Why do I do?

First: What program are you in?
Second: How many courses have you managed to register in?

Originally Posted by goodnews.inc

First: What program are you in?
Second: How many courses have you managed to register in?

Well, I'm in Social Sciences.

I really haven't registered anything as of yet. I've actually been really indecisive and haven't yet decided on everything I want to take. However, I do desperately want to take STATS 1L03 and PHYSICS as well. Presently both are noted as full. It's a depressing situation all around and I don't know why MUGSI is such an unorganized mess of a system. Is there any conceivable way to get into these classes?

I'm going to feel mighty aggrieved if I honestly have to pay obscene amounts of cash for classes I don't want to take. It might seem petulant ,but I'm of the opinion that we're diving in debt here so that we can emerge with an education that we ourselves choose rather than some nameless farce of a program.

EDIT: INQUIRY 1SS3 is now FULL. This morning it wasn't. Yet another dream done and dusted.

Yes, that's why people rush onto SOLAR right at midnight--so they can get spots in courses before they fill up. If you're indecisive, then that's your fault, not the system's. There was nothing stopping you from registering for inquiry this morning, and yet you didn't.

For inquiry, try emailing your dept and see if they can open up a spot for you--since it's recommended for Soc Sci, they'll probably be able to. In the meantime, register for as many courses as you can. Then, try to find alternatives to the courses you want. You can also try emailing the departments of the courses you want (the stats dept and the physics dept) but if it's not a required course, they won't guarantee you a spot. The best course of action is to register for back-ups, and then keep monitoring SOLAR. I got into an elective I wanted in October last year...sometimes it just takes persistence.

All courses have limits, because the rooms they're physically held in have limits. People who require the course for their degree have priority over people who don't, so right now, some seats are held in reserve to ensure that everyone who NEEDS the course can get into it. Yes, it sucks that you're paying a lot of money and can't take the courses you want, but it would be worse if you ended up not being able to graduate because a course was full of people just taking it as an elective. You can't always get the courses you want, so it's best to have several back-ups.

Because they register later than other people, Soc Scis and Humans (That's what I call Humanities students; others call them Hummers) are at a disadvantage because Science kids tend to grab their courses as electives.
I'm locked out of SOLAR so I can't see what first year social science courses are open and aren't. However, I'd suggest registering in everything you can register in and have a bit of an interest in. Then scope the 2nd year programs that you feel you might be interested in and see if you meet the prerequisites with your current selection. If you don't, keep trying until your 7 day limit expires. Email the departments listing the reasons why you think you should be eligible for a course waiver and discuss your work ethic. Waivers will allow you seats in courses that are full. If you can get into NO social science courses, then I'd speak with an academic advisor because you are entitled to courses in your program. You may not be entitled to everything you want to take but you won't be taking 8 science courses if you're in soc sci and want to stay in taht program

They reserve most of the seats in soc sci until the soc sci registration date, though. Same for humanities. I've had this problem trying to get into soc sci courses that say they're full for me (in science) but not for someone who's actually in soc sci.

Originally Posted by goodnews.inc

Because they register later than other people, Soc Scis and Humans (That's what I call Humanities students; others call them Hummers) are at a disadvantage because Science kids tend to grab their courses as electives.
I'm locked out of SOLAR so I can't see what first year social science courses are open and aren't. However, I'd suggest registering in everything you can register in and have a bit of an interest in. Then scope the 2nd year programs that you feel you might be interested in and see if you meet the prerequisites with your current selection. If you don't, keep trying until your 7 day limit expires. Email the departments listing the reasons why you think you should be eligible for a course waiver and discuss your work ethic. Waivers will allow you seats in courses that are full. If you can get into NO social science courses, then I'd speak with an academic advisor because you are entitled to courses in your program. You may not be entitled to everything you want to take but you won't be taking 8 science courses if you're in soc sci and want to stay in taht program

I don't really want to stay in Social Sci. I just recently decided I want to transfer into Science/Social Sci. I pretty much want almost all Science courses excluding the 12 Social Sci credits and 1 or 2 Art courses. At this moment, that doesn't seem likely. Almost all of the courses I wanted, things like Physics, Stats, even Linguistics, are full. They should ranking student chances at choosing courses by marks or something. The people who have the highest marks, or have extenuating circumstances, go first while everyone else has to wait their turn.

Originally Posted by Keile

I don't really want to stay in Social Sci. I just recently decided I want to transfer into Science/Social Sci. I pretty much want almost all Science courses excluding the 12 Social Sci credits and 1 or 2 Art courses. At this moment, that doesn't seem likely. Almost all of the courses I wanted, things like Physics, Stats, even Linguistics, are full. They should ranking student chances at choosing courses by marks or something. The people who have the highest marks, or have extenuating circumstances, go first while everyone else has to wait their turn.

Your options at this point are either contacting the departments or meeting with an academic advisor. Right off the bat, you won't be able to get into Bio 1A03 until summer of first year or 2nd year.

Originally Posted by goodnews.inc

Your options at this point are either contacting the departments or meeting with an academic advisor. Right off the bat, you won't be able to get into Bio 1A03 until summer of first year or 2nd year.

What should my email to the department say?

Do I just take a begging tone?

Originally Posted by Keile

What should my email to the department say?

Do I just take a begging tone?

http://www.macinsiders.com/showthrea...7.html?t=28717

Originally Posted by Keile

What should my email to the department say?

Do I just take a begging tone?

