A Taste of Queens College

Tonight, I was an interviewee at my first group interview.  It was part of the admissions process for the MLS program at Queens College.  It was really more of an informational meeting, followed by individual mini-Q&A’s.

The professor noted that during the “down time” while others were being interviewed, we all seemed to socialize nicely.  I guess that so far, we future students mesh well together – hopefully this will carry over to the classroom as well.

There was great diversity amongst the interviewees, in terms of professional/academic background.  We had folks from academia, elementary schools, straight-out-of-college, two from publishing, and other fields as well.  It seemed, though, that a fair amount of people had experience working in a public library, the field in which I hope to base my career.

After the interview, I feel somewhat confident about my acceptance, but a little bit nervous about the high level of workload at Queens College.  We spent a good deal of time individually planning out our upcoming semesters’ schedules (on real paper! how ’bout that?!)  I’ll be starting this summer with only one class (2x per week for 6 weeks) so that I can acclimate myself again to the academic realm.  After that, I’ll be taking 2-3 classes every semester until I get through 12 of ’em.   More updates to follow.

The ink isn’t even dry on my application papers

Today marks the official beginning of my grad school story.  Technically, my grad school career hasn’t begun yet, but today I put one of the most important pieces into place for my MLS: I mailed in my pen-and-paper application packet to Queens College.

Although I appreciate the comfort of having a paper checklist in front of me, provided by the application booklet, I have a nagging feeling that this protocol is a bit antiquated.

—

As I began my undergraduate years in 2003, my college was implementing increasingly efficient ways to bridge the information gap between the records department, students, and professors.  Even in the short period of time since my senior year in 2007, TCNJ adopted a new online system for students to access their library account, on-campus printing allotment, financial aid statements,  and of course, course registration dashboard.

One of the most logical uses of this information proliferation, in my opinion, would be to save forests worth of trees by offering a digital option for the admissions application.  My alma mater, TCNJ, allows both undergraduate and graduate applicants to submit their applications via an online system.

I was surprised to learn that Queens College’s Graduate Admissions office doesn’t offer an online or paperless application.  Granted, I personally would have printed at least a few pages of the application, even if it could be submitted digitally.  I would have wanted to print the checklist provided by the office; however, the rest of the application would have been easily completed on my computer.  But wait, there’s more.  I spent a whopping $1 and change at the post office today to send my application.  It’s not a major cost by any definition, but I believe the paper saved is argument enough.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m looking forward to *hopefully* attending Queens College and enjoying all the technological grandeur that the library and GSLIS have to offer.  I just think that a slight protocol reevaluation is in order.  Queens, give it a go.  After all, if you’re behind TCNJ in user-friendly technology, then you need to start thinking – quickly.