College Advising at UC Santa Cruz

At the instructor’s discretion, an incomplete grade notation may be assigned for work that is of passing quality but incomplete by the end of spring term.  The deadline to complete the work must be negotiated with the instructor and must be no later than the last day of fall quarter 2013. 

Incomplete grade notations are typically given for emergency reasons or unforeseen circumstances, and if the course work is not completed by the deadline, the “I” lapses to an “F” or “NP”.  Because an incomplete grade carries no credit, talk with your college academic adviser about the possible consequences on your academic standing. 

If an Incomplete grade is truly necessary for your situation, you must make your request with your instructor by the end of the quarter, Thursday, June 13, 2013.  Faculty members generally appreciate any efforts you might make to contact them well before the end of the quarter.

You can continue to enroll in fall 2013 classes up to 19 credits through July 18, 2013 and starting again August 12, 2013.  Fall enrollment is blocked for continuing students from July 19 through August 11, 2013 to allow new students to enroll during summer orientation programming. 

We know you are busy preparing for finals, but don’t forget to fill out your class schedule for fall soon.  Classes may be full on August 12 when enrollment reopens.  Full-time students should be enrolled in at least 12 credits for fall, with 15 credits or more preferred.  

If a class offers a wait list enrollment option, then you can begin to enroll in wait-list classes starting August 12, 2013.  

Starting the first day of instruction for fall 2013, which is Thursday, September 26th, students holding a 3.0 GPA or higher may enroll in up to 22 credits without permission from their college; however, to exceed 22 credits permission must be obtained from your college.  Those that do not meet the GPA requirement and want to enroll in more than 19 credits must obtain permission from their college adviser.

Drop-in Writing assistance will be available on:
*Sunday, June 9th from 12-6pm
Monday, June 10th from 3-6pm
Tuesday, June 11th from 3-6pm
Wednesday, June 12th from 3-6pm
All drop-in writing sessions will be held at the ARCenter, room 216 

Students may sign up for an appointment slot by calling Learning Support Services at (831) 459-4333 before 2:00pm the day of the session.  
Appoints are 30 Minutes, for papers longer than 5 pages you may request a 45 minute appointment.
*Students will not able sign up for a Sunday appointment after Friday, June 7th at 5:00pm.

Drop-in Math tutoring for MATH 3, 11A, 11B, 19A, 19B, 22, 23A, and 23B will be available at McHenry Library, room 1279 on:
Sunday, June 9th from 4-8pm
Monday, June 10th from 4-8pm

24-Hour Study Center
The ARCenter will be open continuously as a study center beginning Sunday, June 9th at 9:00am and remaining open until Wednesday, June 12th at 11:00pm. Regular hours will resume on Thursday, June 13th. Free coffee will be available.

Any updates and changes to these services will be posted on the Learning Support Services website at http://www2.ucsc.edu/lss/

It may seem like a long time from now, but make a note that instruction for fall 2013 begins Thursday, September 26th.  The quarter officially begins on Saturday, September 21st.  You can find the full 2013-14 Academic and Administrative Calendar here http://registrar.ucsc.edu/calendar/academiccalendar.html ; See you in the fall!

Summer orientation for new students will take place on the dates listed below.  On these dates, most college advisers will be out of their offices for the entire day.  If you need academic advising during the summer, please phone or e-mail ahead to determine the best time to meet with an adviser.

•    Wednesday, July 24
•    Friday, July 26
•    Saturday, July 27
•    Monday, 29
•    Wednesday, July 31
•    Thursday, August 1

You may begin checking your spring grades on your student portal on Tuesday, June 18.  Colleges will conduct academic standing reviews once grades are received.  If you think you may fall below good academic standing after your spring grades are assigned, please check with your college academic adviser for important academic review information.

Question:  What happens if you enroll in classes and then don’t show up for fall quarter?  Answer:  You are billed and liable for FULL registration fees.

If you are NOT planning to return to UCSC for fall 2013, see your college academic adviser before the end of spring quarter to petition to withdraw or take a leave of absence from the university (unless you apply to graduate for spring or summer).  Notifying the university that you do not plan to attend via the withdrawal or leave of absence petition will cancel your registration fees and remove you from your enrolled fall classes. 

