Faculty Advisor Help

Here you will find some helpful information relating to advising. If you have a question that is not addressed or have any suggestions for future material to list on the web, please contact Jim Muench

FAQ

When is Advising week?
Typically, it is 11th week of the term. Most departments require students to make advising appointments with faculty advisors during the preceding week (10th).

What happens if students do not meet with their advisor?
An advising hold is placed initially for all students. Advising is required to remove these advising holds. Only then, the students can register by phone or web.

What are the Add / Drop deadlines in the College?
ADDING A COURSE DROPPING A COURSE EXCEPTIONS TO THE COURSE ADD AND DROP DEADLINES WITHDRAWING FROM THE UNIVERSITY ADDING A COURSE Continuing students register for the subsequent term during the early enrollment period. If you want to add a course to your schedule before the term begins, you may do so on a space availability basis up until the Friday before the term begins. After the term has begun, adding a course is subject to space availability, instructor approval, and meeting the deadlines cited below. Deadlines for Adding a course: Fall Semester Deadline: Friday of Week 2 Spring Semester Deadline: Friday of Week 2 Summer Session Deadline: Friday of Week 1 See OAR Schedule for Add/Drop. Adding a course after the term is not recommended. You have missed several days of instruction, you may not have the syllabus, you may have missed an initial assignment or quiz. Although sometimes for courses in high demand, adding a course after instruction has begun may be your only option, it still may not be in your best interest to miss the initial days of instruction. Students may ADD a class through the Friday of first week of the Fall and Spring Semesters. Beginning with the Monday of the second week of the Fall and Spring Semesters, however, students must have the instructor's approval to add a course and the faculty have the right to deny a student's request. Students may ADD a class through the Friday of the first week of the Summer Session. During the Summer Session, students may not add a course after the first week of instruction. Exceptions to these deadlines are sometimes approved, provided that the student has the written approval of the instructor and the approval of a dean in the College of Engineering Undergraduate Office (COE-UGO). COE-UGO makes the final decision whether to allow a student to add a course after the deadline and requests may be denied, even when the instructor has supported the student's request. DROPPING A COURSE Continuing students register for the subsequent term during the early enrollment period. If you want to drop a course from your schedule before the term begins, you may do so up until the Friday before the term begins. After the term has begun, you may still be able to drop a course by following the deadlines cited below. The DEADLINE for Engineering students to DROP a class is Friday of the second week of the Fall and Spring Semesters and Friday of the first week of the Summer Session. Students who drop a course within these periods do not receive a grade for the course. Students who drop a course after these periods receive a grade of W in the course. Grades of W are not included in the calculation of a student's grade point average. Deadlines for Dropping a course: Fall Semester Deadline: Friday of Week 2 Spring Semester Deadline: Friday of Week 2 Summer Session Deadline: Friday of Week 1 See OAR Schedule for Add/Drop. EXCEPTIONS TO THE COURSE ADD AND DROP DEADLINES Engineering students may DROP a class through the Friday of the second week of the Fall and Spring Semesters and through the Friday of the first week of the Summer Session without any penalty. All undergraduate students have four opportunities over the course of their UIC enrollment to drop a course without penalty from the third through tneth weeks of the Fall and Spring Semesters and from the second through fifth weeks of the Summer Session. Late drops in this period are approved, regardless of the circumstances, provided that the student submits a Late Drop Petition Form to the COE Front Office (123 SEO) within the designated period and that the student has not exceeded the limit of four late drops. The merits of the student's request are not a factor in determining eligibility for an exception. Requests to drop a course after the tenth week of the Fall and Spring Semesters, and after the fifth week of the Summer Session, or requests to drop a course within the approved exception period in excess of the four automatic drops are not routinely granted unless there are exceptional circumstances, outside of the student's control and that can be documented. Requests require a written petition and are reviewed by the Dean of the College. Poor performance in a course is not a sufficient reason to justify approval of a request. Because of the limitations on dropping classes, students are advised to evaluate their academic standing in the course with the instructor before requesting to exercise one of the allowable late drops. WITHDRAWING FROM THE UNIVERSITY A University Withdrawal is a process by which all courses are dropped and an entry of 'W' is made for each course on the transcript. UNIVERSITY WITHDRAWAL DEADLINES You may withdraw from the University at any time from the first day of instruction through the last day of instruction in each term conditional on not having earned a final grade in any course. After the 15th week (7th in summer), the college requires verification that the conditions for withdrawal have been met. Students contemplating a university withdrawal are advised to meet with an academic advisor if possible

What are the probation/drop rules for current students?
General rules for probation and drop for continuing COE students are described in the College of Engineering section of the UIC Undergraduate Catalog More specific and detailed terms are described in the following links to the "sample" letters that are sent to students: General Probation Rules Probation 2.25 Letter [COE Internal Pro 1] Probation 2.00 Letter [COE Internal Pro 2] Drop Letter Terms of probation mentioned in a student's probation letter are the ones specifically applicable to that student. The contents of these "sample" letters on COE web site can be modified without prior notice. Drop/1/ and Drop /2/ letters are same, but internally, COE flags Drop/1/ as drop action for probation violation, and Drop/2/ as drop action for excessive deficit points. In some cases, both Drop/1/ and Drop/2/ designations are applicable simultaneously. Drop/3/ letters are the permanent drop letters issued to students who have been dropped before, re-admitted on probation with specific conditions before, and are now again facing drop action

