Before the PAWS system and touch-tone registration, students enrolled in courses through arena registration, a computer system without the reliability of the current process.

Molly Evans, assistant director of registration, said she had worked during the time students used arena registration.

She said arena registration was a longer process than touch-tone registration or the PAWS system.

“Well, for starters, students submitted pre-enrollment requests,” Evans said.

The requests were turned in on a deadline and entered into a computer, Evans said. Then they were given to each department, which made adjustments to meet the demands of the students.

After each department made adjustments, the computer comprised students’ schedules based on their year in school, Evans said. Actual scheduling was done by the computer, and if students were short on courses for the term, they would not find out until a short amount of time before the term began.

Even if students submitted their pre-enrollment request in March, students did not find out their schedule until late July and early August. The PAWS system allows students to find out admittance into the course immediately after they request it, Evans said.

Other problems with arena registration included late registration and when students tried to add or change courses.

“There were mobs of kids in the ballroom,” Evans said.

Representatives from each academic department set up tables, and students would fill out add or drop forms and wait in line at each table, Evans said.

“So it was a very time-consuming process,” Evans said.

The arena set up was used for close to 20 years, and touch-tone registration began following the summer of 1991.