The Office of the University Registrar needs to establish an efficient appeals process through which students can meet with qualified personnel to enter a course after gaining an instructor's permission while not having their seats jeopardized.
Ohio University freshmen understandably face difficulties navigating the Registrar whether online or in line at the beginning of each quarter, but I am a fourth-year student and still find the bureaucracy difficult.
I usually spend a full week gathering pink slips, walking between Chubb and Wilson halls, and speaking in person to officials before I am provided a seat in a class. The online registration machine has vacated my hard-fought seats after I gain permission to enter by professors.
An incident occurred last quarter when I successfully registered online for an economics course; the machine waited three days and then vacated my seat. The class filled with juniors, and I was at the mercy of strangers. I was permitted to enter the course by the professor a second time and was successfully registered within one full seven-day week.
An appeals process would be effective and encouraging. A beneficial program of its nature should take less than one half-hour to complete.
Christopher Myers is a senior studying philosophy.
4 Opinion
