Degree Audit Report System reports, which detail a student’s academic information, now are available online.

Registration and Records began offering the reports online in the middle of the summer because new updates are only offered on the new system: DARWin.

“The old form of DARS was not going to be supported anymore,” said Suzanne Warber, assistant director of Registration and Records.

Don Larson, director of Enrollment Services and registrar, said cost was another factor in the change. He pointed to the cost of stamps, sorting, folding and the cost of the reports themselves as the culprits for the expense.

Larson said the change also took place because of a desire to make DARS available to students online and at their convenience.

The old paper version of DARS was mailed to students twice a year, before registration for the following semester. This means paper reports were sent in October and March.

Warber said the current plan is to eliminate all paper copies completely, meaning students would not receive a paper copy next month.

Larson said this is the primary time students use the information contained in the report, but it is not the only time the information is required.

“We’re trying to provide the DARS reports when students want them, not the twice a year when we can send them,” Larson said.

The availability of the audit is one improvement in the system, Warber said.

“Before, students had to go to [Registration and Records] or their adviser to receive a copy,” Warber said. “One of the nice things about moving to the newer version is that it’s accessible on the Web.”

Changes in students’ records may take time to be entered into the new system, however.

If, for example, a student changes something through their adviser, the student should leave time for the paperwork to go through, which could be two weeks, Warber said. Although once Registration and Records puts something into the system, it will show up on the online report within 24 hours.

Jeanette Francis, a sophomore computer science major, had problems with the old paper copies of the DARS report. She said she did not understand how to read them her first semester at NIU. Francis said the online version would be helpful if the report is explained.

Kara Loudermilk, a sophomore pre-elementary education major, had the same problem.

Francis and Loudermilk are not alone in their confusion.

“The usual feedback that we get is that they don’t know how to read it, or it’s wrong,” Warber said, adding directions for deciphering the report are on the Registration and Records Web site.

Registration and Records is not finished changing the system.

Larson said improvements will be made to the system, including graphic elements and appearance.

Students can access their online DARS report through WebConnect on the Registration and Record Web site.