Academic Advising

1
Academic Advising

• ENGL 198
• Dr. Russell Willerton
• September 2, 2009

2
Overview of the Presentation

• Define advising
• Give tips for working with your advisor
• Describe degree requirements
• Discuss the registrars office
• Describe some BSU policies
• Give some advice

3
Who determines whether you graduate?

• English department chair
• English undergraduate advising coordinator
• Registrars office
• Provosts office

4
How do you know if youre on track for graduation?

• Read the requirements in the Undergraduate
  Catalog.
• Review your Degree Progress Report in Broncoweb.
• Ask your advisor for clarification.
• Trash your Undergraduate Catalog, turn up your
  iPod, and say, Its all good.
• 1, 2, and 3.

5
What is Advising?

• Academic advising is a planning process that
  helps students to approach their education in an
  organized and meaningful way. --Edward Chip
  Anderson
• Academic advising is a process of teaching
  students how to become responsible consumers of
  their own educations.--Juliet Kaufmann

6
What is Advising?
7
College Students Are Responsible For Choosing
Their Classes Advisors Help When Asked.

• This is a key difference between high school and
  college.
• This means that you must become informed about
  your degree requirements.
• This means that help is available if you ask for
  it.
• It is easy to make appropriate choices, but it is
  also possible to make unwise choices.

8
What Do Advisors Do at BSU?

• Help you process academic information and
  university policy and procedure
• Help you interpret your Degree Progress Report
  and understand major requirements
• Provide networking opportunities for off-campus
  contact persons
• Provide referrals to experts on career
  information
• Help you sort out personal circumstances and
  determine how they affect your success provide
  referrals to appropriate resources

9
You Should Find Your Advisor

• Look in your Broncoweb Student Center, on your
  Degree Progress Report and other places.
• Find his or her office and e-mailhttp//www.bois
  estate.edu/english/faculty/
• Set up appointments only after you have reviewed
  your degree requirements first.
• Your advisor has training and expertise related
  to your English emphasis English Teaching majors
  are spread throughout the faculty.

10
Important Parts of Broncoweb
11
Ask Good Questions
12
There are Three Categories of Degree Requirements

• Core General education courses in arts
  humanities, social sciences, math natural
  sciences. Read the Core List!
• Requirements for the major.
• Electives these include minors in other
  subjects.
• Total of 128 credits, including 40 upper-division
• Read your catalog!
• See check sheets at http//www.boisestate.edu/engl
  ish/advising/

13
Consider Adding a Minor

• A minor is a way to use your elective courses to
  provide additional substance to your degree.
• A minor can give you something specific to talk
  about in a job interview or a grad school
  application.
• A minor can get you out of the LA bldg and into
  some of the other points of view available in
  other departments.

14
It is Important to Plan and to Read the
Undergraduate Catalog

• Failure to plan on your part does not constitute
  an emergency for anyone else (registrars office,
  your advisor, an administrator in another
  department at BSU, etc.).
• Example A student with 144 total credits and 39
  upper-division credits did not graduate on time.
  The requirement is 40 upper-division credits.

15
The Registrars Office Takes a Binary View of
Degree Requirements

• In binary code, information is conveyed by 1s
  and 0s.
• Either you have completed a degree requirement
  (1), or you havent (0). There is no in-between
  state.
• Your Degree Progress Report tells you whether
  your requirements have been completed.

16
Academic Adjustments Allow Substitutions of One
Course for Another

• Courses from other universities can be used in
  place of BSU courses.
• One course may be used in place of another
  required course.
• In rare cases, a waiver will be used to let a
  student to graduate without completing a required
  course.
• Note I dont think Id like that course is not
  sufficient grounds for an adjustment.

17
Consider Study Abroad and US Student Exchange
Programs

• Do it if you can! Its not as impossible as it
  sounds.
• You can use financial aid. Scholarships are
  available.
• You may choose summer or semester-long programs.
• You should get course credits approved in
  advance.
• You dont have to take just ENGL classes.
• http//international.boisestate.edu
• http//usac.unr.edu

18
Some Scholarships and Awards Are Available

• The English department gives out several K each
  spring.
• GPA is important. (gt3.0)
• Deadline for continuing BSU students March 31,
  2010. Must be ENGL major.
• http//english.boisestate.edu/scholarships.shtml
• Spring contests Presidents Writing, STDelta
  poetry, Trudy Hatch short fiction

19
Know the Structure of BSU

• President Administration over everything
• Provost Administration over academics
• VPs Oversee specific areas
• VP of Student Affairs Dr. Michael Laliberte
• 7 Colleges (incl. C.O. Arts Sciences)
• Dean Administration over everything
• Associate Dean Administration over student issues

20
Know the Structure of the English Department

• Chair Administration over everything (Dr.
  Michelle Payne)
• Associate Chair Administration over student
  issues and class schedule (Dr. Dora
  Ramirez-Dhoore)
• Undergrad Advising Coordinator Assist with
  course equivalencies and degree requirements
• Discipline Directors Oversee particular areas
  (Literature Writing Tech Comm First-year
  Writing Program)

21
You Might Need to Withdraw from a Course

• A W means you withdrew from one course.
• A CW (complete withdrawal) means you have
  dropped all courses in a semester get help from
  the C.O.A.S. deans office if you need a CW.
• Deadlines apply. See the Academic Calendar at
  http//registrar.boisestate.edu/.
• STUDENTS MUST WITHDRAW THEMSELVES IF THEY WANT TO
  DROP A CLASS. If you just stop showing up to a
  class, you get an F.
• Withdrawals can affect your eligibility for
  financial aid.

22
You Might Need to File an Appeal

• If something big happens in your personal life
  (e.g., extenuating circumstances) and that has a
  negative impact on your BSU status, you may
  appeal.
• To withdraw after the deadline
• To contest an administrative decision
• To exceed a certain limit on coursework
• Etc.
• The form is on the registrars website. Forms are
  evaluated by a committee once every week.

23
There Are Some Known Problems for English Majors

• LING 305 fills up quickly.
• ENGL 275 fills up quickly.
• Not many upper-division classes in the summer.
• Math is a requirement for graduationyou must
  complete a MATH course numbered 124 or higher.

24
Dr. Willerton Says

• This is your degree. Own it.
• Dont be lame Stretch yourself try new things
  expand your horizons.
• Be realistic about balancing school and work.
• Get experience through an internship or other
  means. Talk to the Career Center soon.
• Develop a strategy for reaching your goals.
• If you want to be marketable, make yourself
  marketable.

25
Find Our Advising Resources

• http//boisestate.edu/english/
• Click the Advising link.
• Degree checksheets
• Four-year plans
• Advice for English Teaching majors