Remember the hectic start of the fall semester? The long winding lines and the several hours wait to see counselors, the financial aid and admissions departments, and to top the frenzy off, the breakdown of the telephone registration system..

Registration for the spring 2011 semester starts soon. Are you ready?

Have you decided on which classes to take? Have you reviewed your program? Have you taken all the steps necessary to secure the classes you need for a successful semester?

If you have not already taken these steps, it’s not too late.  John Cummings PhD., vice president for admissions and records and institutional research at the State Center Community College District, provided the secret to getting into the classes you need for your major and how to avoid waiting in the atrocious lines at the registration counter and counselors’ office.

1. Get it done.

If you want to get in a class, register as early as you can. With the unemployment rate being so high and the district’s enrollment over capacity for, there is a battle among student to get into classes. Current students be warned, just because you are already a student at Fresno City College does not guarantee that you will have priority when trying to get into a class.

The farther down the waitlist you are, the less likely you are to get into the class of your choice. “I would highly recommend to the students that they register on the date they are eligible to register,” said Cummings, “because continuing students may not get a class if they wait.”

2. Don’t get dropped for non-payment of fees.

All thought the best way to ensure you get into your classes is to pay for them by you payment due date*, there are students who are dependent on financial aid to pay for their tuition. With a larger student body to handle, we have seen a slow down in the financial aid office and it has students worried that without grant money to pay for their classes they will be dropped for non-payment if they pass their due date.

If you have completed a FAFSA application but it is not yet processed by the time your due date comes along you can relax. “As long as your (FAFSA application) is sitting in the queue, you will not be dropped for non-payment” stated Cummings. If by the first day of school you are still waiting on your grant check, it is recommended you pay for the classes out of pocket and get reimbursed after your FAFSA application is approved so you do not get dropped.

3. Use the tools you are given.

The most valuable piece of information given by Dr. Cummings is to not underestimate WedAdvisor**. “Virtually everything that a student needs to know is on WebAdvisor,” He said. Registering for classes, making payment, checking for holds, and so much more can be done in the student menu. There is even a link to check what classes are needed for your major, and a checklist to make sure you get them all done. No more waiting in line to talk to a counselor.

4. Choose your time wisely.

To avoid slow access to WebAdvisor during the start of the term, try to get your information between midnight and 6:00am. The system will be less congested.  Another tool given to students to avoid long lines is the touchtone registration. Although it was down the beginning of this term, it is now up and running. Use touchtone registration and you can sit on your couch and add classes instead of standing in line.

5. Decide on your classes early.

The only true way to be 100 percent sure you’ll be in the classes you need is to decide on the classes you want before registration opens and add them the day you can. Having so many students has made “class crashing” (sitting in on a class on the first day to try and add the class) almost obsolete and a waste of time. This is one situation where the early bird really does get the worm…. or class.

**For help with WebAdvisor see an instructor in the Fresno City College Web Room in the Student Services building.