Early Bird

On the CAESS: Here comes registration!

Here’s how faculty can support spring registration efforts.

By Sean Petranovich, Ph.D., on behalf of the Council for Academic Excellence and Student Success

October 21, 2020

Believe it or not, Metropolitan State University of Denver students will soon begin registering for spring courses, as priority registration opens Monday.

Over the past year, the President’s Advisory Council for Academic Excellence and Student Success (CAESS) has been researching tactics for promoting student retention, specifically regarding how faculty members play a role in pursuit of that goal.

So what does the opening of the window for spring registration mean for faculty? What can faculty members do?

• Draw attention to the opening of the registration period for the students you interact with in classes. Especially with world circumstances being what they are, students may benefit from additional reminders to stay on track with their academic journey.
• Encourage students to start thinking now about courses they might want to take. Are there general-studies requirements they need to address? Have they been thinking about prerequisites they need to fulfill? Are they still exploring which major they want to declare and need assistance in navigating the exploratory landscape? Now is a great time to consider options.
• Suggest that students reach out directly to you or an advisor if they’re unsure which courses they need or if they need some assistance in assembling their schedules. Consider making yourself available for additional office hours or otherwise offering flexibility to accommodate students’ busy academic, work and personal lives.
• Know that your encouragement and direction might be the thing that makes the difference for students thinking of stopping out after this semester. As a faculty member, you may be one of the individuals with the most contact with students. There’s an opportunity here to demystify the rhythm of University life and to troubleshoot difficulties alongside students.

Let’s all help students get registered. If you have other ideas related to promoting student retention, please reach out to CAESS co-chairs Sean Petranovich, Ph.D., or Kristy Lyons, Ph.D.

Also, keep an eye out for an upcoming article from the CAESS team in early November that will highlight an interactive tool to help faculty members know the percentage of the students in their current fall courses who have already registered for spring, updated daily.