Incoming freshmen will have registration priority over returning students for the fall semester as a result of the admission department’s decision to move the first Fast Track program of the year to March 15.
The Fast Track program, a designated day on campus for high school seniors who plan on attending USD to register for classes and get acquainted with campus, has typically been held in the early summer.
Jeff Baylor, acting vice president of marketing and student services, said the schedule change was a marketing strategy to help with recruitment numbers.
Students who get engaged early on in their education, he said, are more likely to succeed in college.
“We do a lot of things when students get here to get them acclimated and to help them with the transition from high school to college and what we’re trying to do is start that transition sooner,” Baylor said.
Junior Liz Lizarazo said she doesn’t like the idea of people who aren’t even technically in college yet having first dibs on classes.
“Seniority rules. We’ve been here longer and we have less time left to complete graduation requirements,” she said. “It just makes more sense that upperclassmen should get to choose first.
Stephen Ward, interim director for the academic advising center, said returning students’ needs were taken into consideration when making the schedule change.
“We are really going to make every effort to make sure we don’t fill up any sections,” he said. “The last thing we want to do is put a hardship on current students.”
Though exact figures have not been decided on, Ward said an artificial cap will be set for the amount of incoming freshmen allowed to register for one class on the first Fast Track day.
“We are going to leave lots of room in all the sections,” he said.
Despite the positive intentions of the early Fast Track date and the effort to keep sections available to returning students, Lizarazo said she still doesn’t support the change.
“I think the idea is kind of absurd,” she said.
Provost Chuck Staben said Fast Track serves a larger purpose than just getting students registered for classes. Fast Track also gets students familiarized with their new home, campus.
Having students come see campus in March as opposed to the summer should entice more students to attend college at USD.
“We don’t have a lot of students here during the summer, when we typically have our fast track program. I think campus is much more active of a place in March than it is in June,” he said.
Reach reporter Joe Sneve at Joe.Sneve@usd.edu.
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