What do you think about NYU’s housing lottery system?
NYU students will no longer have the luxury of printing their notes, lecture outlines and essays for free. As of this school year, NYU has eliminated its on-campus free printing areas and is now charging students 10 cents per page for all printing requests. In years past, computer labs across campus provided free printing services for students. Information Technology Services' printing facilities, in locations such as Third Avenue North residence hall and the Kimmel Center, were often packed with students printing notes and reading materials for their classes free of charge. However, due in large part to a recent move to cut costs and to become more environmentally friendly, this is no longer the case.
According to NYU spokesman John Beckman, the print quotas are a means of increasing the university's savings, improving the efficiency of facilities and decreasing overall waste.
Of the 18 million pages printed in labs last year, approximately five to six million of them were abandoned as waste, Beckman said. He added that NYU stands to save some $200,000 per year with the new printing policy.
Under the new system, students will start each semester with a $50 ITS print grant, enough for 500 free pages.
However, for many, especially those enrolled in reading-intensive classes, this still leaves hundreds of pages that need to be paid for out-of-pocket.
"It's crazy. One of my classes alone requires about 30 to 40 pages of reading material and assignments to be printed a week. Add in my other three classes, and I'm printing about 100 pages a week," CAS sophomore Jaime Ma said. "$50 isn't enough - that'll last me five weeks, maybe."
CAS senior Gizem Ünsalan doubts she will exceed the $50 print grant, but said that the new policy is an unnecessary burden.
"I mean, we are already paying so much to go here," Ünsalan said. "We should at least be allowed to print what we need without being charged."
Accompanying this policy shift was a decision to change the hours at the Third North computer labs, which will no longer be open 24 hours. Instead, the new hours of operation are 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. on weekdays and noon to 8 p.m. on weekends.
Beckman said the changes were a response to a recommendation made by the IT Task Force suggesting a restructuring of the school's computer labs.
"ITS is moving ahead with implementing this recommendation. This means that Third North is now being redesigned and their hours have been cut back," Beckman said.
Beckman said students may have access to longer printing hours at Third North at certain times later in the semester. "Although we expect to keep the current hours, they will be examined — we are looking at extended hours during peak times, such as exam periods."
mc
Sep 10, 2009
7 a.m.
I never thought the the day would come when printing at Kinko's would be cheaper. This is completely ridiculous.
jeremy
Sep 11, 2009
1:48 p.m.
How is printing at Kinko's cheaper?? they charge 49 cents a page.
mc
Sep 14, 2009
4:55 a.m.
49 cents?? It's 7 cents for black and white double sided prints.
Caroline
Sep 10, 2009
8:50 a.m.
Doing away with the 24-hour computer lab seems insane to me. This is college, people. Especially in the weeks before midterms and finals those labs are nearly filled to the brim all hours of the night. I'm sure that 3N lab is its fullest AFTER 10:30pm.
I would rather have a functional educational facility, like a computer lab, to be free and open for use than a fancy new cafeteria (which, incidentally, they just put into 3N)
I think NYU has its priorities in all the wrong places. Do we really need new elliptical in Coles and Palladium gym? Shouldn't this money be better spend on things that aid in the educational process? Like computer labs and free buses that get us to campus on time?
Charlotte
Sep 10, 2009
12:22 p.m.
I personally think this is great. I've been in computer labs where students are printing out 700 page text books. This is the type of stuff that won't be able to happen any more. I personally have a ton of readings and slides I would love to print out but now I'll just use my computer more and think more about what I really need to print out. It'll save a few tree's in the process.
Joe Coscarelli
Sep 10, 2009
5:25 p.m.
I'm glad a journalist got a quote from NYU administrator John Beckman confirming this, because I read the news a few days ago on NYU Local but I wasn't sure if I could trust them. Now I know for sure!
Nicole Hase
Sep 11, 2009
1:03 a.m.
