Beginning in summer of 2013, freshman students will now be able to register for classes earlier than they have in the past, thanks to a new policy that has been implemented by the  Admission and Academic Policy Committee.

As it stands, the current policy requires students to register during their two-day Northern Exposure orientation, which for some students can be as late as August.  Now freshman will be allowed to register on a predetermined date before their orientation, as long as they have paid their confirmation fee and have met all their placement test requirements.

Committee chair Vice Provost Patrick Moynahan said this policy is part of a larger effort by the university to engage in more interaction with first year students.

“There are so many incoming freshman that many of them have to wait until late in the summer to do their orientation, so they don’t have a whole lot of opportunity to interact with the university between the time they originally commit to NKU and the time they attend Northern Exposure,” he said.  “We want freshman to be able to become a part of the university earlier, so that they don’t feel so lost and overwhelmed when they get here.  Also, we don’t want them to consider switching to another school just because other schools might let them register for classes sooner.”

Vicki Berling, interim director of Norse Advising, said the change in policy will be beneficial for the purposes of working with incoming students.

“We spend such a huge chunk of time during orientation trying to assist all the individual students with building their schedules,” she said.  “Now we’ll be able to just briefly check over their schedules and make sure everything’s the way they want it to be, then we’ll be able to move onto more important matters, like helping to give them an understanding of what college life is going to be like.”

The new policy is expected to make the registration more efficient for both advisers and incoming students. Patricia Figueroa, a current NKU freshman, said  the change is a good idea and that she would have preferred to register before her orientation last summer.

“I think since Northern Exposure is only two days long, students have better things they could be doing than spending all that time making their schedules,” she said.  “Being able to register sooner, and not right before you start school, will give you a better idea of what to expect and more time to prepare.”

If students register before orientation but fail to attend Northern Exposure, their classes will be dropped.  Returning students and transfer students will still be given priority registration over freshmen.