What are deficit point? How do they affect probation/drop?
Let us assume that a course has 3 credit hours. If the term grade is C, then the deficit points are zero. This is the neutral situation in the sense that the students are required to graduate with 3.0/5.0 GPA, or C average, and a grade of C in a course is considered neutral for the graduation requirement. If the grade is D, then the course contributes term deficit points of 3x(-1) = -3; if the grade is E, then the deficit points would be 3x(-2) = -6. On the other hand, grades of B and A would contribute positive deficit points (really, surpluses) of +3 and +6, respectively. If the "net" term deficit points for any student are (-12) or worse, that student is dropped for poor academic performance. Term deficit points for students on probation are also monitored for trends in academic progress.

What if a student wants to change their major?
A petition is required. Higher GPA requirements apply for some majors (CS and CE).

What if a student wants to take courses at another University?
Prior approval is required. Many freshman and sophomore level courses may be taken at local community colleges. Only a limited number of 100- and 200- level basic engineering courses can be taken at community colleges. Courses at 300-level are not accepted for engineering programs. Some major courses may be taken at institutions with ABET accredited engineering programs. Independent study type of courses can not be transferred. Note that 60 hours beyond the sophomore level must be taken at 4-year colleges or universities. Also, the last 30 hours must be taken at UIC.

What if the student is planning on graduating this semester?
A graduation check must have been requested in the preceding semester. An Intent to Graduate Form must also be submitted in the current semester by the deadline.

What if the student wants to obtain a Minor?
Minor and major areas should not have substantial overlap. Certain major/minor combinations are not allowed. Engineering students can have non-engineering minors. Non-engineering students must demonstrate transfer-eligibility to sign up for engineering minors. It is not necessary to actually transfer into COE. A petition must be submitted for the proposed engineering minor.

Is International Minor handled by the Study Abroad Office?
No. Students can pursue International Minor on their own after approval by COE. Typically 18-21 hours are required and no more than half of these can be in language courses. International experience (coursework or internship) is also required. The Study Abroad Office helps any student who wants to incorporate some overseas credits in his/her UIC degree program. Engineering students must have their petitions approved by COE and the Study Abroad Office to determine how the credits will be applied to UIC Engineering degree.

What if the student wishes to take more than 18 hours?
Student must show consistently high academic performance and possess good overall GPA (B average or better). A petition is required.

When should students reapply?
If there is a break of two or more semester (not counting the Summer semester), then the student must reapply for admission. Dropped students must reapply with petition.

When can a readmitted student follow old rules?
If a student is readmitted within 2 years, he/she has the option of following the rules in place at the time of the initial admission. New rules must be followed if the student is readmitted after 2 years.

What is the procedure to modify the major?
A Major Modification petition must be completed, endorsed by the chair of the departmental undergraduate committee, and then submitted to COE. Most major modifications involve technical electives. In general, substitutions for required major courses are quite difficult and are allowed only for reasons such as: course no longer offered, course not offered in a long time due to unavailability of instructor, etc.; they are not approved for reasons such as: graduating next term, have a job and must graduate this term, etc.--these are not sound academic reasons and indicate poor planning by the student. Students may have more flexibility in modifying non-ABET accredited majors ( Engineering Management or Engineering Physics).

Should a course with D grade be repeated?
At the present time, it is not required to repeat a course with the D grade. However, many advisors recommend that if a student gets a D grade in a major course that is also a prerequisite for another course in the major, then the course with the D grade should be repeated.

Are free electives really free?
To an extent, yes. However, remedial and duplicative courses (even those with different numbers) are not allowed. Generally, if a student scans the list of LAS and Engineering courses, and chooses a course with a number higher than the first required course on any topic, that should be ok. Language courses can also be used for free electives, but not for humanities and social science requirements. Independent study courses are also not allowed. If in doubt, the student should fill out a petition.

Are dual degrees permitted?
COE simply follows university rules for dual degrees. Two majors for dual degree should not have substantial overlap. All major requirements for the second BS degree must be completed and must involve 30 semester hours or more of work beyond the first BS degree. A petition must be submitted to the College office.

How should I handle academic or personal disciplinary matters?
Academic or personal disciplinary matters, after making informal attempts for resolution at departmental and college levels, should be referred to the Office of Student Judiciary Affairs (SJA). That office (SJA) is the only office authorized to impose multiple levels of disciplinary sanctions such as a warning letter, disciplinary probation, blocking release of transcript, putting temporary or permanent notations in the transcript, term(s) suspension, and expulsion. Other colleges use the SJA mechanism quite aggressively. A one-page complaint form is needed to initiate this procedure at SJA and this form can be printed from the URL: http://www.uic.edu/depts/sja/ref.htm