Sloan Course Bidding Strategy

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Sloan Course Bidding Strategy

• Agenda
• Bid system overview
• Bidding Strategies
• Question Answer session

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Why bid?

• To establish a fair playing field for access to
  Sloan classes
• To assure that Sloan students are prioritized to
  obtain seats in Sloan classes
• Course bidding is based on levels of
  prioritization and then points bid

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Fall 2004 Bidding ScheduleRound I Sloan Only

• MBA 05, Ugrad 05, 06, 07, VFs, Sloan PhDs,
  SDM, FTO
• Opens 900 a.m. , Monday, May 3
• Closes 500 p.m., Monday, May 10
• Round I results posted on Wednesday, May 12

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Fall 2004 Bidding ScheduleRound II

• Part A
• Institute-wide
• Opens 900 a.m. , Wednesday, May 12
• Closes 500 p.m., Friday, May 21
• Part B
• LFM 06, SF
• Opens 900 a.m. , Thursday, July 1
• Closes 900 p.m., Sunday, July 11
• Round II results posted on Wednesday, July 14

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Waitlist-only Round

• All Students
• Opens 900 a.m., Friday, July 30
• Closes 300 p.m., Tuesday, September 7
• (Registration Day)
• Waitlist results posted on Wednesday, September 8

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Sloan Course Bidding Information

• http//sloanbid.mit.edu

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Accessing the Bidding Web Site

• Passwords Leave the password field blank first
  time entering the Bid System
• Create a new password under Personal Info
• Passwords are case sensitive, up to 20 characters
• Write it down!

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Points

• Each student will be given 1000 points with which
  to bid on classes during Rounds I and II.
• You are encouraged to allocate all 1000 points in
  Round I.
• In Round II Sloan students will receive a point
  refund...

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System LogisticsPlacing Bids

• Minimum bid is 1 point, maximum bid is 1000
• You cannot bid for units exceeding your credit
  limit
• You can modify bids throughout an open round,
  adding, dropping and changing point allocation.
• Make a printout of your bids prior to exiting the
  system!
• All bids are tallied simultaneously at the end of
  each round.

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Point Refunds in Round II

• In Round II Sloan students receive refunded
  points based upon the following algorithm
• 1000 - ( of successful total units bid x
  multiplier)
• Multiplier 1000 points / your credit limit
  points per unit
• It is to your advantage to bid competitively for
  all classes in Round I. Many classes will close
  at the end of Round I. Do not plan your bidding
  strategy based upon a point refund.

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Point Refunds, contd.

• During an open round (live), you will be refunded
  full bid points for any course you choose to
  drop.
• In Round II, if you drop every course on which
  you previously bid, you restart with a
  'clean-slate' of 1000 points.

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Researching Courses

• Use Lookup function in bid system.
• Create Bookmarks for courses of interest.
• Links directly to course evaluation aggregate
  data, faculty bios and syllabi on-line.
• Read the MIT Course Bulletin for information on
  course pre-requisites. Do not waste bid points
  if you dont have the pre-reqs!

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Viewing Bid Results

• Posted on the bidding web site at the end of each
  Round
• Check results carefully, especially in sectioned
  courses -- you may not have received your first
  choice
• Do NOT hit the DROP button for a successful bid
  if you dont want to lose the seat!

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Viewing Bid Results, contd.

• Roster Positions successful bids
• Waitlist Positions resolved bids that now stand
  as waitlist position
• Bids active bids placed in an open round
• during the waitlist round, waitlist bids
  appear under bids until resolved
• Successful bids appear on Registration Form

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Bidding StrategyReading the Course Schedule

• Note the Restriction codes - the system will not
  allow bids on courses outside of your program
• Capacity (seats) will be an important part of
  your point allocation strategy
• H1/H2 (first half, second half) are all bid for
  simultaneously
• A restriction code of P email the instructor
  before bidding for permission

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Bidding StrategyPlacing Bids

• Classes that fill from Round I will appear in
  Round II for waitlist signup, unless a seat is
  dropped
• In Round II, compare (remaining) seats to class
  capacity
• Bid early in the round to allow time for questions

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Bidding StrategySection Options

• Three options when choosing a sectioned class
• Only this section
• Any section of this class
• Other sections meeting at the same time
• Bid for only one section per class
• Bid system can create a conflicting schedule

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How does the system resolve sectioned bids?

• The system resolves each section individually,
  based upon the bids placed on THAT section
• IF seats remain in one section, the system will
  then look at the options chosen across the other
  sections (any section, any section at the same
  time) and fill remaining seats

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Section Swaps

• If you receive a section that you don't want,
  your options are
• to enter the section swap site
• to drop the bid and rebid points on a different
  open section in a subsequent round
• to drop the bid and rebid points on a waitlisted
  section(s)
• Faculty are encouraged to conduct section swaps
  before admitting from the waitlist

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Waitlists for Closed Classes

• Waitlists are a part of the bidding system, using
  student prioritization and point allocation
• Waitlist bidding begins in Round II for classes
  which close in Round I
• Waitlist-only Round opens after Round II for
  closed class waitlist bidding only
• Each student receives an additional 1000 points
  for Waitlist-only Round bidding
• Waitlist use is at faculty discretion

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Bidding StrategyWaitlists

• Bids placed for waitlists in Round II
• ARE HIGHER THAN
• bids placed in the Waitlist-only Round
• Carefully consider how important a waitlist
  position in a particular class is to you
• Waitlist positions do NOT count toward credit
  limits

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Bidding StrategyAssess the Market!

• Talk to peers -- what is your market?
• Your class?
• Note the different schedules that will be
  targeted
• Research
• Course Bulletin (note pre-requisites)
• Sloan Course Overviews Syllabi
• CourseFest
• Course Evaluations
• Faculty Bios

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Need Help Selecting Classes? Resources Available

• Student Affairs one-on-one academic advising
  sessions
• Please contact your SAO Cohort Manager for an
  appointment
• Roadmap pamphlets
• Available on SloanSpace and in CDO and SES/SAO
  suites
• CourseFest
• Available online on Sloanbid site
• Teaching reviews and evaluations
• Available on reference in Dewey Library, SES/SAO
  suites and within the bidding site
• Second years
• Career Development Office
• Faculty

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Bidding StrategyConsiderations

• Plan out course schedule, playing around with
  options
• name brand professor
• popular time offered
• Course capacity information - more seats in one
  section than another?
• Allocate all 1000 points in Round I. Many
  classes will close at the end of Round I. Do not
  plan your bidding strategy based upon a point
  refund for Round II.

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The course market varies from semester to
semester

• bid amounts change depending upon student
  interest, track enrollment, instructors, and the
  combination of courses offered.

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Harvard Cross-Registration

• Bid strategically for a full course load at Sloan
• Access Harvard cross-registration information and
  helpful links from the course bidding web site
• (MBA students can count 2 non-Sloan classes
  toward degree requirements)

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WebSIS http//student.mit.edu

• Pre-registering for non-Sloan, MIT courses
• Viewing current registration
• Grades, bursars account...

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More details

• Read the Message of the Day when entering bid
  system for important course information and
  updates
• Read email throughout bidding
• Browse all data on http//sloanbid.mit.edu --
  theres more to learn!

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Questions?
Sloan Educational Services

• Tara Walor
• twalor_at_mit.edu
• E52-108, 253-0559