Changes in Registration

Some changes have occurred in the registration area for Minnesota State University students. A new item that may help make the registration process easier is the "shopping cart." This new technique is a little different than the old way and may take some getting used to. I encourage everybody to go to the registration area of the MSU homepage and play around with it for awhile to figure out the details. The new shopping cart is supposed to help make the registering for classes similar to buying things online. There is still options such as "quick add" and "find a class" that will be commonly used, but the shopping cart might be the ideal way to go. This saves time for the student registering in two ways: 1. He or she will not have to take the time and register for the classes individually, typing in his or her password each time; and 2. This makes everything stay online. Some people in the past have written down the course ID on a paper and used the quick add function later. The new registration will help students register easier, but the process will be much easier if you know what your doing. I encourage you all to go out there and play with registering for 10-15 minutes some day to make your life easier later.

Preparing for Registration

As all of you are aware, registration is coming soon for us. Registration starts November 8th for high credit students. As the days go on, so does the amount of students that get to register. The following website shows the dates that you will register according to how many credits you have achieved prior to this semester: http://www.mnsu.edu/registrar/SPRING08WINDOWS.html

I encourage you to check your potential classes considering the class schedule is now available to view. If you are thinking about taking a class, check out the class schedule online to see if the times may work out with other classes you are considering. Sometimes, you don't want to look too far ahead of time just in case the section you want fills up, but checking early doesn't hurt. To check out the possible classes that are available, please visit: https://www.mnsu.edu/eservices/

Family Weekend

Some of you may know by now that this weekend is Family Weekend around campus. There are many events taking place such as theatre events, athletice events, a 5-K run, BBQ, college showcase, movies, and tours. All these events are put on to help the families of the students feel more comfortable around the university. This weekend event gives the families a break to get more involved in their sons' or daughters' lives as well. MSU has scheduled this weekend over the past several years on the weekend of the high school Education Minnesota (EM) weekend. This EM break formerly known as MEA, gives the students a chance to meet and greet people inside the MSU campus. For more information about this great event please click here: http://www.mnsu.edu/news/read/?id=1192463933&paper=topstories

Probation

Sometimes achieving higher than a 2.0 on the grading scale is a tough accomplishment. For these students, a different path needs to be taken when registration comes in November. Students that fall into probation are required to meet with an advisor before they are able to register for his or her classes. Usually a 20-30 minute meeting and a couple forms are filled out in order to follow through with your probation period. Once these simple actions are taken, registration can be done. Refer to your Advising Center or department office of your college to start with this process in order to register for Spring 2008.

Please note that you will/have been informed of your probation status via email.

Opportunities to Students

As a student, everyday we rush and rush between class, work, homework, and a little leisure time. What we sometimes forget is to take advantage of all the resources the campuse provides to the students. The Learning Center is located in the bottom of the Memorial Library to help students if there is difficulty learning some of the material in his or her classes. The campus hub is always a helpful place for all general questions regarding almost anything at MSU. The Registration Help Center is a good place to go if you are thinking about dropping a class after the first week. Another great place to visit is your advising center or department office for the college that your major is located in. They can give you lots of useful ideas and advice to make you college plan easier. There are many opportunities such as scholarships and nominations available to you. The following locations are the offices at which you should visit about once a semester:

-College of Business:Advising Center(MH 151)
-College of Education:Advising Center(AH 117)
-College of CSET:Advising Center(TR-C125)
-College of Allied Health & Nursing:Go to specific department office
-College of Arts & Humanities:Go to specific department office
-College of Behavioral & Social Sciences:Go to specific department office

Your Academic Advisor

Most of you reading this are probably about a sophomore here at Minnesota State and have probably been through a couple registrations already, but do you know exactly why you are taking the classes you are taking? Do you know what GenEds you should be taking yet? Are your GenEds even close to being completed?

These are questions that your academic advisor can easily help you with! Each of you have an academic advisor in your field of interest. These advisors have a lot of useful information but are not taken advantage of. Many students don't visit their advisors on a regular basis and run into serious trouble down the road. They don't know if they should drop a class or stick with it. Many don't know what classes they are taking. These mistakes lead students into trouble, most of the time extending their stay here at MSU to an extra year than necessary. I know for some of us we think that we don't need any help and that we're old enough now to make our own decisions, but you don't realize is that we don't know the system inside and out. Use your resources provided to you free of charge on campus and get assistance! Your academic advisor would love to visit with you and go over your schedule or problems you are having with classes. Go visit your Advising Center or your academic advisor two times a semester because it will only make your stay better instead of longer.

Homecoming

As all of you know by now, it's homecoming this weekend, and the last thing Mankato needs is another tragic accident. The fatality earlier this week was not a great way to kickoff MSU's homecoming, but its something we all have to cope with and work around. I encourage all of you to take extra safety precautions this weekend because of all the energy and craziness that surrounds our campus at this time. If you are going to drink, do so in moderation and watch out for the people around you. Don't do something you would regret because you will get caught! After the riot a few years ago, the police and security have tightened up quite a bit where if you do any little thing wrong, you'll probably be caught. There are many cameras around also that you may not be aware of, so its not worth taking a stupid risk. Homecoming is supposed to be a highlight of the schoolyear and has been the last couple years, so lets keep up the good work and stay that way. Go to the athletic events and cheer on MSU with purple and gold pride!