Genre: Opinion/Argumentation

Well, it has to be someone's problem As I frantically attempt to register for any classes taking place over the summer 2012 semester, I can't help but feel punished -- as if I've done something wrong by wanting to attend classes over the summer. Punished! I'm sure by now you're saying something along the lines of, "Why would your chosen academic institution punish you for taking classes?" I understand your confusion. I will focus my feelings into words and hopefully by the time you finish reading the aforementioned words, you will begin to understand the same impotent, disillusioned hopelessness I have come to associate with UFV's summer semester. Or lack thereof. First, let's back up a bit. Why does one attend university? In my experience, those who make the life decision to attend university do so from a stance of self-improvement, and with the hopes of a form of self-actualization, which should, ideally, lead to a career path that satisfies more than the wallet or bank-account. We choose to attend university with the goal of being satisfied with who we are personally as well as our place in the world around us. We attend university to contribute to the betterment of our community and therefore our society as a whole. If you agree with me so far, the next part of this article should come as a bit of shock to you. With any luck, it will spur your thought process in holding your chosen academic institutions accountable -- in this case, when it comes to the classes offered year-round and not just during peak periods. Being a relatively new student at UFV, I expected to be waitlisted for a few classes this semester; I simply have a later registration time than other students. I'm okay with a later registration time. However, as I sized up my options, I quickly noticed that almost every class I was hoping to attend this summer was in one of two states: full and closed to registration, or with a waitlist ranging from 15 to 47 students in length. This is unacceptable. Students want to learn, and in order to learn they need a few things. They need books, and reliable transportation. They need safe and secure lodgings, groceries to feed their brains and, one more thing ... classes. Students can't even be students without classes. All the other requirements are up to the student, and are fairly easily managed -- but classes can only be provided by the university, and this is where UFV has dropped the ball. To add to this mess, the most important part of securing aid is being registered in classes; being unable to register in classes equates in not being able to secure funding.  Not receiving aid can result in potentially losing your lodgings, a situation I now find myself in. How do you get out of such a vicious circle? It doesn't matter; at least, that's how I feel after attempting to secure my place in any classes I want or need to attend this summer. It seems, on the surface anyway, that UFV's attitude is of the "it's not our problem" ilk. However, I'm not a man of great wealth, nor was I born in to a family whose situation allows them the freedom to pay for my classes. I'm reliant exclusively on student aid to not only pay for my tuition, but also to pay for books, supplies, lodgings, groceries and other extra costs I incur along the way through each semester. If I were unable to obtain student aid this semester because I was unable to register for any classes, I would find myself in a dire situation, facing the reality of having to leave town and find a free place to reside for the next four months; I believe if this were to happen, it would have a profoundly negative effect on my decision to continue with education, it would definitely cause me to reevaluate UFV as my academic institution. I feel it's safe to assume there are dozens, if not hundreds of students in an eerily similar situation to mine. Can't find satisfying employment, can't find satisfaction at university and are forced to live a life of hopelessness, a life of mediocrity and struggle; avoiding a life like this is the precise reason most people choose to enter an institution of higher learning. If you're a student who can identify with my situation, even if only a small amount, I implore you to write, call or physically vocalize you dissatisfaction with the UFV summer semester. For that matter, I implore you to contact UFV when you're dissatisfied with any of your expectations, related to university guidelines, are not met; this is a prime example. Has it occurred to you that the problem is not with UFV but with the level of funding that the university receives from the provincial government? I'm sure most departments at UFV would love to offer more classes in the summer semester if they had the funding to allow them to do so. Don't think that the lack of classes is simply because professors don't want to teach in the summer -- in fact, many sessional instructors would be more than happy to do so since it would mean a consistent paycheck for the entire year. It's because each department at a university receives a certain number of sections (classes) that it can teach in a given year. This set number of sections means that most departments only offer classes in the Fall and Winter semesters since that is when most students are around and willing to take them. Hence, if the university funds more sections in a year, departments can offer more classes, including in the summer semester. But in order to fund more sections, the university needs more funding from the provincial government (Believe it or not, your tuition fees are not enough to cover the costs associated with running a university). So don't write to or call the UFV administration unnecessarily about a problem that they didn't create, nor can they fix. Instead, write or call your local MLA and other representatives at the Ministry of Advanced Education who have the power to provide the level of funding that would allow UFV to increase its FTEs in order to provide more classes not just in the summer, but in all semesters. By the way, I'm a student, not a representative of the university or something. :P As a UFV student with a legitimate and unaddressed educational concern I contacted the UFV Arts Advice Centre, Educational Advising Services, the Career Centre, the Department of Research and Graduate Studies, and finally the office of the President. Each of these offices and their respective representatives were unable to offer assistance. I then contacted the Ministry of Advanced Education, whose representatives were also unable to offer any assistance. Our administrators and staff at UFV as well as the public servants at the Ministry of Advanced Education should not be met with our continued and collective silence. When the bulk of us remain silent, the voices of the few people who do speak out remain hearable as 'moans', as expressions of aversion or grievance, rather than being heard as potential contributions to a conversation in which a request for further analysis and a desire for genuine change are communicated. It is encouraging for the future of UFV to see a new writer voicing these concerns. I wish you the best in your educational pursuits, Daryl, and hope that you will continue to endeavour to reach your academic goals through thick and thin.