Countless Sacramento State seniors are unaware that the deadline for students to petition to graduate next fall is Nov. 1.

Sac State students must petition to graduate a year in advance. Students who have not turned in their petition and plan to graduate spring 2005 are too late.

“It is fairly common for students to miss the deadline,” said Maria Rocha-Lindstrom, academic counselor.

Deadlines are published in the class schedule each year, and also on the Internet at the degree evaluations homepage.

Rocha-Lindstrom said that the evaluations department attempts to reach students through fliers each semester, and individual departments have their own ways of informing students.

Business students, who are signed up for the listproc, are sent E-mail reminders to fill out petition requests on time, but that list is restricted to business majors, and even then, not all business students are signed up for the listproc.

Many students feel that the campus could do better to ensure they don’t miss their deadlines.

“UC Davis sends students a graduation checklist the semester before graduation,” said Amy Lee, a political science major. “Whatever college you belong to, they will mail you a letter stating what you still need.”

Sac State sends students a copy of a graduation petition one year before their graduation date.

If anything changes in that time, or if students are missing something on their application, they cannot expect to receive a reminder letter in the mail telling them what to do.

The entire burden falls on students to know what requirements they need to fulfill, and although not required, appointments can be made in the evaluations department each semester on a walk-in basis.

Despite the fliers and the class schedules, every semester numerous students are upset upon learning they missed their deadline.

“If a student misses his or her deadline, then they would have to apply to graduate for the following semester,” Rocha-Lindstrom said. “Once that petition is processed students can request to have their application reviewed earlier by writing a letter.”

Some students view the process as flawed since it has a tendency to require additional labor.

“I think it should be mandatory that students meet with a counselor in the evaluations department the semester before they graduate, and that way, not as many students would slip through the cracks,” senior David Martin said.