Thursday, March 22, 2007

Post-Grad and Forms

I've received a conditional offer for my post-graduate course! Woooo! Now I just need to meet the offer and get a First...

As soon as I'd settled down after getting the letter, I decided that I really needed to apply for funding. Therefore I dutifully went to the appropriate website and downloaded the form. After scanning through it and checking the advice at the bottom, I discovered that they expected the form to be word processed, rather than printed out and filled out manually. No big deal, I thought. Then I tried to do so...

Along with most other people, I hate long forms at the best of times. This form, however, has been put together by a muppet. A total muppet. Let me illustrate this claim with examples:

1. The instructions told me that inputting my initials and surname in the boxes provided in the header of one page would automatically copy it to all pages. That's how headers work, right? Wrong. It resolutely refuses to copy it out. Furthermore, the first of three boxes for initials refuses to let me write anything in it.

2. Although the font stays constant, the size seems to vary box to box, making the finished product look like the product of a slightly deranged mind.

3. They give tick boxes, then no way to tick them. Seriously. I presume that I am meant to print it out and then tick them, but they could have mentioned this somewhere. I've been putting capital Xs in them instead. Of course, they could just have learned how to insert tick boxes if they's wanted. Bizarrely, they manage to take this latter suggestion, *but only in the Equal Opportunities Form*!

4. No effort has been made to line up answers with the middle of the box provided, meaning that they often hug the top or bottom. Again, this looks stupid.

Would it be too much to ask that they hire someone who is either competent at writing forms in Word, or can at least be bothered to learn? Really?

On another note, I can't believe I have to write *another* personal statement...

1 comment:

Abi said...

I bet if you used Rich's computer it wouldn't be able to edit the words document at all!

Good luck with all the lovely forms.