Have you ever tried registering for a class, but they're too many people ahead of you and the class fills up before you get the chance to register? Have you ever wanted to check out a book at the library, but someone had already checked it out and now there is a waiting list for said book? Well, now there's a solution! It's called "IlliniBucks" and they are brought to you by your friendly administration here at the U of I. These so called "IlliniBucks" will allow you to go to the front of any sort of line and skip all that pointless waiting. Your probably asking yourself: How do I get my hands on some of these magical "IlliniBucks"? Well friend, you're in luck! The U of I administration has made an allocation of "IlliniBucks" to each student.
Students who attend the University of Illinois find themselves having to wait for many services provided by the school. All of these are potential areas where "IlliniBucks" could serve a useful purpose. One of the most common areas that students find themselves in a line is when registering for classes. The time you get to register for classes is based on a few things, but mainly how many course hours you have completed. Students who are athletes or in various scholar programs get priority when registering. After they register, its based on the number of class hours you have completed. "IlliniBucks" would completely circumvent this system and allow you to register for the class you want regardless of the amount of hours you've taken. Getting tickets to sporting events could also adopt the new "IlliniBucks" system, although I've rarely ever had trouble getting tickets to any basketball or football game. The Library could also let people with "IlliniBucks" skip to the head of the waiting-list for any book. Professors could embrace this new system and let students ensure themselves the earliest meeting time the professor has by using "IlliniBucks". Likewise, getting appointments for the various health services at McKinley could give students with "IlliniBucks" preferential times. Students could also use their "IlliniBucks" to get the best dorm assignments, which were random before "IlliniBucks" were implemented. These are a few areas that "IlliniBucks" could be implemented in.
One issue I notice applies to registering for classes. The old system ensured that seniors would have priority access to classes to make sure they are able to take all the classes they need to graduate. A system that lets students skip the wait for registration regardless of class standing will inevitably lead to seniors not getting into the classes they need to graduate.
If the administration prices the "IlliniBucks" too low then the system will face a few challenges. To start, there would be too many people using them. If two people want a library book and they both use their "IlliniBucks" then who gets to check out that book? Likewise, which student would get the first appointment to meet with their professor? Having too many students use "IlliniBucks" would result in lines and waiting just like the old system. Using "IlliniBucks" wouldn't mean you get to cut the line but rather get to cut everyone who didn't have "IlliniBucks" and still have to wait behind those who have them, which would be a lot of students given a low price.
If the price of "IlliniBucks" was high, the system would face a few different issues. With a high price, students might try to barter with their "IlliniBucks", assuming they could transfer between students. Students who have their mind on making a quick buck would find themselves in trouble when trying to register for classes. The students who decide to stockpile "IlliniBucks" would get their pick of classes and face no waiting for any school service. A high price also gives a considerable advantage to students who are well-off. Seniors wouldn't be the ones with preferential access to registering for class, but rather it would be the rich students. This system would be unfair to the students who have to watch their finances. High prices could also act as incentive to students to take out larger loans so they can ensure they get in all their favorite classes.
How would anyone know what the Illinibucks price should be for a particular service, like reserving a Library book. Should the price float as in a competitive market, so if there appears to be excess demand that the Illinibucks price, then that price rises?
ReplyDeleteIf it doesn't happen that way, wouldn't the system revert to first come first serve?
One of the things you didn't ask, but I'm curious about, is why there are courses that seniors need that nonetheless max out? Shouldn't they add additional sections of such courses? Your response treats supply as fixed. Does it really need to be that way?
I think the price would have to be determined on the market. Reserving a Library book would most likely have far less demand than trying to register for a popular course. If the price of cutting the line for each service was the same, then you would have students all trying to use iIllinibucks for the service they deemed most important, which I believe would be registering for classes, and creating another queue, defeating the purpose for the Illinibucks.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was writing my blog, I was thinking about a particular course that I have had trouble getting into during my career at U of I. This is a lower-level 1-credit hour economics course , but it is one of the required courses for graduation. There are usually only a couple sections of this class and they fill up before I am able to even register for courses. This semester however, they added an additional section that only seniors would be able to register for, so I was able to register for the course. The excess demand created by seniors, needing to check-off their final requirements, resulted in an increase in supply. I believe they realized that there was greater demand for the course than supply because of economics majors emailing their advisors. In class, you asked us if there was any sort of waiting-list for courses that have filled up. If such a system was implemented, the university would be able to tell which courses have greater demand than the supply of seats. A waiting-list would provide an accurate count of just how many more students wish to take the course than seats available. With this information, the university would be able to add sections or otherwise accommodate for the excess demand. It's strange that they do not yet have a system like this in place. I suppose they could look at how quickly courses fill up to determine the amount of demand but a waiting-list system would give more precise counts and allow the best possible solution to be put into place.