The Cadre + 19January 1999

ByLISAHOGAN |

As most UPEI students are aware, the student server has been improved since last semester, to the relief of many. A lot of students at the univer- sity had problems with the com- puters, from mildly annoying to very costly in terms losing entire assignments.

One incident occurred last semester, involvinga fourth year student who completed an assignment and later re- turned to it to find certain parts missing. The next day she was unable to access Word Per- fect, and as a result she had to finish her assignment at Hol- land College.

Another example of computer difficulties involved a student in the education de- partment who, after complet- ing and savinga fairly lengthy document, went to the Kelly building to print it off only to discover that the work had not been saved at all.

Many others have re- ported problems gaining ac- cess to certain programs, unsaved changes, and system sluggishness, among others.

Some students have had difficulties with their e-mail accounts.

“(The system] said the mailbox was too full, although there were only ten messages in there,” said Nicole Doucet, a second year science stu- dent. “This went on for about two months.”

Even though these prob- lems are supposed to be a thing of the past due to the recent changes made by Com- puter Services, many students have been wondering if there really have been any signifi- cant improvements, and if so, what was done to fix the prob- lems. Some are also wonder- ing if this work was just a temporary “quick fix,” and how much this cost the university.

*“ =. John Cunningham is the

Fixed!

network administrator at Com- puter Services. He explained that the problem with the com- puters last year because the version of the operating sys- tem was notcurrent, and that it had been in place fortwo years

until it was upgraded on De-

cember 21.

The company that was supporting the university's computer system was prepared to drop their support if the uni- versity failed to upgrade their system. As a result, a newer level three version has been instituted, which means that the technology is increased and the computers are now cur- rent and up-to-date.

“The computers now have one megabyte instead of 300K, and 2 megabytes on the M drive. The network is more speedy and Y2K compliant, and the stabilization problem is

finally fixed,” Cunningham

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A new server for the UPE!I computer network -photo by Richard Haines

UPEI receives approval to award graduate degrees

The University of Prince Edward Island commends the Government of Prince Edward Island for their decision to amend the University Act al- lowing UPEI to grant earned certificates, diplomas and de- grees at all levels including graduate and post-graduate programs and honourary de- grees,

“This is very good news and we extend our sincere thanks tothe Honourable Ches- ter Gillan, Minister of Educa- tion and the Legislative As- sembly, should be recognized fortheir foresightand commit- ment to the future of higher education in this province,”says Dr. Lawrence Heider, Acting President of UPEI. “By sponsoring the

amendment to the act, the Minister has ensured that UPEI will continue as a vital, competitive, top quality learn- ing, teaching and research in- stitution.” ;

The Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission (MPHEC) assessed the ca- pacity of the University to of- fer graduate programs and then evaluated the effects of such programs on other groups. Their decision to recommend the act be amended was also based on a review of the Uni- versity by Dr Maurice Yeates, former Director of the Ontario Council for Graduate Studies. Standard practice in the Maritimes requires that each proposed new program be re- viewed by

the MPHEC and, in the case of — programs, by external experts before it is approved. The University par- ticipates fully with MPHEC procedures, following our in- ternal review and approval of programs by the University Senate.

“This is a momentous occasion forthe University and the Province of Prince Edward Island because for the first time we will be able to promote the University as a graduate institution,”says Honourable Chester Gillan, Minister of Education.

“It is increasingly evi- dent that UPEI needs to offer graduate s to attract and retain the best faculty, stu- dents, and research contracts,”

says Dr. Heider. “UPEI’s in- ternal program development procedures and the MPHEC’s quality assurance procedures ensure that any proposed pro- grams have academic merit and are consistent with the mission of the University.” Statistics Canada data shows that higher levels of university education are posi- tively correlated with better employment rates, quality of life and higher lifetime earn- ings. The unemployment rate for Canadians with less than eight years of education is 28.5 percent; for high school gradu- ates it was 10.8 per cent; for college graduates it was 8.2 per cent; for undergraduates it was 6.3 per cent; and for those with a graduate degree, it was

5.2 per cent. It is anticipated that UPEI will soon be able to offer Islanders the opportunity to obtain higher academic cre- dentials without leaving the province.

Previously, only the At- lantic Veterinary College could offer graduate programs. “The AVC has been very support- ive of this legislative change,” says Dr. Tim Ogilvie, Acting Dean of the AVC. “We see great potential for on-campus partnerships in research and programming that wouldn't have been possible before.”

Graduate students and their families will contribute to the local economy and their

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