current registration process. Office processes are
quite complex and full description and rationale for each step in the
process from the office point-of-view would be very extensive. Of
course, office routines are a part of the criteria for establishing student
registration procedures; contrary to the concepts of some, however,
they are by no means the primary criteria.
Here, then, from the Registrar's point-of-view, is the process with
some of the rationale for ,..each step. Though Spring Semester and
Summer School have variations, let's choose fall registration as an
example:
. . . in the spring, around April 15, the fall Schedule of Courses
is published. Those undergraduate schools which have consider­able
cross registration cooperate to establish one bulletin (Arts
and Sciences, Speed Scientific, Business, Education, and Police
Administration). In the Schedule is a general calendar of fall
events with emphasis on orientation, registration, drop-add, and
degree application dates. Specific dates ·and times for class level
and alphabet sections are published (more later) .
The returning student, before the end of the term, (many unfor­tunately
postpone until summer or even registration time) con­sults
with his or her advisor and obtains an "advisor's slip".
Presentation of the "advisor's slip" is required to be admitted for
registration. This is not intended as an affrontry to the students'
wisdom or powers of self-determination; it is a policy designed to
provide a special motivation to both students and faculty to in­crease
the probability that a faculty member has been consulted,
and that such advisor has shared responsibility with the student
to ascertain that the student's program is indeed moving him
toward his expressed goals.
Remember that advisor's slip
·Because of the rather complex requirements for degrees, these
being compounded by curriculum changes, it is especially im­portant
that students receive faculty guidance in program selec­tion.
Further, when irregularities occur, and they do, which put
the student in a bind, the student's evidence that he sought ad­vice
(the retained advisor's slips), places the student in a much
more favorable position for a resolution of the problem. We have
to oppose the reasonable allegation that the advisor's slip regula­tion
is patronizing against the just criticism which would come
from the great many students who would make errors in pro­gramming
and who, when graduation time came and their re­quirements
were unfulfilled, would say, "I didn't know-and
no routine procedure was established for you to tell me!"
Of course, we know that advisor's slips can be purloined, amended,
revised, exchanged, but the responsibility for the consequences
of such acts are borne by the student.
The advisor's slip is brought to Bigelow Hall on the day of regis­tration
as the hour indicated in the Schedule of Courses hand­book.
The rationale for the schedule of times is as follows:
1. If everyone came at once, it would be not just crowded,
but chaotic.
2. Since most students seem to desire at least some chance
to choose teacher, section, and time and since some teach­ers,
sections and times are more popular tha..-·1 others, some
classes (about 15%) will not be able to accommodate all
requests for registrants (they will "close"). It seems reason­able
to establish some system oj priority among the regis­trants.
There are several criteria which we have not
·chosen, but which are used elsewhere ... who gets there
first ... who has the highest grade point average ... who
will pay first ... who will the teacher choose ... who does
the computer select by random choice ....
Students with 60 hrs. + get first pick
We use two variables-the upperclassmen (and graduate students
seeking enrollment in upper, level courses) have first choice.
Hence, first day is reserved for 60 hours + completed. Second day
is for 30 hours + completed, and third day for freshmen.
Within the class groups, we rotate the alphabet sections each
registration, the first last time becomes second this time, etc.
The student obtains a "Skeleton Statistical Card". These have
been pre-prepared by computer and marked for status (if not
good standing) and financial delinquency. If the student was not
registered in the previous term in the same division of the Uni­versity,
he obtains instead a "Please Print" card, on which he
enters the basic identifying information and the registering clerk
assigns him a student number or gives him his former number .
The student then obtaihs from the department representative a
pre-punched card for each class indicated on his advisor's slip.
A "checker" confirms that his entry on his registration card and
his class cards match. His statistical and class cards are collected.
Needed information on the statistical card is punched and the
cards are entered into the computer where they are "tied to­gether"
electronically. From this file provisional class lists may
be produced. (These lists are not valid long as 60% of the students
proceed with at least one schedule change, most within the first
four weeks of the semester.)
"To the billers," said Harry.
The student proceeds to the Administration building where rep­resentatives
of student housing, veterans benefits, and student
insurance are available. He proceeds to the billers, and thence,
to the financial aid officers, if appropriate.
Then he pays all or part of his bill. With a receipt, he may ob­tain
either a full time or a part time Identification Card (l.D.) .
The whole process requires about 45 minutes on the average.
Most of the waiting in excess of this time is because the student
wishes to be early in his grade and alphabet line, so the line
forms long (1 to 2 hours) before it is scheduled to start. No line
has started more than 15 minutes late in two years and most have
started "on time". People who come to register during the last
half hour of their time slot usually can register in 15 to 20
minutes. I.D. cards (photo-fall) need not be obtained immediately
after paying. The student should watch for a short line during
(and for three days after) registration week.
It is our desire to continually review and amend the procedure
to minimize the inconvenience for the students, to improve its
accuracy, (the correctness of the permanent record is influenced
greatly by the registration procedure) and, of course, to realize
such economy as is possible.
There are as many variations on the registration procedure as there
are institutions. Size, location, complexity of curricula, financial poli­cies,
nature of student body (e.g. primarily campus resident or com­muter),
equipment (such as computers), staff, all are variables, among
others, which affect the practices of registration.
The practices of registration evolve; they are subject to amendment,
of course, but they are affected by and affect so many areas of the
University that the consequence of a change must be carefully antici­pated,
or the whole delicate system may collapse. This has happened
in several of our sister institutions with disasterous results. Think of
just a few of the elements, all involved with the registering student
in one way or another:
Advising procedures
Previous records (Student)
Class assignments
Faculty availability
Room facilities
Financial aid
Dormitory
New students
Class selection priorities
Intra-university class registration
Metroversity schedules
Fee billing and payment
Routines and programs for computer processing.
We are considering ways to get away from the "banquet" method of
registering. Constructive suggestions are always welcome. We wish
to protect students' prerogatives to choose as much as possible. We
are still on a holding basis with reference to budget; this must be
considered in terms of timing, but not with reference to goals, e.g.,
we do not have resources for significant reprogramming of computer
processing or for the expense of retraining staff for major perform­ance
modifications at this time. We are pressed to the limit in terms
of staff availability. We have had virtually no staff or facilities
change in the registration area over the period of time during which
our student population has increased from 8700 to over 10,400. We
do not anticipate staff increment over this biennium.
The registration of 11,000 students twice and 5,000 students once each
year for a total of over 110,000 different classes, the accumulation of
grades and the posting and reporting of same is a great task. At its
efficient best, it requires effort; some will be borne by both staff and
student. The job of the staff is to serve the students as effectively
as possible, to find the optimum sharing of responsibility and effort,
using teclmical facilities available to us, is our goal.
Editor's Note
I asked the Registrar for some background information on regis­tration.
He has consented to our publishing this letter. My thanks.
I