If you wait until the beginning of fall quarter to petition for a withdrawal or leave of absence, the effective date of your withdrawal or leave will be the date your college is notified that you are not attending UCSC (which, if after the first day of instruction, could result in a loss of thousands of dollars of registration fees).  For the petition and additional information visit the following link: http://advising.ucsc.edu/student/loa/index.html .

The spring quarter is finally wrapping up and it has been a long academic year full of finals, studying, late nights and tons of reading and writing. 

Once your spring quarter is complete and your finals are behind you, it is time to reward yourself!  Everyone needs some downtime after a stressful period of time.  Whether it is sleeping for 12 hours, getting a massage, going to the beach, taking a trip, reading for FUN, or just spending time with your friends and family, plan to reward yourself after finals are complete.  Use your reward as the carrot, dangling at the end of the stick driving you toward the finish line!  You can do it and you deserve some YOU time!  Good luck with finals and have a wonderful summer break!

Can you believe finals are here already???  The spring final examination schedule can be at: http://registrar.ucsc.edu/soc/final-examinations.html#3. You can read about “Final Examination Policies” above on this page.  And you can also view the final exam schedule for fall 2013.  Planning out your finals will help you to be able to prioritize your studying and allow you to feel more organized.  Remember to take care of yourself during this time with healthy food, sleep, and little breaks now and then.  Stock up on pencils, blue books and scantrons so that you will be prepared!  Good luck!

Whether you are in your first, second, third or fourth year at UCSC, you can take steps to identify meaningful career goals.  Click here for a four-year planner with suggested activities for each year to clarify your career interests and begin to take steps to enter the professional world.  The Career center offers career assessments at UCSC and links to online career assessments, major handouts that link majors to careers, and much more.  Click here to see a comprehensive list of all career services available to students.

Are you thinking about majoring in a science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM) discipline?  Would you like to meet and network with other UCSC students with the same interests?  Then ACE is the place for you!

The UCSC Academic Excellence Program (ACE) brings STEM students together in small discussion sections that accompany the large math and science lectures.  This program helps you understand the lecture and textbook through concept specific worksheets that you and your classmates work on as a team.  For more information visit the ACE website.

ACE is offering discussion sections for Fall 2013 in BIO 20A, CHEM 1A, 1B, 1C, & 108A, MATH 3, 11A, 11B, 19A, & 19B, and PHYS 5A.  Section space is limited.  Apply online now HERE and be prepared to select your preferred section times.  The ACE Office is located in Baskin Engineering 199.  

Your EGT (Expected Graduation Term) can be found in your Student Advising Summary on the Student Center page of your MyUCSC portal.  Clicking on the “Degree” tab will reveal your final quarter at UCSC. 

If you need extra time beyond your EGT to complete your degree requirements (especially if your EGT is spring 2013), it is important to see your college adviser to petition extra quarters as soon as possible.  It is very important to have an accurate EGT, especially if you hope to receive financial aid next year!  If you plan to graduate before your EGT, no need to make a correction; it will update once you apply to graduate on the portal.

Have you satisfied your C2 requirement? 

Your C2 requirement must be satisfied before the start of your 7th UCSC quarter.  Writing 2 and 80B of your college core course (and Stevenson 81B) are the only UCSC courses that satisfy the C2 composition general education requirement for graduation.  WRITING 2 COURSES FILL UP QUICKLY, so be sure to enroll at your first opportunity!

Enrollment Procedures:  You must satisfy the Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR) and C1 before taking Writing 2.  If you have not yet satisfied ELWR, click here for info.  Not sure if you’ve satisfied ELWR?  Visit your MyUCSC portal and go to your academic advisement report.  Please see your college adviser for any questions or concerns. 

UCSC awards several honors at graduation for outstanding academic achievement.  These are some of the honors that UCSC undergraduates may receive upon graduation:

• University Honors: (Summa Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude and Cum Laude) are based on a qualifying cumulative UC GPA for graduating seniors with at least 70 UC credits; the School of Engineering establishes separate GPA criteria.  Click here to see qualifying GPA’s for University Honors.

