Quote:
Originally Posted by resh.jyoti
Same thing happened to me. I DO NOT HAVE THE PREREQUISITES for anything else in that section in the undergraduate calendar, and so I NEED Life Sci 2D03. I contacted the lady, and because I'm Science II, SHADOWING the Life Sci program she said she couldn't do anything for me.
LIKE WHAT IS THIS?!? I'm sure that people IN Life Sci II have the Chem 1A03 and 1AA3 prereq to take the other 3 courses in that section that I'm not eligible for, because you need that to GET IN FOR GOD's SAKE, and I'm taking it now. I really don't get it, if I need it more than other people, why can't they give it to me? It's not like I have a choice... This just makes no sense!
In addition to this, I want a psych minor. Initially I wanted to go INTO psych, but I also wanted to get into grad school and if i went into psych there's not enough electives to get my average up, so I settled to shadow life sci instead. I got on solar at 12:00, selected everything, it crashed, nothing was saved, and by the time I got on back everything was full. You tell me, how in the name of pretzels am I supposed to get a psych minor if I can't take any second-year psych courses?
*SIGH* I really don't understand the way bureaucracy works...
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I've found that students who shadow a program really aren't given much preference, even though that's not very helpful to hear at this point. I say this because being in Commerce and shadowing Life Sci was a real pain at times. It worked out decently but some science departments can give you a really hard time with things. I had to take Bio during the summer because it's not faculty policy to grant waivers. I wanted in on Psych 2E03 in the summer, when I'd be a registered Science student, though I'm not in Level II until next term (Sept 2010). SOLAR wouldn't let me in because of that Level II requirement, and the Psych department doesn't "do" waivers either.
I suggest that you be persistent. As Feona suggested, keeping calm is really important in the process, no matter how good your fist may look in their wall. It's very tempting to Caps Lock it all, but put yourself in their position. They're being flooded, and I mean flooded, by a ton of emails, likely every minute.
This is what those emails probably sound like:
Let's say I'm answering emails for ...Chemistry:
"Hi, I'm Bushra Habib. I was wondering whom I should contact if I can't get into a Biochem course. Thanks."
AA thinks: "Biochem is the Biology department's problem. Ignore."
"Hi I'm Bushra Habib. My courses are all locked on SOLAR. I'm in your Chem Bio program. Why is this happening?"
AA: "K, I already responded to this. Ignore."
"Hi, I was wondering if I could schedule an appointment with Dr. Valliant, Thanks, Bushra Habib"
AA: "You would have to contact ...Dr. Valliant, not me. Ignore."
"Hi, I was wondering whom I should contact if I would like to volunteer with a prof, Thanks, Bushra"
AA: "Contact the prof. Ignore."
"Hi. I can't get into SOL 1A1000: UNDERSTANDING SOLAR AND MUGSI. It says here that I need to be Stephen Hawking and have credit in MUG 1A500000: UNDERSTANDING MUGSI. Why can't I get in?"
AA: "Because you're not Stephen. Ignore."
"Hi, I'm a first year student in Life Sci. I was wondering when I start registration."
AA: "Check the registrar's website. Ignore."
Etc.
But since they can't just ignore half of the emails, since it is their job to deal with them, they'll probably be emailing a LOT of people. That includes being on the phone as well. Have you ever been to Campus Health during a busy time? They put people on hold for...ages. And on the phone, you're swearing and kicking things, but if you go in person, you see that they're dealing with people who forget appointments, come in late, or have multiple appointments that need to be booked, often with new changes to the system they work with.
Whenever you're expressing something to anybody at university who isn't a pal, it is
always in your ....unbelievably best interest to imagine this is the last letter you will ever right and make it as professional as you possibly can. And succinct. I've found that...most people don't really give a crap if I feel bad about something, and I usually only dedicate one line to how I perceive the issue. Their replies make no reference to my emotions.
Let's say...I wanted to get into Health Sci ...2ZB657: LEARNING HOW TO MAKE HEALTH SCI MUSICALS.
To Whomever it May Concern,
My name is Bushra Habib. I'm a Level II Chemical Biology student (student number here) as of September 2010. I'm interested in enrolling in Health Sci 2ZB657, but this course is not accessible to me on SOLAR. I meet the prerequisites, even though I am not a Health Sci (credit in Health Sci 2ZB600: DANCING LIKE A HEALTH SCI) and would like to request a waiver for admission and here are my supporting reasons:
1. I am very passionate about music and have been tap dancing ever since I was in the womb. When born, I was immediately enrolled in Juillard after which point, I came to McMaster. I have the musical experience necessary to be successful in your course as well as to make valuable contributions to the collaborative learning environment shared with my peers and colleagues.
2. I am a dedicated and passionate learner. When I took Health Sci 2ZB600, I managed to get a 13 in the course because I consistently produce my best effort to doing well and helping others do well etc.
Usually, if it's something administrative (see ChemBio vs Solar (the thread)), admins will breeze through it. Since your case requires more of their attention, you have to clearly and professionally list why you think you deserve their time or a space in the course. University regulations are pretty clear and some people won't bother reading past them to help a student. You need to emphasise why you are worth the help with proof.
When I asked for a waiver for Math 1A03 (despite being in Business), I outlined my work ethic, briefly touched on my Math marks and assured them that I would be committed to doing well in the course.
Maybe the math department is just nice because I got a response that same day granting it. Your letter is their first impression of you and you have the opportunity to make it fantastic. Follow that up with an appointment or two if you're still having difficulty and it does help.
