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RU STUDENTS FED UP WITH WI-FI
Connecting to the Wi-Fi has become a big problem for students living in the dorms and in off-campus housing.

By MADISON MOLNER
STAFF WRITER
 

Rutgers students say they are fed up with spotty service from RU-Wireless because it sabotages their ability to function as productive students in the digital age.

From class to leisure time, students say, Internet access is a necessity for any student looking to stay connected outside of their dorms. However this is nearly impossible with Rutgers Wi-Fi, because it easily becomes disconnected moving from place to place, they say.

Lauren Richardson, a School of Arts and Sciences freshman, said she encountered her first issues with the service as she was navigating to classes on her first day.

Richardson said she has been lost on Busch campus numerous times with no Internet.

“I was the stereotypical freshman stranded in the middle of this big scary campus, she said. “I felt abandoned by RU-Wireless."

Students also struggle with professors’ expectations that students have constant, reliable Internet access to complete assignments as the university becomes less paper-reliant.

From class updates and assignments to final exams, RU-Wireless is an imperative part to a student’s success, they say.

In addition, the university offers an increasing number of online classes which gives students flexibility in their schedules.

For Jennifer DeLaOsa, a School of Arts and Sciences junior who is majoring in computer science and participates in the marching band, RU-Wireless created undue hassle for her online class which was supposed to help her organize her busy life.

DeLaOsa lost connection during her online final exam, a test that determines her overall success in the course.

“I was in the Library of Science and Medicine and you have two hours to take the exam, I was 15 minutes in and lost connection,” she said. “My heart sank, I was in panic... I shut my computer off and it still didn’t work."

Luckily for DeLaOsa the connection came back soon afterward and she was able to complete her exam and receive a high score.

Students say that, typically, a dropped connection can be fixed by restarting a computer and reconnecting, but this process becomes tedious. Or when connection is lost across campus, students will have to wait until the issue is resolved.

Beginning this year for connection on smart phones, students have to download separate software in order to receive the service.

Nicholas Magrini, a Business School sophomore, says that service has been more reliable on his phone this year because of the added application, but does not like that he has to store extra programs on his phone to avoid using his pricy data.

Magrini also commented now that Rutgers is a Big Ten university with notable academic resources, the problem of iffy Wi-Fi does not make sense.

“Personally I haven’t had as many problems (this year), but I know a lot of people who do,” he said. “With the resources that Rutgers has this is a silly issue to have, considering they offer majors and teach people these skills.”

Rutgers University, an institution that flaunts its great academic and technological resources should not be the reason why its students have added troubles. However, the university is the tool to student’s achievements, he said..

“I think it’s especially important because we’ve been born into the digital age and don’t know much else from this,” Magrini said. “At this point in our lives as college students the internet is vital to our success.”

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