<p>Oberlin appears to be a bit sloppy when putting together information for incoming freshmen. Exhibit A is the 2009-10 First-Year Seminar Program Catalog that accompanied the Big Book of Forms. Students are instructed to select their FYSP and second course from the ONLINE catalog. Cool. So my D printed the document titled "Fall 2009 Courses Open to First Year Students During Summer Registration." The FYSPs listed in this document do not match those in the FYSP catalog that came with the Big Book of Forms. So I called the Oberlin Registrar this morning hoping for clarification. I didn't get it. I got an ATTEMPT at clarification. </p>
<p>First, I was told that freshmen should refer to the online list to choose both FYSP and the second course. That's the thing my D printed out. My D was interested in an FYSP that she found in the little catalog but could not locate it on the online list that she printed. The person in the registrar's office said "well, then, you can't take that FYSP. It has to be on the online list." I asked why the documents did not match. The attempted explanation was that FYSPs missing from the online list, but that are in the catalog, are intended for Spring semester not Fall semester. She insisted it says so in the catalog. Well, I looked up three of them in the catalog. Not one indicates "Spring semester." Some other FYSPs said Spring semester, but not the one's missing from the online list. Not all of them. Only a few. She had no explanation for this discrepancy. </p>
<p>I'm really starting to worry about the accuracy of Oberlin published materials. Is this part of the culture at the College? Is this left over from the laid back, "don't sweat it, man," Hippie days of the 60s and 70s? Am I the one who is confused and the College a model of precision?</p>
<p>No one is perfect, least of all your's truly. But I'm starting to worry about Oberlin. I'm starting to worry about the dozen or so incoming freshmen who already faxed in their course selection forms (according to the Registrar's Office) and wonder which list they used to pick their FYSP and second course.</p>
<p>I just checked this out, Plainsman, and you seem to be absolutely correct: I believe the “Fall 2009 Courses Open to First Year Students…” document lists the Fall 2008 FYSP courses, rather than the 2009 courses. I have just emailed the registrar to alert her to this problem. Your daughter should use the list of courses as printed in the catalog.</p>
<p>This is not typical of the registrar’s office, which normally is scrupulous about getting the information correct. As you say, no one is perfect.</p>
<p>My best guess (and fervent hope) is the list you brought up contains outdated information, and someone in the office made a hitherto unacknowledged oversight. 3 out of the 4 seminars I chose are not in that list.</p>
<p>Okay, then. So what about selecting the second course to put on the form? Which list is correct for those courses? </p>
<p>Clichedanomaly, the “Fall 2009 Schedule of Classes” link that you posted doesn’t say exacty which courses are open to incoming freshman to register for now. It simply lists all courses. The purpose of the “Fall 2009 Courses Open to First Year Students During Summer Registration” is supposed to serve that purpose because it lists the regular courses and the FYSP courses open to freshmen. But Dave72 thinks someone goofed and changed the year on the form without updating the courses. Any of the courses, or at least the FYSPs. But if the FYSPs are wrong, the regular courses are also likely wrong, i.e., the wrong year as Dave72 indicated.</p>
<p>An error like this is why kids could wind up getting none of their four choices, or at least not getting their higher ranked preferences.</p>
<p>Actually, what I meant was that the FYSP courses listed in the Fall 2009 course catalogue are exactly the same ones as 1. the ones listed in the booklet and 2. the ones listed on the updated FYS website. </p>
<p>This agreement among the three sources makes it more likely that the information specifically pertaining to the FYSP on the “Fall 2009 courses open to first year students during summer registration” document is incorrect.</p>
<p>As to the rest of the intro courses listed on that document, I am just as (if not more) clueless than you are.</p>
<p>Agreed, clichedanomaly. The problem is the accurate list of non-FYSP courses specifically open to freshmen this fall. The online list is likely incorrect. If so, students should not choose from that list and hastily submit their summer registration forms.</p>
<p>The online class schedule reflects the entire class schedule. The list sent to first years for choosing a second course includes much less, because it is only courses with open spots, and generally those without pre-requisites.</p>
<p>You may not know there is an online class schedule just for incoming First-Year students. Incoming First-Year students were not sent a hardcopy list. They were instructed to go online to a specific web page to find the appropriate list. The problem was the list posted there was incorrect. It was the 2008 list but had a 2009 date. A dozen or more kids used that incorrect list to select their first two courses before it was caught (by your’s truly) and corrected by the Registrar yesterday (Wednesday) morning after Dave72 notified them.</p>
<p>Actually, the original list was correct for all but the FYSP courses. Anyone who selected non-FYSP courses from the original list should not be concerned. And anyone who did select FYSPs from the original list will receive special treatment by the registrar.</p>