I read it 2 weeks ago on the NYU LJ
Caroline
Sep 11, 2009
8:18 a.m.
Believe my, NYULocal is much more trustworthy than this publication.
Keyana Stevens
Sep 11, 2009
2:13 p.m.
I wasn't aware than anyone still read the NYU LiveJournal.
AM
Sep 10, 2009
8:06 p.m.
I got a taste of the system last night on the 2nd floor of the Steinhardt building. It was around 8pm (not a peak time for printing) and it took me 30 minutes to print TWO pages! No one knew how to use the new system, the printers jammed twice, one girl was printing over 100 pages and holding up the whole process, and then I get charged for it all? I might as well get a free printer off craigslist and save myself the hassle.
Thanks NYU for adding even more stress to students' lives. You're starting to really outdo yourselves...
et666
Sep 10, 2009
8:14 p.m.
The "DON'T WASTE PAPER" sign appears to be a waste of paper.
gradstudent
Sep 10, 2009
10:48 p.m.
Way to make our lives even more difficult. Couldn't they have at least made it $100? Considering tuition, fees and the cost of living are astronomically high at NYU, why can't they give us a break? Maybe they should stop replacing the computers every year and invest that money in our educations.
anonymous alum
Sep 11, 2009
1:29 a.m.
NYU students are spoiled. At most colleges, you have to pay per page to print OR you have your own printer! Yes tuition is high, but tuition is high at most private universities in the country. Stop complaining in the name of sustainability!
Emma
Sep 11, 2009
10:05 a.m.
I have been waiting for this for years now. My undergraduate institution did this years ago and I was shocked NYU didn't. This will definitely reduce the amount of paper wasted in the labs. I don't understand why students would feel that the readings for their classes should be free. Textbooks are not, so why should other course materials?
And newsflash for those who complain about the cost of NYU: no one forced you to go here. You knew the cost of tuition and New York City life before choosing to come. Most universities charge for printing: get over it.
Sam
Sep 11, 2009
10:05 a.m.
This is an academic institution. If there's one place to offer free printing, it'd be here. I'm all for saving trees, but people will be printing the necessary materials for their classes anyway. Any paper saved will have to be an individual effort on the part of the student.
The "GO Green" banner is just a veil for NYU to hide behind. Let's face it, they don't want to print all those pages because it costs them money. This policy is disgusting-. It denigrates students and absolutely encapsulates how this institution is really a business, not an academic breeding ground. Maybe instead of building over the Third North Dining Hall, they could have spent that money to offer students free printing.
I'm appalled and will likely stay that way until NYU reverts back to its old policy.
anonymous
Sep 13, 2009
12:49 a.m.
Stern offers free printing in the Tisch Hall LC19 classroom and at 194 Mercer St room 304.
Hebron
Sep 13, 2009
2:20 p.m.
This is disappointing to hear. I always valued the fact that NYU, unlike other universities, provided free printing 24 hours a day. I doubt I would have written much of my masters thesis had the labs not been open 24 hours a day and I also doubt I would have written it in the same way because I don't read off the screen; I have to print out to go over my work. If printing had been constrained to a $50 credit I would have done far less revision on my thesis. It might seem like a small deal but, even as an alumnus who is environmentally conscious, I think it is imperative for the University to go back to the "old" lab hours with at least a few "free" labs. Most Universities do charge for printing but they also have "hidden" free labs where printouts cost nothing. And computer labs must be open 24 hours a day; only technical schools close their labs! This is a scary thought.
Raphael Sofaer
Sep 21, 2009
1:47 a.m.
.001 percent of the budget saved. I am in awe at the budget cutting brilliance of NYU.
Eric
Oct 15, 2009
12:46 a.m.
Stern students get 1500 sheets in addition to NYU's $50.
I don't think I could print 2500 sheets of paper in two semesters if I tried.
LOL at CAS
leave a comment
Comments from unregistered users will appear once they are approved. Log in to have your comment show up immediately.