Registration

Registration. The very word can strike fear into the hearts of students everywhere. You have to juggle everything left in the semester while trying to figure out the next one. You have to brave the catalog and make a four-year-plan.

What do you do?

That's right. Tower is your best friend for registering for classes. It can be a little tough to use at first, but once you get the hang of it, you'll be a registration champion. I'll walk you through some of the basics.

1. Make sure you have your RAC (Registration Access Code) sheet in front of you. You can pick this up from your advisor after you've cleared your classes with him/her.
2. Log in to MyTaylor.
3. See the navigation bar that says, "Welcome [Your Name]" on the left side? On the right side of that bar, there are six icons: e-mail, calendar, courses, tower, finaid, and groups. Click on "tower."
4. So now you're in Tower, right? Click on "Student Services." Here, you can view your transcripts, grades, and any holds against registration you might have (if you have any outstanding fees, for instance, you can't register until you get that taken care of).
5. Click on "Registration."
6. Now go to "Add or Drop Classes." It's best to have your list of classes to take already laid out before you do this part. If you don't, you can either look them up under "Look-up Classes" or use the Course Catalog on the main Taylor site to find them.
7. Select the appropriate term and click "Submit."
8. Enter your 8-digit Alternate PIN, found on your RAC sheet, then click submit.
9. Input your class CRN numbers and click "Add to Classes."
10. Once you're finished, it should show you a list of the classes you're registered to take for that semester. You can view a more detailed version of your schedule, including room number where your class is, by going back to the Registration page and clicking "Student Detail Schedule." The other option, "Student Schedule," will show you a calendar of your daily schedule for the semester.

Good luck, and happy registering!

Printing

I know when you think about Taylorisms you probably don't think about printing, but it's one thing I wish I would have understood earlier in my college career. So here are some tips for printing like a pro at Taylor.

Let's face it: being in college means writing a lot of papers. Most professors will want you to turn in hard copies of your work. If you don't have a printer in your room, you have to either go ask someone who does or find a printer on campus.

Believe it or not, something as simple as printing a document can become complicated if you don't have all the information you need. Sure, you can go to the library and print your paper there, but there are a few insider tips that will help you in the long run.

Printing Account

For starters, did you know that every year you're given $5 on your printing account? A lot of Taylor's printers run on a system that automatically charges your account for the things you've printed- including the library and the ETC. But if you're smart, that $5 will easily get you through the semester. Always make sure you're printing in black and white, because color is way more expensive. If you do double-sided printing, it will save you approximately 1 cent per page. Also, it saves paper, which is always a good thing! It doesn't seem like much, but when you're printing off a hundred two-page papers, suddenly it makes a difference. (Don't worry, you won't really have to write quite that much. Not during your freshman year, anyway.)

Dealing with a Low Balance

Once your printing account balance gets to 20 cents or below, a warning will pop up any time you print something. If you don't go to the ETC and put more money on your account, it will drop below 0. If you see parenthesis around your balance, that means you're in the negative. Reach ($0.20) or more, and your account will be frozen until you pay up- no printing allowed at all. It's a pain to come to all the way to the library just to find you can't print anything off. So if you get in the negative, bring a buck or two to the ETC and ask the person at the counter to put it on your account.

Major-Specific Printers

Sometimes you don't have to use the library or ETC printers. Depending on your major, your department might have a printer for you to use for free for your major-related classes. Rupp has one for Media Communications majors, the Dungeon has one for Computer Science majors... those are the only two I know about for sure, but it would be worth a check with your department, especially if you're getting low on printing money.

Any questions?

Leave me a comment below and I'll answer them.

Calling All Freshmen!

Taylor University is a unique place. We have our own culture, traditions, and phrases. To anyone not familiar with campus life, the transition can be difficult.

Freshmen, I'm writing to you.

Sometimes, we upperclassmen forget to tell you what you need to know. Or perhaps you're too shy to ask if you don't understand some acronym we've just rattled off without thinking. Or maybe your professor explained in class how to submit an assignment to the Digital Dropbox, but you've forgotten what he said.

It's okay- I've been there. Many times. I'm a junior, and I still come across things I don't know how to do, or phrases I've never heard before in my life. But the purpose of this blog is for me to share with you what I do know- some of the knowledge I've gathered just from experiencing four semesters at Taylor.

Do you have any specific questions? If so, you can comment on a post with your question, and I'll try to get it answered as soon as I can.