Registration is a headache for many students, but it may not change anytime soon.
The biannual registration headache comes with trying to figure out what classes to take, and which are even open. It seems that the hardest year for registration is freshman year, since freshmen have the last registration time. Yet, despite what grade one is in, there is still the probability of not getting into a required class or having to ask for an override. For some core classes the reason for the override is simply not enough seats.
“We get asked for about 100 overrides from about the minute registration ends into the summer,” said head of the theology department Dr. Julia Fleming. “The theology department does have a zero override policy with the exception of seniors who need the class to graduate.”
The next idea would be to add more sections of core classes. This is the solution that I think makes the most sense. If there is not enough room, maybe more classes could just be added in any of the few empty classrooms. This is a solution that most students believe works the best.
“I think that maybe some classes need more sections especially classes that a lot of people take for credit, like theology and philosophy,” said Arts & Sciences freshman Catherine Pedigo.
The problem with this is that it is not an easy fix. The departments are already running all the core classes they can. Creighton tries to be fair and offers all the core classes it can with the faculty that it already has.
“We know how many faculty we have and how many student we can expect that semester,” Dr. Fleming said. “The problem is if we hire more faculty for more classes, then tuition goes up.”
Since I do not think any student wants tuition to go up, more classes are not an option. To be fair, if there is an overwhelming need for that class there is a chance of one more section going up.
According to Dr. Fleming there were 32 sections of Theology 100 offered during the 2013-2014 school year. The issue becomes that 90 percent of the freshmen class has to take that class.
To solve the competition for getting into the class, Creighton could keep the freshman class sizes from growing each year. A traditional freshman intro class already has 35 students in it. Since most classrooms cannot hold more than this, it is the limit. With 32 sections and 35 people in each section, that is a lot of students. Most of the freshman class should be able to take it. The problem becomes that the freshman class is growing in size each year. To help students keep getting the core classes they need, Creighton needs to stop making the classes bigger each year.
One complaint heard among students is that freshmen scramble the most to get into basic classes because they register last. This is done for a few reasons, one of which is that the upperclassmen often need to get certain classes in for their majors. These classes may need prerequisites from the core. The upperclassmen, especially seniors, are also trying to get the last of the classes in to graduate.
“There is more urgency in registration for older classes, like if a senior needs a class for graduation, then they should not find it full of sophomores or something,” Pedigo said.
A senior should not need to get an override into a core class because it is already filled with freshmen that can take it in the next four years. The system of going by class-standing allows the cushion for seniors to get in the classes they need.
The registration system is working to its fullest potential each semester. While the times to register may not seem fair, remember that there are more students than just you. There are a lot of factors going into how many classes are offered. For right now, the system is working the best it can.