• Honors or Highest Honors in the Major: Most major departments award Honors or High Honors in the Major for excellent work in the major program.

• Phi Beta Kappa: Undergraduates with an overall excellent record that includes a second language are nominated by their college for PHI BETA KAPPA.  This prestigious organization has recognized scholastic achievement since 1776.  If you are invited to Phi Beta Kappa, we strongly encourage you to accept this honor!  For more information, see https://www.pbk.org/home/index.aspx .

To learn more about honors at UCSC, see http://honors.ucsc.edu/ & http://registrar.ucsc.edu/faqs/students/honors/index.html .

Many of you have been inquiring about taking classes over the summer at your local community college and how to determine if they will count for GE requirements or simply be transferable for credit. 

For those of you that started at UCSC before fall 2010, the website assist.org will be your best friend!  This website will let you know what classes will count for GE’s and be transferrable at California Community Colleges. 

However, if you started as a first-year student in fall 2010 or later and are subject to the new GE requirements, it is important to know that the new GE’s may not be available at some community colleges on assist.org.  But you can still utilize assist.org to look for lower-division courses for your intended major and for general transferability of courses (credit for electives).  Your college advisers are happy to answer any questions or concerns regarding this.

Check out our new YouTube video made by UCSC students for UCSC students: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T6giMnuRDI .  And coming soon, videos on the specific GE learning objectives.

If you received a grade of “I” (Incomplete) in a winter 2013 course, it is time to finish your work if you haven’t already done so!  (Not sure if you have an Incomplete?  Check your winter grades on your MyUCSC now.) 

Contact the instructor to clarify what is required to complete the course.  You must complete the work for the course and file the “Petition for Removal of an Incomplete” before the last day of the quarter, Thursday, June 13th.  (Your instructor can set an earlier deadline for work due to them.) 

The petition is available online at http://reg.ucsc.edu/forms.htm ; a $10 fee will post to your student business account upon filing.  Complete procedures can be found in Chapter 4 of The Navigator.  If you do not complete the work by the end of spring quarter your Incomplete will lapse to a “No Pass” or an “F: depending on which grade option you selected.

Monday, May 27th, no classes and UCSC campus office will be closed in observation of Memorial Day.

Colleges Nine and Ten Multipurpose Room, UCSC at 7p.m.
Featuring:
            Introductory Comments:
                        Free Speech, Academic Free Speech by UCSC Professor Bettina Aptheker (Feminist Studies)
                        History of Anti-Semitism by UCSC Professor Peter Kenez (History)
            Moderated Discussion:
                        Yaman Salahi, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
                        Rick Barton, Anti Defamation League (ADL)  
            Moderated by Provost Helen Shapiro
 
Sponsored by the College Ten Cocurricular Unit, UCSC.

Summer will be here before you know it!  What do your summer plans entail?  Are you traveling, taking summer classes, or working?  If you are looking to earn a little extra money over the summer, now is the time to start trying to secure employment.  Here are some tips to help you get a summer job:

• No previous work experience, no problem.  If you haven’t held a paying job, think about other experiences you might have that an employer would value.  Make a list of volunteer work, student organizations you are involved in, and activities you partake in.  All of these areas help you build leadership skills and the ability to work as a member of a team, which is what most employers are looking for.
• Maintain an open availability.  If you are looking for a job in the service industry, then you will need to be able to work evenings and weekends.  It is summer and you ideally want to be free to hang out with your friends on weekends and evenings, but the reality is you will not get hired if you aren’t flexible.  Most employers will allow you to request particular weekends off if you have an event or something special you need to be off for.
• The early bird catches the worm.  You are not the only college student out there looking for a summer job, so the sooner you get out there and start pounding the pavement the better!
• First impressions.  Look your best when you go out looking for a job and maintain a professional presence.  The first impression you give a prospect employer can go a long way, so exude confidence through eye contact and a solid handshake, and you will be sure to leave a positive impression on your potential new boss.
• Apply in person.  If you are looking for a retail or serving gig, applying in person with a professional resume is key. Many retail and restaurant managers don’t have time to sift through online applications.  If they see a bright, responsible college student walk through the door and shake their hand, they are liable to hire or at least set up an interview on the spot!