The LAST thing you should do is take a begging tone--that will just frustrate them and you won't get anywhere. As the link Bushra posted says, you should be polite and professional.

Originally Posted by nerual

Yes, that's why people rush onto SOLAR right at midnight--so they can get spots in courses before they fill up. If you're indecisive, then that's your fault, not the system's. There was nothing stopping you from registering for inquiry this morning, and yet you didn't.

There are limited number of seats, even if he had rushed and made it into the course, somebody else would be screwed. And it's not his or her fault. It's inevitable that someone's going to be paying for a course they didn't want because the course they want has limited seats.

Your argument is it's his fault for not adjusting in time for a system that's given to be retarded. Decisiveness hasn't much to do with it, I was on MUGSI at 11:45 but SOLAR kept dying. Eventually I got timed out and when I made it back the course was full. I guess it would have increased his chances had he been on the same time as me, but by how much...

Just because something can be worked around "people rush onto SOLAR right at midnight", doesn't make it acceptable right.

Originally Posted by Ahi88

There are limited number of seats, even if he had rushed and made it into the course, somebody else would be screwed. And it's not his or her fault. It's inevitable that someone's going to be paying for a course they didn't want because the course they want has limited seats.

Your argument is it's his fault for not adjusting in time for a system that's given to be retarded. Decisiveness hasn't much to do with it, I was on MUGSI at 11:45 but SOLAR kept dying. Eventually I got timed out and when I made it back the course was full. I guess it would have increased his chances had he been on the same time as me, but by how much...

Just because something can be worked around "people rush onto SOLAR right at midnight", doesn't make it acceptable right.

I was trying to get into SOLAR since from about 11:20 PM. I didn't get in until after 7am. Basically I feel as if I've been mortally screwed by McMaster--and I haven't even attended one class yet. A foreboding omen of things to come, surely. Now I'm stuck not just with ONE class I don't want, but around 4. As such, I'm writing a bunch of faculty letters hoping for the best. Basically what this means is that the university strives to screw a number of people over from the beginning. Look at the current picture of events.

A number of students have the courses that they want and, accordingly, are spending their money in most efficient way possible. This is an advantage afforded to them by the most vaunted of all academic merits: speed clicking. Since well before the 12:01AM time line, these "super" students took up the monumentally difficult task of speed clicking, and in doing so, won their rightful place in the hall of nocturnal eggheads that spend all day watching Miley Cyrus and drinking Mountain Dew. The rest of us poor saps (who unfortunately have not been blessed with such impressive reactionary prowess) have to subsist on the leftover courses, which generally are pieces of crap that nobody really wants anyway. See, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter who you are if you aren't part of these three elite groups: Speed Clickers, Health Science Speed Clickers, Art and Science Speed Clicks. In general, as was planned, the meritocracy of major (which is arguably an OK form of distinguished merit) combined with the hidden yet just as valuable speed clicking ability, has shown us the true winners.

Natural selection, folks.

That's ridiculous. I didn't get into the electives I wanted at first, in any of my three years here. Each year, I found a way around it. With patience, I eventually got into every single course I wanted. Never once have I been stuck with an elective I didn't want. It has absolutely nothing to do with 'speed clicking'. Each year, my electives have been full before I've even had a chance to register on SOLAR, and I've never been able to pick my courses before 2:30am. I just kept checking SOLAR in the days after registration opened up. Once, I emailed the department for a seat in term 2 physics 1B03, but they told me to keep checking and email them back in Dec if I couldn't get a spot, but I got one in November--no special permission needed. Last year I was trying to decide between TWO electives, both of which were full, and then in Sept a spot in one opened up, and in Oct a spot in another one opened up. If you spend less time on here complaining and more time checking SOLAR waiting for spots to open up, maybe you'll get the courses you want.

There are limited number of seats, even if he had rushed and made it into the course, somebody else would be screwed. And it's not his or her fault. It's inevitable that someone's going to be paying for a course they didn't want because the course they want has limited seats.

Maybe someone else would have been screwed, maybe not. Maybe all they need is to email the department. My point is, he has no right to complain if the course was open, he didn't take it, and now it's full and he's decided he wants to take it. It would NOT be his fault, however, if the course had been full to begin with. As the last group to pick, the very least he could have done was decided what courses to take, with back-ups.

I'm not saying the system is good, or that everyone always gets the courses they want. It doesn't work that way. At the end of the day, though, there are limited spots and no system will ensure that everyone gets all the courses they want. They could fix SOLAR and make it the best registration system on the planet, but it won't change the fact that courses have to be limited, and people requiring those courses have to take priority. People rush onto SOLAR knowing what the system is, to give themselves the best chance at getting electives, because it's first come, first serve.

lol oh man Keile, you've got to relax a bit! I understand this is all new to you and it seems VERY frustrating, but think about it..starting july 12th..you have until the MIDDLE OF SEPTEMBER to register into a class. And YES, classes WILL open up through out the summer. And if they don't, you start making calls. and if you can't take these science courses right away, you have the summer, and other years to do it. Unfortunately that's just how it is sometimes. You have to adjust your schedule around and save those electives you wanted to take for another year. SOLAR/MUGSI IS a poor system.. there's not much we can do really. They have yet to create a new system..gotta learn how to work around some of it's issues if possible. But don't worry , you will get your courses eventually, and if you don't, maybe it will open up an opportunity for a course that you may end up loving! Just gotta have some patience.