As the Fall 2017 semester is coming to an end, Spring 2018 registration dates for classes are rapidly approaching. Registering for classes can become a very stressful time for students but California State University, Stanislaus, (Stan State), has recently added a new feature to the MyCSUSTAN portal to help students feel more at ease.

The MyCSUSTAN portal allows students, faculty and staff to access information and self-service transactions. Students are able to register for classes, enroll, check financial aid statuses, grades and account balances through the portal.

The new change comes with no warning to students regarding the update.

The new feature on MyCSUSTAN is the STAN Planner, which is a convenient way to access information and is meant to help students plan their class schedule so they are better prepared for their registration dates.

The STAN Planner aids students who aren’t sure what classes to take, don’t know what they’ve taken for their degree, or are simply afraid to ask for help.

Students can also view their progress towards their degree with graphs and charts. These visuals display the percentage of units that a student has completed, units that are in progress and units that are still left in a student’s planner. The graphs also display units by requirement types for each degree.

For students who have multiple majors or minors, graphs are summed and table charts are displayed below the graphs and charts with specific numerical totals for each major/minor.

After learning about the STAN Planner, Stan State’s students provided feedback about the new feature.

Some students felt that the new feature could be useful.

“I haven’t seen it [STAN Planner] but since I learned about it, I would definitely try it out. I think it would help me out a lot with my classes since it seems simple,” Chelsea Allen (junior, Liberal Studies) said.

Selina Jimenez (senior, Communication Studies) also agreed with Allen.

“I didn’t know that they updated it but I think it’s cool that they have graphs which make it easy for students to see how close they are for their graduation,” Jimenez said.

On the other hand, students did not think the new feature would be useful considering how late it has been added.

“I didn’t know about the planner and I don’t think I’d use it because I’m graduating this semester,” Kristen Ferguson (senior, Communication Studies) said.

Although Ferguson didn’t find the STAN Planner to be useful for her, she agreed that it was a good idea for students who have trouble tracking their progress towards their degree.

Provided are easy steps to follow and access the STAN Planner that is accessible through a smartphone or desktop.

For more information on this new feature log on to my.csustan.edu or for technical support contact Technology Support Desk for assistance at 667-3687