NARRATOR：

Listen to a conversation between a student and a registrar.

MALE STUDENT：

Hi, I'd like to drop off my graduation form. I understand you need this in order to process my diploma.

FEMALE REGISTRAR：

Ok, I will take that. Before you leave, let me check our computer.

Looks like you are OK for graduation [trailing off] and…hmmmm. Actually, I am getting a warning flag on your academic record here.

MALE STUDENT：

Really?

FEMALE REGISTRAR：

Yeah. Let's see what's what. [pauses] Uh, OK, are you familiar with our graduation requirements?

MALE STUDENT：

Um, I think so.

FEMALE REGISTRAR：

Well, then you know you need 48 credits in your major field to graduate and at least 24 credits in the intermediate level or higher.

Also, after your second year, you have to meet with your department chair to outline a plan for the rest of your time here.

In the past, we also issue letters before a student’s final year began to let them know what they needed to take in the final year to be OK, but we don't do that anymore.

MALE STUDENT：

I definitely met with my chair person two years ago.

He told me that I need 8 more courses at the intermediate level or higher in the last two years to be OK.

So I am not sure what the problem is. I make sure I got those credits.

FEMALE REGISTRAR：

Unfortunately, the computer is usually pretty reliable… so I’m not sure what’s going on here.

MALE STUDENT：

It could be that I have taken two basic courses but coupled both of them with a field experiences.

FEMALE REGISTRAR：

What do you mean?

MALE STUDENT：

Well, I could only take intro courses because there were no intermediate level courses available for those particular topics.

My chairperson told me that if I did the independent field research in addition to the assigned work in each course, they would count as intermediate-level courses.

My classmates, some of my classmates, did this for an easy way to meet their intermediate course requirement, but I did it to get the kind of depth in those topics I was going for.

As it turned out I really enjoyed the field work, it was a nice supplement to just sitting and listening to lectures.

FEMALE REGISTRAR：

I am sure that's true, but the computer is still showing them as basic level courses despite the field work.

MALE STUDENT：

I am not sure what to do then, I mean, should I cancel my graduation party?

FEMALE REGISTRAR：

No, no reason to get worried like that, just contact your chair person immediately, OK?

Tell him to call me as soon as possible so that we can verify your field work arrangement and certify those credits right away.

It's not like there is an actual deadline to date or anything.

But if more than a few weeks go by, we might have a real problem that would be very difficult to fix in time for you to graduate.

In fact, there probably would be nothing we could do.

MALE STUDENT：

I will get on that.