Seniors who miss deadline must pay fee

Seniors who miss the November 13 deadline to register for graduation this year will have to pay the University a $25 late fee because of a new process implemented this fall. The new policy stipulates that graduating seniors must register by November 13 for their name to appear in the Commencement program and to avoid paying any late fees. Seniors who register for their May graduation from November 14 to February 12, 1993 will appear on the graduation list, but will face a late penalty of $25. After February 12, seniors will not be included in the May Commencement program. Instead, their graduation will be in August. However, Diane Frey, Director of Advising Services for the College, said the College will make exceptions for students who miss the November or February deadlines. The College will "reserve the right" to charge the $25 late fee, Frey said. She added that students could also petition after February 12 to be included in May's Commencement. "If there was a legitimate reason for the student coming so late then we would consider that," Frey said. According to administrators in the University's four undergraduate schools, the new procedure was implemented to avoid mistakes in the graduation list and to make sure seniors have fulfilled all their requirements to graduate. "Parents and students have been very upset when they didn't see their name in the program," Frey said. She said the names were missing because of late registrations. Wharton Vice Dean Janice Bellace said that "the deadline in November was deliberately set to coincide with [advance] registration" for the spring semester. As part of the new policy, Wharton seniors must meet with an advisor to go over their worksheet and plan for their final semester, Bellace said. She added that Wharton seniors will then have an opportunity to get into classes that they must take to meet their graduation requirements. "The new rule alerts students to the consequences of registering late," Bellace said. "A student who has been tracking his or her progress should have no problems." This is the first year the University is "actually pressing [registering for graduation] a little bit," said Rita Washington, assistant director of student information for the Nursing School. Washington said that in previous years, registration deadlines for the four schools differed. "What we're trying to do now is have some uniformity," she said. Seniors said last night they had not heard of the new policy, but that they are comfortable with it. "I'm not upset about the early deadline for graduation," College senior Amy Pezzillo said. "But I think a lot of people are going to be upset about the fee. It seems silly to have to charge that kind of money." Pezzillo added that she was glad the College will being "open-minded" about seniors who did not register by the two deadlines. Engineering senior David Foster said the new policy makes sense if it cuts down on mistakes in the Commencement program. Wharton seniors will receive a graduation notice in their mailboxes today. College, Engineering and Nursing seniors will be informed of the new policy in the next few weeks.

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