I woke up to an email from the CMRS senior secretary informing those of us that intend to graduate in February must perform a number of tasks involving AUC's Kafkaesque bureaucracy (ok, so perhaps it's not has bad as the Egyptian government, but efficiency and logic are often jettisoned). Furthermore, we have to do this by Thursday or risk having our "
names deleted from the Fall 2009 Graduation List." They really have a way with words. So, being notified a week before the deadline on our AUC mail accounts (which few of us use) and four days before the deadline through our department, we're expected to cough up 560 LE to be able to graduate, zip to the new campus and visit at least three different offices between the hours of 10 AM and 2 PM pronto or risk being unable to graduate on time. This fee is not for a cap and gown mind you, but what it actually covers, God only knows. 75 LE of it is for mandatory "Alumni subscription dues". This cost is listed nowhere on the
Tuition and Fees webpage, though the remaining 485 LE is if you look hard enough. For graduate students, God knows where the 75 LE is going because you don't even have the option of filling out a graduate student form (despite being asked to in the instructions). You are instead linked to the graduating seniors page where you're asked what kind of bachelor's degree you'll be receiving from AUC. Great. Thanks, AUC! When I'm not attending my swine flu cancellation make-up classes, working, or commuting, I'll be sure to make your four hour window by this Thursday even though you only notified of the elaborate process a few days ago. Don't bother explaining what my 485 LE for "graduation fees" covers or why you think it is you can come up with mandatory alumni subscription fees without announcing them beforehand. Nah. That would be honest and responsible.
An excerpt from another interesting email I was sent this morning reads as follows:
AUC has been notified that a student in the university's continuing education program has tested positive for the H1N1 flu. The student attends an English language class in Heliopolis and is being treated at Abbaysia Hospital. AUC's medical clinic director, Dr. Mohamed Amin, has been in contact with the student and the student is responding well to treatment.
In this case, I actually think the university is being quite responsible and neither overreacting nor unnecessarily placing students at risk. Bravo, AUC.
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