🚀 go-pugleaf

Disclaimer: The purpose of this post is to embarass the McGill Registrar's
Office into improving their practices. There. I said it. It's official.

Here's my situation - yesterday (Jan 23), I decided to apply for a job 
with an employer that requires an official copy of one's transcript. 
Unfortunately, I only saw the offer the same day, and the deadline date 
is Feb 1. Last night, I prepared the application and had everything 
ready, *except* the arrangements for the official transcript.

Today, Jan 24, I went to the McGill Registrar's Office, and placed a 
request for the transcript. After duly filling out the form, and shelling 
out $10, I was informed that I could either a) pick up the transcript (to 
send in myself) on Feb 4th at the earliest, of b) have them mail it, 
certainly after the 4th. No other way. No "rush" option. ELEVEN DAYS. I 
made some comments about not getting the job, but they couldn't care 
less. (I'm sending an unofficial copy, with a note that the official copy 
is on the way, and hoping that I won't be disqualified on those grounds.)

Being rather annoyed, I called the Concordia Registrar's Office to see 
how they compare. Cost is $5, and it's out in less than five days 
(presumably working days). That's a maximum. Sounds like it would 
probably be out sooner, but that they're not making any guarantees.

... then there's unofficial transcripts... Here at McGill, to get an 
*unofficial* printout, you have to submit a request, and pick it up the 
next day. Down the street, they print them up on the spot.

It's beyond me why these things should take so long - an UNOFFICIAL copy
is simply a printout (the process could be totally automated, with a
"Transcript Station", where one would enter one's student #, registration
PIN #, the printout would be made, and a modest charge (say, $1) would be
added to one's student fee account. An OFFICIAL copy could be ordered the
same way, but be printed in the registrar's office, where it could be put
into an envelope and mailed out in an efficient way. A larger fee (to
cover handling, authenticating, the envelope, and postage) would be 
appropriate. (Say, $5...) The whole process could be largely automated, 
and getting the things out in 1-2 days is probably feasible. Maybe, for 
an additional charge, the request could be bumped to same-day-processing 
and sent by Xpresspost.

Rereading the above paragraph, I get the feeling that I must be insane...
I suppose that to argue that there *is* a better way to do things is
Heresy, First Degree... 

Having been at McGill for over two years, and seeing the attitude of 
superiority (often as compared to Concordia) that is the accepted "norm" 
around here, I must comment that McGill is very complacent, and doesn't 
deserve its "reputation." Remember that poster, "McGill, l'unique / The 
one and only McGill" for the 175th year? My answer to that one is "Thank 
God!"

I'll keep my comments about academic practices for another time... 

This post will probably anger alot of people at McGill. Good. I hope that 
they channel that anger into fixing the situation, and deserving their 
reputation, rather than simply polishing its surface. And to those who 
say I shouldn't have come here in the first place, let me tell them - if 
I had to do it again, I wouldn't.

Louis Raphael
McGill Engineering student