Students registering for Fall 2007 classes in March and April will be the first group to use EIU’s new Banner registration system, and officials fully expect the system to get rave reviews.

With the help of students, staff members have conducted several mock registrations that garnered high marks for the Banner system, which has been dubbed “New PAWS,” as it replaces the former PAWS (Panther Access to Web Services).

The changes are the latest integration of existing services into the new campuswide Banner/EISE system, which is designed to seamlessly integrate all aspects of EIU’s information system infrastructure.

In New PAWS, students can view their schedules at a glance, access and search the upcoming term’s entire course catalog and class schedules, add or drop courses, check to see if there are holds on their records, determine their class standings, and much more.

“We feel that it’s just such an intuitive system,” said Sue Harvey, EIU registrar. “I do think there’s going to be a very positive reaction by students.”

New PAWS can be accessed via the Internet using a person’s existing Net ID and password, and the interface is a simple point-and-click layout that should be easy to navigate for most users. The address for the PAWS site remains unchanged: http://www.eiu.edu/paws/.

In conjunction with these changes, course schedules will no longer be published in The Daily Eastern News. Instead, the university will distribute a class schedule guide that will contain the academic calendar, registration schedule and instructions about how to access the system and register for classes.

Registration for the Fall 2007 semester will open on different dates for different classifications of students: graduate students, March 26; seniors and priority registrations, April 2; juniors, April 9; sophomores, April 16; and freshmen, April 23.

Students are encouraged to check the “registration status” page on the PAWS site during the week of March 19 to check their ability to register.

Registration for Summer 2007 classes will still use the Old PAWS system.

Advisers have already begun using Banner Self-Service when advising students. The system allows for easy viewing of student schedules, contact information and related details. Staff training will continue over the next few months to familiarize advisers with the system.

Undergraduates, who are required to meet with advisers before registering for classes, will be assigned a six-digit “Alternate PIN” that must be used to access the registration system throughout the term. Other groups – graduate, post-baccalaureate, Bachelor of General Studies and Career and Organizational Studies students – will not be required to use an Alternate PIN.

Faculty will begin using the system in December 2007, when they enter grades for the fall semester. Faculty training will be held in the fall. Once they’re primed on the system, they can start using it to benefit students in additional ways, such as by posting their office hours..

Other milestones for EISE/Banner

By EIU Department of University Communications