October 31, 2016
spring registration
Priority registration ended last Thursday. At this point all eligible students can register for Spring 2017 courses. This a great time to begin reaching out to students who have not yet registered. A Cognos report is available to help you identify those students. The Cognos report is titled “20.30.20 Students Registered in Prior Terms Not Registered in Future Terms” and can be found by going to the 20.00 Enrollment folder, then to 20.30 Retention. The report excludes students who have graduated, applied for graduation or have been academically dismissed.
midterm grades
Midterm grades were due last Monday, October 24. Midterm grades were submitted in 1,152 sections; 22% of sections offered this semester. The College of Fine Arts had the highest percentage of midterm grades reported, with grades submitted in 33% of their sections. Thank you to all the instructors who took the time to submit grades to help support this important retention initiative.
last day to withdraw
The last day to withdraw from a Fall 2016 course is next Monday, November 7. Students can withdraw in GoWMU. If a hold exists, they may withdraw in person at the Registrar's Office or by sending an email to @email using their wmich.edu email address. Withdrawal from a course any time after November 7 will only be permitted through the hardship panel withdrawal process. An email went out to students last week reminding them of the upcoming withdraw date.
new addition to degree works notes
When an instructor reports a student using the Student Academic Concern form located on the faculty menu in GoWMU, the information is now being added to the “Notes” section in Degree Works. This will make it more convenient for advisors to see if a student has been reported for an academic concern, absences or missing multiple assignments. If the student has granted Proxy access to a parent, the parent will also have access to this information in Degree Works.
Student Academic Concern notes will load to Degree Works as part of a nightly batch process and will include any students that have been reported for the Fall 2016 semester.
fun facts
29 years ago this week, students registered for the first time using touchtone phone registration. According to a Western Herald article, “the advantages to this system are many, even if a student has to pay a quarter to use a payphone to register.” About 72 percent of the off-campus phones were touchtone at the time (Western Herald, October 26, 1987).
Upcoming dates
- November 7—Last day to withdraw from classes
- November 23—Thanksgiving recess - classes dismissed at noon; University open until 5 p.m.
- December 12-16—Final exam week
- December 17—Semester ends; Commencement
- December 20—Final grades are due by noon