The Regestration Rigamarole

Hi all!

Okay - I am currently three classes away from completing the Interpreter Prep program. Three classes. Two semesters! Yes, it was only supposed to be two more classes at this point in time but . . things happen and a class was cancelled so . . . three more classes.

I can't wait!

The cancelled class has caused a little bit of a problem with the group of students I am in and who are all moving along at the same pace/time in the program. You see, we were supposed to take Practicum 1 and Interpreting 2 this past semester so that we could take Practicum 2 and Interpreting 3 this semester. Obviously, that didn't happen because Interpreting 2 was cancelled. Not that I blame the college for cancelling the class. There were only three students enrolled and that just isn't good business - to run a class that small.

So - anyway.

No one thought anything of the cancellation other than it would add a semester to our schooling. We didn't think it would make too much a difference in the grand scheme of things.

We were wrong.

Apparently, you are not allowed to take Practicum 2 and Interpreting 2 at the same time. This is despite these courses being listed together in several places as part of the Interpreter Prep course plan that the college set up.

Well, we, the members of the class, found out that this would be a problem for us in December - before the last semester was even over. At that time - in December - we all began to appeal to the department chair to get special permission to register for both classes at the same time. None of us got any answer from the department chair and we were told to wait - to give everyone time to get things worked out.

So - we waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Along the way we were told by our teacher several times that both the department chair and the dean were working on the problem and that everything would be worked out by January. In plenty of time for us to register for the classes. We were told that both people had the list of students who needed to register for both classes and had been made aware of the special situation which would require us to get permission to register. We were told to just wait again.

So - we waited some more.

In fact, I decided that I wouldn't worry about it at all until after the holidays and further into January. I didn't even keep up with the running conversations about the progress. I just zoned out and enjoyed the holidays with my family.

When I got home from Ohio I decided to try registering for the classes since it had surely been worked out by then. Wrong! I could register for one of the classes but not the other. Hmmmm. At this point I rejoined conversations about what was going on. I learned that no one was able to register for both classes and that once more were informed that the department chair and the dean were working on the problem. This time we were told that the situation would be fixed by the end of the first week in January.

So, once more we waited.

As the time for registration drew to a close, we were still waiting. Until Friday.

On Friday we were informed through the grapevine that we had to contact the department chair to get an email with her permission to register and then we had to take the email to the college in person to register. This all had to be done on Friday before five.

We found this out Friday morning.

Personally, I hadn't planned on driving the 45 minutes to the college that day and I still had my toenail-less Hubby to take care of at home. I wasn't going to do it. So - I emailed the department chair and then waited some more.

At around three in the afternoon my stalker called to say how frustrated she was about the entire deal and about how she was calling the school to see if she could register by phone. Around four, Hubby got on the computer and found that I had email from the department chair in response to my email. Based on her email I called and registered for the class and then payed for the class online - since you are required to pay the same day this late in the registration process.

After registering, I decided to get some clarification from the department chair and the dean about just why we had to wait so long and why authorization had been given so late - on the last day you could register without a late fee.

I wrote emails to both parties and took great care to give the background of the situation and to clearly ask the two questions I wanted answered:
1. Why did it take so long to find a solution to the problem.
2. Why didn't anyone get some kind of "official" notice regarding the problem since both people had all of our information?

Well - let me tell you. I didn't get any answers.

I did find out just how little the dean thinks about the interpreting program though when she told me that the program was lucky to still exists since it had low enrollment and bad end results (meaning that people who finished the program didn't do well once they left the college - news to me!). I was also informed that I should be grateful that I was allowed to register at all!

Can I say that this response rubbed me the wrong way?

I am supposed to feel grateful to be able to register because I am in a program with low enrollment and poor end results? I guess being a student in such a program means that I am much less important than a student in a more popular and successful program. That is the vibe I got!

Right now I want to go to the college and knock some heads!

However, I am restraining myself for a while. In another day or so I will re-read the dean's email to see if I read it correctly. Then I may - MAY- respond again.

Frustration isn't good for the soul!

Trisha

Voice Update: Still doing well despite my frustration!