Reaction to the Priority Preregistration Pilot
by Mary McClellan
Introduction
On February 27, Bard LLI conducted a pilot priority preregistration program. On that day, members were permitted to sign on to ProClass and register for one spring semester course. The decision to run this pilot was made after hearing our members’ frustration with the registration process that favored those with better technical skills and faster fingers. Over the past few years, it seemed that many members were unable to register for any of the courses they wanted to take.
After much brainstorming, members of the Curriculum Committee and Technology Team devised a preregistration pilot to see if by limiting member enrollment to only one course on the first day of registration, we could ensure that all members were able to access either their first-or second-choice course.
Program Results
The results of this pilot showed that by midnight of that first day, 275 LLI members had registered for one course, and at that time, only one course was full. This indicates that every member who actually took advantage of the pilot did, in fact, secure a seat in at least their second-choice class.
Was this pilot perfect? Absolutely not. Because of the design of ProClass, we were unable to shut down the preregistration at a set time and reopen it the following day at 9:00 a.m. for regular registration to commence. That meant that the registration process was “continuous.” Preregistration rolled into regular registration at midnight. This favored night owls and those who took a chance to explore how this new process would work. Many members registered for additional courses between midnight and 9:00 a.m.
Survey Results
One hundred forty-two (142) members have responded to our survey requesting feedback on the preregistration pilot. Of those, one hundred twenty -nine (129) responded that they had participated in the pilot. One hundred twenty-five (125) responded that they were able to enroll in either their first- or second-choice class. One hundred sixteen (116) responded that they participated in regular registration on February 28. Of those, one hundred seven (107) members said they were able to register for additional classes on that day.
One hundred ten (110) of one hundred thirty-four (134) responded that they support the continuation of preregistration going forward.
Revising the Process
Members of Curriculum and the Tech Team have put our heads together and are working with ProClass to design a new registration process. We are hoping to be able to administer a preregistration program that will end at midnight. On the following day, course producers and class managers will be placed in the courses they will be actively working on. There will be no open registration for members on that day. At 9:00 a.m. two days after preregistration, a new registration program will open, and members will be able to sign on and enroll in as many classes as they choose.
This new process will commence with SummerFest ‘25. Priority preregistration will open at 9:00 a.m. on May 27. There will be no open registration on May 28. Regular registration will open at 9:00 a.m. on May 29.
Our hope is that we are indeed on the road to a more equitable and user-friendly registration process. Our goal is to address the needs of as many LLI members as possible.
See you at SummerFest ‘25!
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