June 07, 2007
Advising Tip: After Orientation
Orientation is just the beginning of what should be a great journey in LSA. Continue reading for some tips for after you leave Orientation and before Fall term begins.
Changing Your Course Schedule
Contacting Your Advisor
Transferring Courses from Another School
Determining AP Credit
First-year Reading Program
Preparing for Fall Courses (including ordering books).
Changing Your Schedule
We’re confident that, working with your advisor and academic peer advisor, you’ve found courses that you’re going to love, but it’s fine if you want to keep searching for courses this summer and make changes in your schedule. If some of the courses you wanted were closed during your orientation session, keep your eye on Wolverine Access throughout the summer: students drop and add courses all summer through the first few weeks of classes. Also, some departments add courses and sections as the summer progresses.
Remember that Wolverine Access doesn’t provide much information about courses beyond meeting times. For course descriptions and prerequisites and for information about how courses fulfill requirements, you need to use the LSA Course Guide.
If a course is closed, get on the Wolverine Access waitlist or if the course has no waitlist, email the instructor to express your interest in the course and politely ask for an override to register for the course. The instructor’s name is usually listed in the course information in Wolverine Access and/or in the description in the LSA Course Guide. You can also find instructors’ email addresses in the online directory.
Contacting Your Advisor
You don’t need your advisor’s approval to change your schedule, but it would be a good idea if you emailed your advisor about the changes you’re making and why you’re making them. That way, if there is a problem with your new schedule, your advisor can let you know. If you lost your advisor’s email address or even forgotten her/his name, you can go to the Advising Center Directory and you’ll see email addresses and pictures.
If you live in or near Ann Arbor, you could also make an appointment to see your advisor by calling 734 764-0332. Phone appointments are an option if you’re not nearby.
Transferring Courses from Another School
It might be a good idea to contact your instructor if you’re contemplating taking a course at another school this summer. Generally, there’s no problem transferring courses from a two-year or four-year school as long as the course is in a “traditional” academic area—sociology, astronomy, or philosophy for instance—and not something like pastry making or jet engine repair. While courses from another school will very likely count toward LSA distribution, they won’t necessarily fulfill the writing, Race and Ethnicity, Quantitative Reasoning, or language requirements. Also, it’s not a good idea to take a beginning of course sequence at another school, and it’s generally a good idea to pre-business and pre-med courses at the UofM rather than at another school.
To see how courses transfer from other institutions, you can go to the Transfer Courses (Course Equivalencies) web site. If a course you want to take at another school doesn’t appear on this web site, that doesn’t mean it won’t transfer: all it means is that no one has tried to transfer the course.
Once you’ve completed courses at another college or university (even UofM-Flint or Dearborn), have the school send your transcript to
Office of Undergraduate Admissions
1220 Student Activities Building
University of Michigan
515 East Jefferson Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1316.
Determining AP Credit
“AP Credit for LSA Students” shows the credit LSA students can earn from Advance Placement exam results. By early-to-mid July, your Michigan transcript should reflect how your AP scores translate for Michigan credit. You can find your “Unofficial Transcript” in “Student Business” in Wolverine Access.
If you haven’t sent your AP scores to the University, have them sent to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at the address above. Contact your advisor if you have any questions about how your AP scores might affect your Fall schedule.
First-year Reading Program
If you are a member of a Michigan Learning Community, you'll learn about the First-year Reading Program based on the LSA Theme Year--China Now at Orientation. Members of all the MLCs will read and discuss James Kynge's book, China Shakes the World. If you are not a member of a learning community, you can still participate in the program. Contact Susan Gass for details, including information on how to purchase the book at Shaman Drum bookstore for a reduced rate.
Preparing for Fall Courses
LSA requires all instructors to create CTools site, a web based system for coursework where instructors can post syllabi, assignments, and resources. Some instructors also hold online discussions on Ctools and to encourage collaborative learning. You can log onto Ctools and see if your instructors have started to build their sites.
Most instructors are not going to expect you to do any preparing before courses begin other than getting textbooks. UofM instructors usually order their texts through a consortium of bookstores—Michigan Book and Supply, Michigan Union Bookstore, or Ulrich’s—or through an independent bookstore, Shaman Drum. The store’s websites have information about buying texts for your courses.
