Knowing what classes to register for can be a stressful and confusing experience for many students. The Graduation Planning System (GPS) is a feature within Blazernet that provides undergraduate students with a simple and clear overlook of their academic plan towards graduation. It displays the classes that need to be passed, the academic standing and the amount of credit hours the student is required to have in order to graduate. It is a tool that helps students navigate and plan their academic journey at UAB.
GPS can be found in the right row of applications on the front page of the Blazernet account. The site mainly consists of three parts, the Worksheets, Plans and GPA Calculator. Worksheets Here you can find the list of courses that the student needs to pass before earning their degree. Core Requirements, Major Requirements and Minor Requirements are the main categories that include both the mandatory and elective courses. The status of the fulfillment of the requirements is color coded, making it easy to spot courses that are completed and the ones that are still missing. This page is an overview of the current status of the student’s path towards graduation.
Worksheets also has a What If feature, which allows students to try out different scenarios of majors, minors and concentrations, in order to see what the graduation plan would look like if they decided to change their areas of study. Plans This page provides a timeline for the path to graduation, semester by semester. This is the platform where the student can arrange the courses they believe they will be taking in the future and thus plan out semesters, years or even the whole degree ahead of time. It is a course layout that is not written in stone, but is simply available so that students can easily plan their path to graduation.
The GPA Calculator feature allows students to find answers regarding their future GPA points. Students can type in their desired GPA value, which would show which grades they need to receive in order to achieve the desired GPA. The reverse function of this is also possible. The student can type in her/his expected grades in a course and see the GPA they would receive if the grades would cohere with their plan.
Overall, GPS facilitates the process of receiving answers about graduation requirements. Students can find the information they are looking for without having to consult with their advisors about every small question. Students are still encouraged to meet with their assigned advisor(s) at least once every semester, preferably a few weeks before registration, to make sure that everything is moving according to plan.