I mentioned last time that I would discuss IT upgrades for next semester; well it turns out that, as of yet, I don’t have many to choose from. While I know that we can expect to have wireless networking practically everywhere on campus, something that I will discuss soon, other upgrades have not been decided upon. So instead of official upgrades, I will take this last column of the year, and my final column as a student, to talk about what I would like to see on campus in the near future.
Having wireless networking available everywhere on the main campus, and in every student dorm, is a good start for us. With every new class of incoming freshman, we are seeing more students with laptops than desktops. This trend is only going to become more apparent as laptops become more affordable, portable, and powerful. This widespread adoption of wireless should make Amherst more competitive with other schools that are already doing the same. Of course, there are still issues with wireless reception in some of the dorms, but this isn’t a problem that can be fixed easily. Also, due to potential interference, students won’t be able to run their own wireless routers. Students currently using them (I’m looking at you, Halo players) will have to borrow networking switches from the school to handle multiple network connections.
As far as what I would like to see, I would say that online class registration ranks among the top. This would make registration easier for students, the registrar office, and even professors. Any student here can attest that registration, which includes pre-registration and shopping for classes, is a sometimes-grueling process. I’ve known many students who were unable to get into a class they wanted because they had difficulty tracking down their advisors before the class filled up. I also think that this is a difficult time for professors, who are not only dealing with starting up new classes but also having to meet with all of their advisees.
While some may think that by implementing an online registration system we are also removing much of the student/advisor dynamic of registration. Ideally, a student would meet up with their advisor and discuss their new classes in a laidback office meeting. This can still be retained with an online process. Students, for example, could be required to have a lengthy discussion with their advisor once a semester. This isn’t very different from the current system; it just changes the time that they’ll actually be talking with their advisor. It also makes the actual meeting more pleasant, as it will most likely occur at a less hectic period of the semester.
We could still require freshman to speak with their advisors for registration, as they often need the most guiding advice. The door is also still open for students to meet with their advisors during add/drop if they have any significant problems. What the online system does is make things more convenient for students who know what they want to take, or who simply need to ask their advisor a simple question over email. The actual registration process would also be much more streamlined and less aggravating for all parties involved.
Students fill out an online form, perhaps something connected to the new online course catalog, it gets sent to their advisors for approval, who can ask questions over email or recommend they stop by if necessary, the advisor approves and it gets sent to the registrar along with a confirmation to the student. Any additions or drops could be handled in the same way, and requests for classes that need approval could be sent to the relevant professor easily. The registrar’s office will no longer have to deal with long lines of students or keeping track of paper registration slips.
I have many more ideas, but they will have to wait until next year when I will be continuing this column as an alum. There’s a lot happening later this year, from the release of new game consoles to the impending release of Windows Longhorn, and you can be certain that I’ll be here to tell the tale.
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Amherst Bytes #5: Thinking Ahead
I mentioned last time that I would discuss IT upgrades for next semester; well it turns out that, as of yet, I don’t have many to choose from. While I know that we can expect to have wireless networking practically everywhere on campus, something that I will discuss soon, other upgrades have not been decided upon. So instead of official upgrades, I will take this last column of the year, and my final column as a student, to talk about what I would like to see on campus in the near future.
Having wireless networking available everywhere on the main campus, and in every student dorm, is a good start for us. With every new class of incoming freshman, we are seeing more students with laptops than desktops. This trend is only going to become more apparent as laptops become more affordable, portable, and powerful. This widespread adoption of wireless should make Amherst more competitive with other schools that are already doing the same. Of course, there are still issues with wireless reception in some of the dorms, but this isn’t a problem that can be fixed easily. Also, due to potential interference, students won’t be able to run their own wireless routers. Students currently using them (I’m looking at you, Halo players) will have to borrow networking switches from the school to handle multiple network connections.
As far as what I would like to see, I would say that online class registration ranks among the top. This would make registration easier for students, the registrar office, and even professors. Any student here can attest that registration, which includes pre-registration and shopping for classes, is a sometimes-grueling process. I’ve known many students who were unable to get into a class they wanted because they had difficulty tracking down their advisors before the class filled up. I also think that this is a difficult time for professors, who are not only dealing with starting up new classes but also having to meet with all of their advisees.
While some may think that by implementing an online registration system we are also removing much of the student/advisor dynamic of registration. Ideally, a student would meet up with their advisor and discuss their new classes in a laidback office meeting. This can still be retained with an online process. Students, for example, could be required to have a lengthy discussion with their advisor once a semester. This isn’t very different from the current system; it just changes the time that they’ll actually be talking with their advisor. It also makes the actual meeting more pleasant, as it will most likely occur at a less hectic period of the semester.
We could still require freshman to speak with their advisors for registration, as they often need the most guiding advice. The door is also still open for students to meet with their advisors during add/drop if they have any significant problems. What the online system does is make things more convenient for students who know what they want to take, or who simply need to ask their advisor a simple question over email. The actual registration process would also be much more streamlined and less aggravating for all parties involved.
Students fill out an online form, perhaps something connected to the new online course catalog, it gets sent to their advisors for approval, who can ask questions over email or recommend they stop by if necessary, the advisor approves and it gets sent to the registrar along with a confirmation to the student. Any additions or drops could be handled in the same way, and requests for classes that need approval could be sent to the relevant professor easily. The registrar’s office will no longer have to deal with long lines of students or keeping track of paper registration slips.
I have many more ideas, but they will have to wait until next year when I will be continuing this column as an alum. There’s a lot happening later this year, from the release of new game consoles to the impending release of Windows Longhorn, and you can be certain that I’ll be here to tell the tale.