For many students, the end of fall semester is a time of cramming for finals, walking across campus wrapped up in ten pounds of winter clothing and daydreaming of a few weeks respite from homework, tests and living in the dorms.
After deciphering my own final exam schedule I can't help but wonder how many students, commuters and dorm residents alike, will be stressed about how they will manage to take the final exam for their Monday and Wednesday (MW) class that is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 14.
The website, http://www.emich.edu/registrar/examsched.htm, where the final exam schedule is located, states that the requirement for a final exam falls under departmental policy. The site also states, in a voice better suited to a totalitarian grade school, that, "The schedule below shall be followed. If a final examination is not given, the scheduled exam period shall be used for other class activity."
As one of my own professors said, there will be hell to pay if the professor and a majority of students in a particular class are not present during the scheduled time for that class final. University employees will check classrooms to ensure that the professor and students are present during the specified exam time period.
Doesn't that sound like they're just trying to keep us busy? Keep in mind that 24-hour quiet time will be in effect in the dorms leading up to and during finals, and anyone who absolutely must be disruptive can go off-campus, hang out in the Eastern Eateries or the student center, where Fridays often feature music of some sort, whether live or supplied by a DJ.
Don't get me wrong -- I understand that scheduling classes so that they don't overlap is difficult. I simply have a problem with it when half of the Monday, Wednesday and Friday classes, which also includes MW classes, are on Friday. Many students explicitly choose MW classes so they can work Fridays, go home for a full two days and decompress, or even be able to have a doctor's appointment in their out-of-state hometown.
Finals week this semester does span a weekend -- Thursday, Dec. 13 to Tuesday, Dec. 18. It is likely difficult to separate MW classes from MWF classes when making the schedule, but this does not excuse the fact that a number of students who live off campus were completely disregarded.
One option for students is to ask the professor for an alternate time to take the final. In the event the professor doesn't flat out refuse, this puts professors in a catch-22, especially for upper level classes where a good number of the students may not only have jobs but also commute, many from an hour or more away.
While professors want to help their students get good grades in the class, they may get in trouble themselves if a majority of the class does not show for the final exam scheduled time and someone does check.
I am sure there are people reading this who think that those students with some sort of scheduling conflict ought to just suck it up, clear their schedule and get to class -- but it's not always that easy. Employers are not always understanding of the time constraints inherent of going to college, and even if the employer does understand, many businesses set their vacation days in stone months in advance and offer a small, set number of sick days before an employee is fired as per the company's own regulations. There are probably others reading this who think those students who can't get out of whatever obligations they may have ought to just suck it up and take a zero for the test grade, and I admit -- that is an option. However, the point is that students should not be put in a position where they have to choose between being paid and taking their final exams.
It is Eastern Michigan University's job to make sure those students are not put in that position, not the other way around.
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