By Tamarra Kemsley
Before David Kotasek started using Schedule Snatcher, he said he struggled to get the classes he wanted.
“I used to do everything — go to class, talk to the professor and send emails,” Kotasek said. “Once I even participated in a raffle for History of Creativity. I lost.”
Kotasek, a senior, said much of his frustration evaporated when he started using the student-made website Schedule Snatcher.
“I love this program,” he said. “It’s made life so much easier.”
Brendon Beebe, 22, majoring in computer science is the mind behind the site. He said the idea came to him when listening to a friend express frustration about not being able to get into a class.
“I built the site over the next day or two,” Beebe said. “Within 24 hours he was in the class he wanted.”
The program, which is free and open to all students, is designed to scan class lists electronically and, starting at 12:01 a.m. of a student’s registration date, register the student the moment an opening appears.
“We were shocked when it actually worked,” Beebe said. “I spent all summer making it more user friendly.”
Dillon Jeppesen, a senior majoring in recreation management, works with Beebe and represents the business management side of the company.
“Ever since I was little I was starting and selling businesses,” he said. “I would collect golf balls I found near courses, wash them off and then sell them to the golfers, or set up lemonade stands and hire my sisters to sit out there while I did something I’m sure was not very important.”
Jeppesen said he believes in the program not only to help students get the classes they want but because it’s easier to plan your schedule than using the school’s Route Y system.
“It’s just more user friendly,” he said.
He said while the program is free, students who want to be placed at the top of the list as the computer rolls through the empty spots can pay for the premium version, thus controlling supply and demand through the tool of pricing.
Mara Flores, 20, majoring in Spanish translation, said every time she’s used Schedule Snatcher she was able to get the classes she wanted.
“I used to have to stay up really late and get up really early to refresh the page over and over waiting for someone to drop the class I needed,” Flores said. “Now I don’t need to sign up because it does it for me.”
While Kotasek said he enjoys the service now — especially when it helps him avoid raffles for a class — he said he wonders if the service will continue to be effective as time goes on and more students begin using it.
“It works now because not a lot of people know about it,” Kotasek said. “But what if everyone knows about it? It will be harder for everyone.”
