What Social Factors Affect Students' Use of Online Registration: An Exploratory Study. AIR 2002 Forum Paper.

This study investigated how social factors affect college students' use of the online registration service that was recently offered in a private university in northern California. During the first year, about 37% of the students who preregistered their courses used the service. The results for the 951 students who registered online indicate that academic and demographic factors affected students' use of the online service. For example, students from certain disciplines (e.g., Pharmacy and International Studies) and higher income families were more likely to use the online service. It is interesting to note that the results do not show a significant impact of gender on the use of online registration. Implications are presented for institutions considering alternative registration methods or the implementation of technological solutions to administrative processes. (Contains 6 tables and 19 references.) (SLD)