OUR VIEW: Get those graduation applications in

With all of the changes being made with the graduation process, one thing remains constant: About half of all Utah State University seniors apply for graduation late.

Despite the fact that students can apply two semesters before the one they are to graduate in, many students put it off until the last minute. And the last minute can literally be at the last minute. To be listed in the commencement announcement, seniors have to apply three months before graduation. To graduate, students can technically apply up the last day of classes in the semester they are graduating in.

But why put it off? Hopefully, if someone is graduating from a university, he should be able to fill out an application and get it turned in during the year they are given to do it.

Once applications are in, students have in writing exactly what has to be done for them to meet graduation requirements. If there is a mistake in the application – such as a class missing that a student should have to take – after being signed by an adviser, the student isn’t held responsible for it. To be safe, students shouldn’t apply later than the first month into the semester they are graduating in.

But they are still responsible for a $10 late fee if they don’t get their applications in by the deadline, which was Oct. 15.

With spring semester registration coming up, seniors should get their graduation applications completed beforehand so they know exactly what they need to register for and can make sure things are in line for them to graduate on time. Administrators should help students by giving them information about when deadlines are and what is required of them.

Too many seniors don’t understand what they need to do for graduation because they haven’t been told. If the Registrar’s Office posts signs in the Taggart Student Center and other buildings, it would help seniors know what they need to do and when they need to do it. Signs would also remind them about graduation applications so they don’t ignore this important step in their education. The deadline for Spring 2003 graduation has passed, and about half of the USU students who are supposed to be graduating have not turned in their applications yet.

Why wait? Students who plan on graduating in the spring should get their graduation applications completed and turned in before spring registration so there is one less thing for them to worry about.