Here's a BlackBoard Assignment, JK No Internet!

When we applied to Framingham State University (or College, if you came here before the switch), we were told that having a laptop is required. FSU advertises itself as a wireless campus and many classes uses online sites, so it is mandatory to have our own devices.

The problem is, the wireless internet connection on campus is completely unreliable and slow. There are times when it is impossible to even get online, let alone load a website. A lot of professors use blackboard or similar sites, and many classes (such as this one!) require students to submit work online. Some form of internet research is required for nearly every course. But when we can't get online to actually do or submit the assignments, it is very frustrating.

The resident halls are the worst. I was a resident for the past three years, and I could rarely do homework in the dorms. There were many times when the internet simply would not load, and other times when loading websites just took forever. At night, it is pretty much impossible to use the internet because so many students are trying to use it at the same time. I have tried using Ethernet cables, but it did little to speed up the connection. I have also found that attempting to work in the commuter cafeteria is also difficult. Sometimes, the connection will just go offline for seemingly no reason, and if you move to other places on campus you have to reconnect to the WiFi.  The only place I have found the internet reliable is in the library. However, the library has so little outlets that sometimes you can't do your work there, either.

The issue is that there are simply too many students using the internet and not enough routers. The connection has gotten worse since the school decided to accept more students. The solution is simple: place more routers on campus so that there will be less students per router.

If Framingham State is going to continue to require students to use the internet for assignments, then they need to do something to fix the internet. It is not fair for us to deal with the added frustration of being blocked from getting something done that is probably stressing us out in the first place. Furthermore, some professors except assignments to submitted on time and have no sympathy for the "couldn't get on blackboard" excuse. It is not fair to us to have our grades, not to mention our heads, hurt due to the stress of the terrible wireless connection