Registration for classes will soon be dramatically different at Baldwin Wallace — or at least the web tool used to do it will be.

Currently, when BW students registers for classes each semester, they do so using the web tool WebExpress. Students have complained that the system is user friendly, which makes registration and planning difficult. However, this may not be a concern for much longer.

WebExpress will disappear and the new system will be rolled out incrementally, according to Greg Flanik, Chief Information Officer, with a small group testing the new system as soon as next semester.

“There are a handful of students who will be participating in a pilot this Spring,” he said.

This group will be part of a pilot program in the Spring semester, available to certain students to be selected based on academic advisors who are in the pilot group, Flanik said. The general student body will not see a change.

Those students in the pilot, however, will see a “modernized” planning and registration system to select their Fall 2018 classes, he said, which will make the process for both students and advisors easier and more effective than before.

“The new tool will help making taking and planning classes much easier,” said Flanik, “and map out a progress chart toward graduation and completion of the major and core requirements.”

According to Provost Stephen Stahl, the decision to make the change is based on several different factors, including both internal dissatisfaction with WebExpress and external changes to the software.

“We have not been happy with the ease or breadth of use of WebExpress, particularly in the area of functionality for students,” said Stahl. “A new product has come out that is a significant improvement, and it has now gone through several revision cycles. The functionality is much better, and the service provider is going to stop supporting WebExpress in the not too distant future.”

Pending the success of the pilot to be run in the Spring semester, the new registration tool is expected to be available for the rest of the student population in the Fall 2018 semester in order for registration of Spring semester 2019.

Additional details about the change are expected to be made available to students during summer 2018.