Sticking true to its slogan of "Education Redefined," Ball State University has made a move to the modern age in its graduate school program. Rather than submitting research papers, theses, dissertations and other documents in paper form, graduate students are now required to submit them electronically.
"Many research projects go beyond the traditional text-only format, which cannot be captured in paper copy alone," Jacquelyn Nelson, associate dean of the graduate school, said. "Many of our graduate students will go on to careers in which this type of activity will be central to their success and better prepare them for the 21st century digital world."
Nelson said the new program also would allow dissertations and similar documents to be placed in an accessible online library. This is a shift that will allow many to witness the research being carried out at Ball State University, she said.
"I think it's a signal of the times," digital storytelling major Ryan Carney said. "Paper's gone the way of the dinosaur. Plus, there's the ease of accessing [the documents] online. They put all the documents in the library, so you can look over everyone's theses."
Carney said he plans to receive his master's degree in the spring of 2010.
For some, the shift to electronic document submissions will require an adjustment on the parts of educators and students alike.
"The students and faculty who tested the system during the spring and summer thought everything worked well and the site was easy to negotiate," Nelson said. "However, this was done on a test site, and we have yet to receive a 'real' paper electronically."
She said the bulk of the electronic submissions would come in late October and November. At that time the graduate school will get a better handle on how the process worked, she said.
Sarah Anderson, another digital storytelling major, received her master's degree in July. As such, she was part of the last generation to go through the process with paper.
"It will be a lot easier once everything is digital," Anderson said. "The turnaround time will be a lot quicker. Everything else [in the graduate school process] is done online, so it only makes sense that everything be submitted electronically."
Besides speeding up the process and giving graduate students invaluable experience with an increasingly digital world, the shift to electronic submission of documents will help eliminate the monstrous pileup of paper.
Nelson said moving toward the cultural "green" movement was not the main motive behind the program's shift, but it was an attractive perk. Because of it, the graduate school will see a big reduction in its paper consumption, she said.
"Submitting the files electronically also will drastically reduce the use of paper and result in a reduction in cost to the students of the once-required expensive 100 percent cotton bond paper," Nelson said. "It is a huge step forward for Ball State's initiatives in the greening of the campus."
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