The Mathematics department does urge students to prepare for its courses. If you’re taking a math course this term, spend some time with the department’s Mathematics Preparation web site before the term starts. It will make your transition to college mathematics go much more smoothly.
Also, if you’re registered for a language course above the intro level, it would be a good idea to get warmed up because you’ll be using the language intensively right from the start of classes. If you know speakers of the language, practice with them. And/or watch a few films or DVDs in the language and pull out your high school texts and do some reviewing.
That’s it for now! Have a great summer and see you in September!
Posted by skassner at 11:51 AM | Comments (0)
April 27, 2007
Advising Tip: Spring and Summer Advising
Spring is here!
It has to be a relief to have completed winter term and finals. You’ve earned some relaxation.
If you’re planning to take Spring courses, however, you won’t have much time to relax: they start May 1. Remember that the pace is quick in Spring and that you have only until Monday May 14 to add or drop a course and decide whether or not to take a course pass/fail.
Whether or not you’re planning on taking Spring and Summer courses here or at another college or university, LSA Advisors are available year round to answer your questions.
So if you have any questions, feel free to email your advisor, you can expect a timely response. If you are staying in Ann Arbor or live nearby, you can schedule an appointment with your advisor. In fact, mid-to-late April and May are traditionally slow times in the Advising Center, and it should be quite easy to get in. Call 764-0332 to make appointment. If you don’t live nearby, you can make phone appointment with an advisor.
Once First-Year Orientation begins in early June, it might be more difficult to make an appointment with your advisor if she/he is meeting with incoming students, but there are always a few advisors assigned to work with continuing students. Just call in; our front desk will set you up.
Concentration advisors are also available during the spring and summer, but their availability varies greatly from department to department. Generally, more concentration advisors are available in spring and early summer than in July and August when people tend to go on vacation. Contact the respective department to schedule an appointment.
So we’ll be here even if you’re not. Stay in touch and have a terrific summer!
Posted by skassner at 11:49 AM | Comments (0)
February 09, 2007
Advising Tip: Taking Spring and Summer Courses Away from UofM
T.S. Eliot once wrote that “April is the cruelest month.” Obviously, he didn't spend a February in Michigan .
Maybe you're dreaming of spring and considering enrolling in courses at a college or university closer to home after classes end here in April. This can be a great way to meet some requirements and, perhaps, save some tuition money. But there are few things you should keep in mind.
First, make sure the courses that you take at another college or university transfer to the U of M. If you go to the Transfer Credit (Course Equivalencies),you can find links to lists of courses from schools around the country and the world that students have transferred in the past. If a course you want to take doesn't appear on the list, it may simply mean that no one has ever tried to transfer it to the U of M. In this case, you can download a “ Transfer Credit Pre-evaluation Form ” or pick up the form at the Advising Center, 330 East Liberty Street , and have the Admissions Office pre-approve the course you'd like to transfer. Also, be aware that after you have earned 60 credits, you can only transfer credits from a four-year school, not a community college or other two-year school.
Second, it is possible to use a course you take at another school to meet LS&A distribution (NS, HU, SS, etc.). While your academic advisor can't officially confirm that the course meets distribution until it has transferred, he/she usually can let you know whether a specific course will count toward distribution. Once the course has transferred, you can meet with your advisor and have the courses designated to meet the appropriate distribution areas.
Third, unless you get pre-approval from a concentration advisor, it's not a good idea to try to take a non-U of M course for your concentration plan, but it's generally OK to do pre-requisites at another school.
Fourth, it is virtually impossible to use a course from another college to meet the Race and Ethnicity, Upper Level Writing, and Language requirements. It's almost as difficult to use a non-U of M course (with the exception of Statistics or Physics courses) to meet the Quantitative Reasoning requirement. See your advisor if you want more details.
Fifth, you'll need to check with the school you might attend about its enrollment procedures. Some schools require that Spring/Summer students fill out guest applications or require that students certify that they are in good standing at the U of M. The Registrar's Office, temporarily located at 413 East Huron, can help you with these forms.
Sixth, after you complete the courses you take elsewhere, you need to have the transcript from that school sent to
Credit Evaluation
Undergraduate Admissions
University of Michigan
1220 Student Activities Building
Ann Arbor , MI 48109-1316 .
If you have any other questions about Spring and Summer courses, please email or make an appointment with your advisor.
And think warm thoughts.
Posted by skassner at 11:47 AM | Comments (0)