Possible Saturday finals cause calendar conundrum
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A proposal to shorten Welcome Week could extend finals week to Saturdays in the fall semester.
Extending the semester into finals week would allow officials to avoid scaling back the fall semester by two days or holding exams the following week, Provost Kim Wilcox said via telephone during a meeting of the Executive Committee of Academic Council, or ECAC. Exams would begin the Wednesday of finals week.
“Given the concerns, and I appreciate the most recent round of feedback from (the University Committee on Academic Policy), we’ve been working and looking at ways to do this and still be respectful of the winter break season and the holidays,” Wilcox told the members.
Wilcox was out of the state.
The Academic Governance system is consulted before any significant changes impacting the university’s academic programs are made, said June Youatt, senior associate provost. Those councils can weigh in on issues, but final decisions rest with the provost’s office.
Although a final decision won’t come until late September, Youatt said the 2009 exam-week schedule could remain intact if a compromise is reached.
“If we were willing to sacrifice the two days, we could maintain the same final exam schedule,” she said. “If faculty feel there could be a compromise on that without compromising the real integrity of the semester, that change isn’t necessary.”
Michael Bryant, a human biology sophomore, said holding an exam on the weekend would complicate travel plans for students.
“I think it would be a distraction,” Bryant said. “I look forward to going home and seeing my family. I wouldn’t want to stay here on a weekend studying and taking a final.”
The shift is a result of a proposed university plan to begin classes the Wednesday of Welcome Week.
The UCAP stated it would not support shortening the fall semester earlier this week.
Sekhar Chivukula, chairman of UCAP, said in an e-mail that although UCAP didn’t review the proposed four-day exam schedule, he believed it could work at MSU.
“I have taken courses as a student and taught as an instructor at institutions that did hold some exams on Saturday,” he said. “With planning, I believe this could be accommodated.”
Trustee Melanie Foster said the proposed changes to the academic year, including final exams, didn’t need approval from the MSU Board of Trustees.
“I haven’t heard anything about it,” she said. “I know they’ve been working on reconfiguring the calendar, but I haven’t seen any recommendations from the provost’s office.”
Jon Sticklen, an at-large member of ECAC, said pushing final exams back could pose problems for students and faculty. It could create scheduling conflicts and add stress because people would have less studying time.
“I’m just not sure of all the ramifications of that,” Sticklen said.
Bryant said he wouldn’t want to be the student stuck on campus for a Saturday exam.
“I think it would actually make students do worse,” he said. “Students don’t want to take a final on a weekend.”
Commentary
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lol
(09/11/08 2:16am)Report
wtf is wrong with msu lately? first they increase our tuition to make our lives difficult, now they want to push finals to weekends to make our lives miserable. Are we going to do anything about this? I’ve been here for 4 years, I am not staying here an extra weekend to do my final, I want to get out of here asap and finally go home. I am fucken tired.
JR
(09/11/08 10:29am)Report
How enticing is it to a prospective student to come here when other schools don’t have final exams on a saturday? Sounds like a nail in the coffin for recruiting to me.
MSUgrad
(09/11/08 11:24am)Report
Actually, other colleges and universities do have Saturday finals. It’s not a groundbreaking concept. It sucks, none the less.
TCN
(09/11/08 11:43am)Report
I really hope that The State News helps expose this issue. Many students do not know about it and it definitely effects us. Somebody needs to take a stand soon because the deadline for the decision is the end of September, which obviously is soon. I really don’t think that the University is considering how this will affect the size of the incoming freshman class also. I’d say that is a big problem.
Reader
(09/11/08 4:31pm)Report
So if there is a Saturday exam would people be allowed to stay in the dorms an extra day? Also it would cut into the holiday break, what about International students who travel thousands of miles to get home? The extra could seriously hinder their travel plans.
lol
(09/11/08 7:59pm)Report
lets face it, msu administration really doesn’t give a flying fcuk about students. They really don’t understand how many problems this one day will cause to students, especially international students who have to travel home. Because of this retarted plan, every international student has to change their travel plans.
Support the students
(09/11/08 10:09pm)Report
Change exams to saturdays and shorten welcome week. Has MSU administration lost there minds?
I am a MSU parent and find this change totally stupid!!!! I pay alot of money to send my student to MSU. Parents should have a say in this decision. It’s our families and our students who are effected. This administration need to allow parents and students a voice!!!
We pay your salaries!!!! I guess they forgot that!
Parents work full time so we can send our kids to college. We will have a difficult taking off time from work in the middle of the week to bring our students to MSU. Some parents drive from out of state and this puts a addded stress on them. We have other kids besides our college students. What about parents????? This is not a family friendly university if this decision to change is made. No more students from my family!!!! I have had enough of student abuse and neglect! I am a dyehard MSU fan but this is pushing my support to the limits.
RB
(09/12/08 7:13am)Report
“lets face it, msu administration really doesn’t give a flying fcuk about students.”
Get used to it cause when you go out in the real world no one is going give a flying fuck about you then. Your on your own. Companies, government, and in this case a Big Ten university will do what they want and you either comply or go someplace else.
Steve
(09/12/08 1:36pm)Report
This Saturday exams idea is getting a bit ridiculous.
However, “Support the students” I wanted to point out to you that you do not pay their salary anymore than you pay the salary of police and fire departments of your city. Since you pay their salary, they shouldn’t write you citations then should they since you are their boss? Moreover, most funding to pay the professors and such actually comes from the government and grants to fund research.