Student Services Spotlight - The Academic Advisement Center

Each student at Missouri State University is assigned to work with an academic advisor who helps the student make well-informed and meaningful educational choices.  Because Missouri State believes that it is important for each student to consult with an advisor in choosing appropriate courses, all students are required to meet with their advisors prior to registration each semester until they have earned 75 hours.  Pre-registration for spring 2010 is going on from November 2 to 20, so most students will be meeting with their advisors sometime in the next few weeks.
 
The advisor assignment is made based on a student's declared major and area of interest.  Students who have not yet chosen a major have advisors in the Academic Advisement Center in University Hall 109.  Students with majors in the College of Business Administration have advisors in the Business Advisement Center in Glass Hall 106 and students in Elementary, Early Childhood and Middle School Education have advisors in the Professional Education Advisement Center in Hill Hall 202.  All other students have advisors assigned in their departments, either faculty members or full-time professional advisors who are specialists in advising students in those areas.  If your student has a question about his or her advisor assignment, encourage the student to look under "Academics" in "My Missouri State."  You might want to remind your student to make an advising appointment soon, as many advisors' calendars are getting booked with pre-registration advising appointments.

Students need to prepare for advising appointments by:

1. Calling the advisor's office to make an advising appointment well in advance of the registration date.
2. Making a list of questions to ask the advisor or topics to discuss with the advisor.
3. Making a list of courses the student is interested in considering for spring semester.
4. Reviewing academic records such as the "degree audit" available from "My Missouri State."

After the advising appointment is completed, students will register at their appointed time at an official registration center (such as the Office of the Registrar in Carrington 320) or by registering on-line from "My Missouri State."  For other information on dates and deadlines, see the Academic Calendar at http://calendar.missouristate.edu/academic.asp.

Please encourage your student to see his or her advisor anytime there is an academic question or problem.  For example, a student should see an advisor if he is considering dropping a class, changing a major or minor, or is experiencing academic difficulty.

The Academic Advisement Center specializes in working with students who are in the process of choosing a major.  If your student is in that situation, here are some guidelines for how you can help the student:

1. Please be sensitive to the fact that students are often worried about being "undecided" and may need reassurances that it is okay to take a little time to make a good decision about a major.  About one third of all the students who enter Missouri State University are undecided about a major and a good portion of the students who have declared majors when they enter the University will change those majors at least once. 
2. Students who are in the process of choosing a major will concentrate on fulfilling general education requirements while taking courses to "try out" potential majors.  It is difficult to choose a major without taking a course in that department, so please understand why your student may want to take that type of course.  Some examples are BMS 195-Introduction to Health Professions (1 credit hour), PSY 150-Introduction to the Psychology Major (1 credit hour) and FGB 135-Introduction to Business (3 credit hours.)
3. While it's okay for your student to be undecided when beginning college, students should work toward a firm commitment to a major by early in the sophomore year.  Inspiration rarely strikes regarding a major, so students who are undecided should be encouraged to do significant research and exploration.  Advisors in the Academic Advisement Center are good resources for those conversations.  You may also want to encourage your student to consider enrolling in IDS 120-Exploring Majors and Careers, a two credit hour course taught by a career counselor.  Individual appointments with career counselors can also be very helpful to students who are in the process of choosing a major and minor.  Students can make appointments for career counseling by calling 836-5636.

If your student has other questions about academic advising, please encourage him or her to email or call the assigned academic advisor.  General questions or questions about choosing or declaring a major can be addressed to the Academic Advisement Center, 836-5258.  The mission of academic advising at Missouri State University is to assist students as they develop meaningful educational plans to help them achieve their life goals.  We take that mission seriously and we want to help your student succeed at Missouri State University.