Academic Advising
in the College of Arts & Science
How Advising Works
The key to successful academic advising relies partly upon your initiative. The more questions you ask of advisers, the better informed your decisions will be. Academic advice at Miami can come from a variety of people. During Summer Orientation, faculty advisers will be available in the afternoons, at evening advising sessions, and again when you register for classes. They will answer questions about your academic program, course selections, and career opportunities in your major.
After you come to school in the fall and through February of your first year, your primary academic adviser will be the first-year adviser living in your residence hall, the commuter adviser if you are a commuting student, or the resident instructor if you are in the Western College Program. Some divisions also assign faculty advisers in the first semester. These advisers will be able to help you throughout your first year and will assist you in the registration process for your second semester schedule.
During March of your first year, you will be assigned an academic adviser in your major; for example, if you are a botany major, one of the instructors in the botany department will be your adviser. He or she will advise you about your academic program throughout the rest of the time you are at Miami. If you change majors or add a second major, you will be assigned an academic adviser in the new department. If after spring break of the first year you are still uncertain about your academic adviser assignment, you should contact your major department for clarification.
Students who are undecided in the second semester of the first year are advised by advisers in their divisional dean's office until they officially declare their majors. (Students undecided about a division are ordinarily assigned to the College of Arts and Science.) These advisers assist students in the decision-making process and can advise on all of the general programs of study in those divisions.
Each academic department has identified a faculty member as the chief departmental adviser. If you are looking for general advice and information about a particular major, a good place to start is the chief departmental adviser for the program. Call the department or dean's office for the name and phone number of the chief adviser. Other faculty and staff members can be excellent sources of information also. We encourage you to talk with as many knowledgable people as possible.