Murray State University - Shield Yearbook (Murray, KY)

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Though Long Lines And Short Tempers Still Persisted, Registration Was Different This Year As There Were hanges For The Better By Darla Baxter egistration Webster defines it as the act of being officially recorded or en- rolled, and that definition makes the process sound sim- ple enough. But this 12-letter word has enough power to strike fear in the heart of even the most experienced senior. Registration, by Murray State definition, is a harried, confusing process. lt's a time when everyone seems to lose patience, if not his mind. And students can be assured that whatever should go right will go wrong. However, registration wasn't nearly as chaotic, confusing or frustrating as it has been in years past. When compared to last year's very trying registra- tion, things seemed to run smoothly. Although the usual computer breakdown did oc- cur, the one-hour pause was small in comparison to last year's eight-hour breakdown. My goal was to make this a registration that students could forget, said Phil Bryan, dean of admissions. There were a few complaints but in Bryan's opinion, that goal was reached. Campus Life Alison Marshall, who was a student worker during registra- tion, noted that more tfresh- menj were a little better pre- pared. They seemed welI-in- formed about what to do. My first reaction was 'Look at those lines' but it ran pretty well, said Mary Rearden. Kris Raymon said, As soon as you found the first line, you could get through easily. Anita Watson was quick to point out that the process Took quite awhiIe, as did several other students. But she also agreed that there wasn't much confusion about where to go and what to do. Despite the organization and hard work on the part of many people, there are still 'kinks' to be worked out in the registra- tion process. Bryan pointed out that ad- mission officials are working to- gether to remove those trouble spots. Each year after registra- tion, officials meet to discuss how registration could be made a better experience for stu- dents. We try to improve ev- ery year, explained Bryan. One improvement which will be seen at next year's registra- tion will be the removal of freshmen packets on upper- classmen registration days. One of the reasons for the long lines was due to freshmen going through a day early, said Bryan. Todd Harrison, a student worker during registration, said that although registration was organized, it still needs work. He explained a problem that he encountered while working in the pre-paidfpre-registered area. The computer system was supposed to tell whether a student was commuting or re- siding on campus. But due to a problem, it had almost all the students, no matter what state they were from, on commuting status. Long lines and problems were not exclusive to registra- tion, they're synonomous with the dropfadd process as well. A welcome change was made in the dropfadd policy after last year's mandatory S3 fee per course dropped or ad- ded. The fee was changed to S5 per card - no matter how many courses were dropped or WHAT'S IDC? Summer Orientation Counselor Tom Baumgarten answers Shannon Richardson's questions about class schedules. ADVICE TO THE CONFUSED The faculty of the College of Humanistic Studies helps students organize their schedules. T li l added. If you heard a sigh off relief the first few days of the semester, now you know why. To many students who've known the struggle and frustra- tion of last-minute schedule ad- justments, this change was most welcome. ln addition to a fee change, students who had not regis- tered were given two days to do so before drop f add charges be- gan. Bryan credits these posi- tive policy changes as the main reason for extra long lines, many students who were al- ready registered went through. the first two days of dropfaddl to avoid the fee. Bryan explained the changes. in registration by saying, We admit that we made a mis-- take, and that it was correctedi as soon as possible. Ther changes in the dropfadd fee was made primarily because students often have no control over dropfadd circumstances, Bryan said. But despite the same old problems, long lines, and com- plaints, 5,000 students made it through registration - and will make it through many more TT ', 'i .. M ' 2 , ' A ' ' . -f-:.j-,siifl-'i?f.1ftif5 ,'fff'f -. -.5-',1fi.-'if5Qa'ff 'if-U ' .. , .. ..... . .. ...,, . ....-nuwnuqllxf--....... ...-nuns. ..-.-1.-W...-....-......... -............,......,...-. .... ...W nun:-, ,. V . W-W , . .

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DOD OL' DAD ud's hands are full while 'J ughter Stacy Baker is :lcomed to Springer Hall by sident adviser Cathy Wright. st day, ended up with the 'ong roommate, or whatever, in't worry. There's always xt year. I lE LAST LOAD izabeth Hall resident Jebbie lrbour and friend Brad Collins mile wearily as they make their ral trip.

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mes. As for a solution to the eng lines, Bryan says, l'here's just no way around But if the thought of all the iaos and lines really gets to Ju, perhaps you should take ie advice of one student who iid: I was smart I pre- aid. I , AND, TO YOUR LEFT . , Terry Cleaver explains how the music control center works to incoming students. NO MAJOR PROBLEMS President Stroup and Dr. Boggess dean of the College of Science discuss the registration process.