Communication from POC:
Fall 2008 Announcements – sent on 9/05/08
Good Day Rensselaer Student!
I hope that this email finds you in great health. Welcome to all new students and welcome back to continuing ones! On behalf of the Graduate School, I wish you continued success and the best of luck this semester. At this time, we would like to bring your attention to the following:
Fall 2008 webpage - Please visit http://www.rpi.edu/ewp/distance/registration/index.html for pertinent course information and other relevant information. Here you will find important dates (Academic Drop deadlines, Financial Drop Deadlines, etc.) that you should be aware of, Fall 2008 graduation requirements, important semester announcements, etc. In addition, you can find the Fall 2008 course descriptions, class meeting times and your Fall 2008 courses’ video catalog at http://www.rpi.edu/ewp/distance/academics/schedule_f08.html.
Fall 2008 registration - At this time, you should be registered for your Fall 2008 courses. The online registration period is currently closed. If you would like to add or drop a course at this point, please complete the attached registration form and fax to 518.276.8026. Please note that course information memos have been distributed to your RPI email account for every course that you are registered for. These memos are very important as they direct you to Rensselaer’s Learning Management System site where you will find your course’s schedule, syllabus and other pertinent information. Please note that all courses this Fall follow a LIVE schedule. This simply means that you will be expected to submit your assignments, projects, and homework at the same time that the on-campus students submit theirs. Please note that some courses either require or strongly recommend live participation, however.
Potential Fall 2008 Graduates should be aware of the following requirements:
- All graduates must be registered during the semester in which they intend on graduating. If you are not taking a course at Rensselaer during your last semester or if you are transferring your last course from another institution, please contact our Office as soon as possible. You will need to be registered for ADMN 6500 – Final course/degree completion which is an Administrative registration code that maintains your active status during the semester in which you are applying for degree clearance.
- You must have an approved and accurate Plan of Study (POS) on file. An approved Plan of Study is one that has your signature as well as your advisor’s signature. It also must reflect EXACTLY how you completed your requirements (i.e. correct course numbers and titles). If you need to revise your plan, please submit a new (signed) one and make sure that there aren’t any cross outs. You cannot graduate without an up-to-date and accurate Plan of Study. Please go to http://www.rpi.edu/ewp/distance/downloads/download_forms.html to access your Department-specific Plan of Study.
- You must submit a DEGREE APPLICATION by Friday, September 19, 2008. The link can be found at http://www.rpi.edu/dept/srfs/degreeAppWithMajorCodes.pdf. Please fax to us at (518) 276-8026 and not to the number on the form. We will review it for errors and then forward it to the Registrar’s Office. A copy will be kept in your file as well.
Students pursuing a certificate – Upon completion of your fourth course, please notify our Office. Once the grade of your fourth course has posted, we will see to it that a certificate is generated. You will receive your certificate 3-4 weeks after notifying our Office.
Independent Study - Any student planning to do an INDEPENDENT STUDY course this Fall needs to submit an Independent Study form. We need to know the faculty who you will be working with, the course title, and the number of credits. This needs to be approved by the faculty member before we can register you.
Independent Study forms can be found at http://www.rpi.edu/dept/srfs/independent_study.pdf. Please complete the form and fax to 518.276.8026. Our office will then forward it to the faculty member for their signature/approval.
Change in Personal Information - Any change of address, phone, etc. should be made by you, the student in SIS. We also require that you send a change of information notification email to Mecaila Smith via email as well. If you are changing your site location from where you were previously, please notify Mecaila Smith immediately. It is important that we have the new information as quickly as possible to ensure receipt of all course materials in a timely fashion. Failure to do so may result in material distribution/shipping delays.
Exam Liaison - If your exam liaison (not applicable to all students) has changed from the Spring semester or if you need one, please be sure to contact our office as soon as possible.
Campus Cohort Visits – Campus Cohort students are expected to come to campus 2-4 times a semester for every course that they are enrolled in. At the beginning of each semester, our Office provides campus cohort students with a list of faculty’s required dates for visits. Please note that one of the required dates is the first day/night of each class you are registered for. Please be sure to confirm and/or inform our office of your intended travel so that we can provide you with directions, updated information, etc., so that you can plan accordingly.
Updates –
- Technical Requirements and Support - All students and Site Administrators should be aware of our technical requirements. Please go to http://www.rpi.edu/ewp/distance/services/tech_requirment.html to review our technical requirements and support information.
- Library Services - You can access the Library's website at http://library.rpi.edu/setup.do. As an off-campus user, you will need your Library PIN. Please go to http://library.rpi.edu/update.do?artcenterkey=204 to access information on obtaining your PIN. You will need this PIN to access the library databases, ejournals and ebooks. Faculty who teach courses that originate from the Hartford's campus may utilize the Cole (Hartford) Library as their main source of articles, journals, etc. With that being said, it is always best to set up access to both sources. Access to the Folsom (Troy) Library can be done via the Library link provided above. Please go to http://www.ewp.rpi.edu/hartford/library/ to access the Cole Library. You will need your RH Network username as well as the password. Please go to http://www.ewp.rpi.edu/hartford/tis/forms/help.html and request your Network username and password. Be sure to include your RIN. Please note that not all faculty will utilize the Libraries, nor will all Hartford faculty utilize the Hartford Library. Colette Holmes is the Management Librarian and is our Main Contact. She can be reached at holmec@rpi.edu or 518.276.8331 if you have any questions.
- Learning Management System – To access, the current version of the tool, please go to http://rpilms.rpi.edu. If you encounter problems when trying to access the LMS, you should go to http://lmssupport.rpi.edu and go to the Frequently Ask Questions section (FAQ's). You may be able to resolve the issue by viewing the answers provided by the Help Desk. If you are unable to resolve the issue, you should submit a trouble report at http://www.rpi.edu/dept/arc/rpilms/web/forms/rpilmsprobrpt.html. Include as much information as possible so the Help Desk can resolve the problem. The Help Desk will need to know what browser you are using, what operating system is being utilized, and exactly where the problem is occurring.
- RPI Email account – All students should be utilizing their RPI email account as their primary email account. All academic and mass communications will be sent there. If you fail to do so, you will continue to miss important academic and course announcements. Please utilize the forwarding option if you will not check your RPI account. You have the option of forwarding your mail to a preferred account. Please see the attached.
- RCS accounts - Your RCS account provides you with access to a host of on-campus services: the Rensselaer Library, RPI LMS and other on-campus servers for course work. Your RCS userid, which is pre-created for you, consists of the first five characters of your last name and your first initial. If duplicate userids are created, a one- or two-digit number may be added at the end of your userid as needed to make the name unique. Your initial RCS password is a random sequence of letters, numbers, and special characters which you are given when you pick up your account and are told to change promptly.
We look forward to another semester working with you!
Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Thanks,
Ronnie
* This communication was distributed on September 5, 2008. Please contact your Point of contact if you need any of the forms or documents mentioned.
Ronnie Rowe
Student Services Administrator
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
110 8th Street
Troy, NY 12180
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