“Can’t Always Get What You Want” with Marist Registration

As November approached, students began to talk about the pains of spring registration and the inconvenience that comes with creating their schedule. For many incoming freshmen, the morning of registration was an extremely stressful time. 

Unlike most high schools where students had their schedule made for them, the liberal arts college education is focused on providing students with a well-rounded education and a focus of their choosing. Freshmen look to upperclassmen for registration tips, advice and cheats to find the perfect schedule. 

Many students sat in the common lounge of Marian Hall on Thursday morning fighting for help from their RAs. Students yelled, cried, cursed and sat in shock as they entered their CRN numbers and got a notice saying the class was full. 

As many frantically typed in their back-up classes, they realized those were also filled and had to choose alternative courses on the spot. 

“We pay so much money to go here and we don’t even get any of the classes that we need for our major.” — Grace Richardson ‘23

Catherine Gallagher ‘23 of Marist sat on the floor in Marian Hall with a blank screen. Not registering for any classes, Gallagher is relying on overrides and help from her advisor for the spring semester. 

“Professors won’t even do overrides,” Gallagher said. “By 6:45 a.m. there were no general chemistry labs left and only a few spots for labs.” 

Similarly, Mike Gonzalez ‘23 let out a yell when his original schedule didn’t work. Although, once he filled in his backup courses and they went through, he carried a smile around the building for the remainder of the morning. He had a simple quote to encompass registration.

“We can’t always get what we want,” Gonzalez said.

Other students were frustrated with the registration system and the little guidance provided by faculty. Many freshmen complained about the price of courses and the lack of availability to get the classes they needed. Being the last students to register, freshmen were stuck picking courses that had no relation to their major, minor or pathway. Grace Richardson ‘23 found registration to be stressful and anger-inducing. 

“We pay so much money to go here and we don’t even get any of the classes that we need for our major,” Richardson said. 

When registering, Richardson sat on the floor frantically looking for open courses that could just fill her schedule. 

“All the major and core classes are filled, now I’m just filling in random classes,” Richardson said.

The overall freshman registration experience wasn’t great for a majority of students, but some were content with what they were able to take. Many students believe there must be a better system for registering for classes, but also recognize that Marist has to accommodate a large number of students. After registration closed for freshmen on Thursday morning, a look of relief came over the faces of many students as they realized they survived their first registration experience.