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Students aren't able to get into classes when bots are taking all the spots. Teachers actually care about educating students so they don't want to have their ti

Students aren't able to get into classes when bots are taking all the spots. Teachers actually care about educating students so they don't want to have their time wasted by bots. There's only so much loan money to go around and the schools want to get that cash into their own pockets, but the schools don't get any when scammers are running off with it to funnel money to other countries or whatever else they're doing. Similarly, students who really need the help can't get it when it all goes to someone who isn't interested in paying for education. Schools have another problem with "ghost students" in general which is that there's a lot of other stuff going on at schools that depend on real students being there. Vendors, club activities, sporting/social events, nearby bars and restaurants etc. There's an entire ecosystem on and around campus which is created or supported by real students. All that non-classroom stuff helps make the school more attractive to students and often directly generates income for the school as well, but little of it would exist or be worthwhile if the campus is a ghost town.

toast0 1y ago
When I was at community college (~ 2000), if the section you wanted was full at registration, you'd register in another section (in case), but show up at the section you wanted and talk with the instructor. Depending on the course/instructor, you'd might need to show up for the first week and anybody who hadn't attended in the first week would be dropped and those who had attended but weren't registered could take those spaces. Sometimes the instructor would do that at the first meeting. You'd go to the section you were registered in as well, and let the instructor know there (sometimes it'd be the same instructor and then maybe you wouldn't need to attend both sections). Not ideal, but registration order was based on completed credits, and after one semester it got a lot easier to get into the sections you wanted; students (real or not) that haven't completed any classes get to pick sections last, so once you've shown you're willing and able to complete classes, you're good. (Protip: check if taking any class in the summer will help you get into the sections you want in the fall) At that time, you could drop classes in the first two weeks for a full refund.
- alistairSH 1y ago
  That works pretty well for a full-time student, but two points... - If you're working/raising a kid/whatever, you don't necessarily have the time to drop into classes that might be full. There is likely a non-zero number of people who see their preferred section is full and don't move beyond that (people taking one-off classes, or slowly working through a professional certificate). - That's a lot of extra mental bandwidth for all involved. Yeah, it works, but life would be better if it wasn't the norm.
  - mixmastamyk 1y ago
    If you don’t have time to go to the class, you don’t have time to go to the class.
- sieabahlpark 1y ago
  [dead]
- awongh 1y ago
  Probably the next step for online-only courses is for the ghost student to start submitting AI generated homework....

toast0 1y ago

When I was at community college (~ 2000), if the section you wanted was full at registration, you'd register in another section (in case), but show up at the section you wanted and talk with the instructor. Depending on the course/instructor, you'd might need to show up for the first week and anybody who hadn't attended in the first week would be dropped and those who had attended but weren't registered could take those spaces. Sometimes the instructor would do that at the first meeting. You'd go to the section you were registered in as well, and let the instructor know there (sometimes it'd be the same instructor and then maybe you wouldn't need to attend both sections). Not ideal, but registration order was based on completed credits, and after one semester it got a lot easier to get into the sections you wanted; students (real or not) that haven't completed any classes get to pick sections last, so once you've shown you're willing and able to complete classes, you're good. (Protip: check if taking any class in the summer will help you get into the sections you want in the fall) At that time, you could drop classes in the first two weeks for a full refund.

alistairSH 1y ago
That works pretty well for a full-time student, but two points... - If you're working/raising a kid/whatever, you don't necessarily have the time to drop into classes that might be full. There is likely a non-zero number of people who see their preferred section is full and don't move beyond that (people taking one-off classes, or slowly working through a professional certificate). - That's a lot of extra mental bandwidth for all involved. Yeah, it works, but life would be better if it wasn't the norm.
- mixmastamyk 1y ago
  If you don’t have time to go to the class, you don’t have time to go to the class.
sieabahlpark 1y ago
[dead]
awongh 1y ago
Probably the next step for online-only courses is for the ghost student to start submitting AI generated homework....