News briefs

Touchtone registration to be discontinued

After Dec. 27 the touchtone registration, currently maintained by the staff of Information Systems, will no longer be available.

According to Ann Harris, director of Information Systems, student use of the touchtone registration system has declined dramatically since the fall of 1998. She said students prefer to use the Internet to register for classes. As a result, the system is no longer cost-effective.

The touchtone system will be available through December for information concerning fall term, but students will not be able to register for the winter term via phone.

Registration for winter term can be completed in person in Neuberger Hall or on the Web. Kiosks and lab stations have been added across campus by the Office of Information Technologies to make it easier for students to register via the Web.

PSU code corrected in ISEAS

International Education Services at Portland State received notification on Oct. 16 that the school code had been corrected in the Interim Student and Exchange Authentication System, an electronic tracking program implemented by the U.S. Department of State. Later that week, news was received the government had decided to extend the deadline to contact the foreign consulates and embassies about code problems indefinitely due to the abundance of school code mix-ups.

International Education Services can now transmit verification of student status to foreign embassies and consulates, which then issue visas to students.

For the back-story, see “International student visas threatened” in the Oct. 15 edition of The Vanguard.