New system confusing to some students

Graduate students began registering for classes Monday and, so far, student complaints have been minimal. Mary Beth Myers, associate registrar and manager of enrollment services, said the Office of the Registrar had received 113 phone calls about registration help between March 24 and 30 prior to the start of registration. \n"It is typical that during these early days of registration, when it is graduate student appointments, not to have much activity," Myers said, "but we hope by this time next week when seniors and juniors start registering, things will pick up."\nBut Myers said there is nothing very "complicated or complex" about the new system. \n"This is new," Myers said. "New always generates questions." \nBut, for some students, the new system seems quite complicated. Several students said they have visited OneStart to get acquainted with its mechanics and found it time-consuming and confusing. \n"I checked it out, and it took me awhile to figure out how to even sign on," said sophomore Derek Smith.\nOther students have grappled with "error" messages that test students' patience. \n"I kept getting error messages, and the Web site said to be patient, that they were working it out," said sophomore Ted Ryan.\nRyan said he clicked on the IT link and sent an e-mail explaining his problem. \n"It never would have gotten taken care of if I hadn't e-mailed them," Ryan said. "I think now that I've gotten my error messages figured out, I don't think it should be too bad." \nRyan also said he had to e-mail his adviser to get his new identification number because he kept getting error messages through OneStart. \nEnglish adviser Mary K. Rothert said she has received calls and read e-mails from about 20 students with questions about registration. \n"It seems less than the avalanche that I was expecting," she said. \nRothert also said it is "too early to tell" if more students will have difficulties. She said her schedule for in-person appointments has been booked with 12 students each day recently.\n"That is pretty typical for this time of year, and most of them are coming in for regular advising," Rothert said. "The sessions do, however, take longer because we also discuss the registration system issues." \nSophomore Heather Dost is one student IU hired to pre-register in order to test the system and help faculty work out the "bugs" before registration. Dost said she anticipates more students coming to Franklin Hall, where IU has opened the old registration computer lab in order to help students who are struggling. \n"I think a lot more people will start coming in because a lot of things are different on OneStart then on INSITE," Dost said. \nThe biggest problem Dost encountered during her pre-registration was dropping and re-adding a course. Dost said the new OneStart system would not reserve a dropped course, even if the student registering did not end his or her session. \n"On INSITE, when you registered for a course, you could drop it and then re-add it as long you didn't end your session and no one would take your spot," Dost said. "But with OneStart, it doesn't reserve your spot. If you drop a course, someone can take that spot even though you never ended your session."\nDost said a lot of students will struggle with dropping courses and wanting to add them back into their schedules because in those few minutes, the spot in the class can be taken by someone else. Dost also said she anticipates problems with the mechanics involved with registering for discussions, labs and lectures because most people will not know what path to take. \n"I chose a discussion, and it took me to another page to pick a lab from," Dost said. "It asked for a related component, so I typed the section number in the box, and it wouldn't work until I left the box blank and clicked the hourglass."\nBy clicking the hourglass-shaped icon, a list of class times popped up for Dost. By selecting the time of her choice, the section number automatically appeared in the blank box. She was then registered for the class. \nDost said another change is the new online class listings. The printed bulletin that once allowed students to pick courses without a computer is now a thing of the past.\n"You have to be at a computer instead of just having the book with you so you can do it anywhere," Dost said. "You have to know the codes. If you know the section number, that's key. Then you can just go directly to the class." \nDost said students should prepare well before their registration date by knowing the classes they want and the code for each class. She also said students should have a back-up for popular classes. IU published a bulletin detailing how to use the new system, which was mailed to all students. \n"There is a Web site listed in front of the bulletin," Dost said. "It's helpful because it's step-by-step on how to do everything." \nFor more information, call 855-8200 or visit www.registrar.indiana.edu. \n-- Contact staff writer Laura Hilker at lhilker@indiana.edu.