Registration for spring classes kicked off Oct. 6 based on students’ earned credit hours and will continue opening up for underclassmen through the end of October.

By Nov. 3, all students can register for classes until Jan. 5, 2009.

As students sign up for classes, they sometimes encounter error messages that confuse the process.

“The most common reason students get an error message is they don’t look at the prerequisites,” said Jude Rule, associate director of the first year advising center.

To avoid this, students can click on the CRN number and view the catalog entry to see if they need a prerequisite, she said.

Advising appointments have been booked solid for the past three weeks, Rule said.

“The sooner you get to see an adviser the better,” she said.

If classes need special permission, academic adviser Ann Carlson said students should go to the department that offers the class. If a problem occurs for routine scheduling, then advisers can offer overrides.

Advising appointments can help students gauge how much time they will need to be at Kent State.

“(Students) should make sure they are taking classes in the proper order at the proper rate,” Carlson said.

Advising is especially useful for underclassmen students, Rule said.

“(It is) very important for freshman and sophomores to utilize advisers… advisers have an important role for all four years,” she said. “Hopefully, (advisers) will help you with road blocks.”

To get the most out of advising, Carlson said students should think about what courses they’re taking, write down any questions and do some planning ahead of time.

Students said the success of an advising appointment depends on having the right adviser.

“Another problem is (I) don’t know which adviser to choose,” said Najla Alam, computer science major graduate student.

Alam said students should pick an adviser who deals with their specific major.

For more help, students can access an online tutorial by going to the registrar link on Kent State’s Web site, where a FlashFAST link will direct students to an online registration demo.

Carlson said it’s important for students to deal with problems that occur while registering for classes.

“(It’s) your education take responsibility for it,” she said. “Address roadblocks promptly.”

Contact news correspondent Kelly Petryszyn at [email protected].