Midterm Reflection
Happy Halloween! With midterm season is behind us, it is important for you to reflect on your progress and future goals. Now is the time when you should be seeking information and advice from multiple sources. Use your midterm exam experience to inform your spring course selection (how many courses should you take? how many test-heavy or writing-intensive courses do you want in the spring? what types of classes bring you joy?) You should review the results of your midterm exams with your Graduate Teaching Assistants and Professors. You should recalibrate your note-taking and study skills to increase your productivity during the second half of the semester. And you should commit to a plan. Mark in your calendar when and where you are going to study. Try out a new place, like the Rotunda!
Academic Advising
By now, the College of Arts & Sciences expected you to attend an academic advising meeting with the faculty member assigned to you in SIS. If you do not know how to reach your assigned faculty advisor, please type her/his name into the UVA faculty directory to find his/her email address: https://search.people.virginia.edu/.
If you do not yet have a faculty advisor listed in SIS, your Director of Undergraduate Programs will serve as your advisor until you declare a major.
Sometimes students ask me why they need to meet with their faculty advisor. First and foremost, your faculty advisor is a mentor and an academic expert who wants to support you. You should share your midterm grade reports with your faculty advisor, discuss your study strategies and exam-taking experiences. You should talk to your faculty advisor about which courses are your favorite, and why, so they can steer you to other great courses in the future. Use their knowledge and advice to your advantage to design long-term academic goals and prepare for spring course enrollment. And remember… academic advisors exist to share their perspectives; they will not all share the same advice. At the end of the day, it is your responsibility as an engaged adult to make your own academic decisions that will best position you for success at our university.
Spring 2022 Course Enrollment
Spring course enrollment begins next week and continues until January. The College of Arts & Sciences rewards students who attended faculty advising, declared their majors, and removed all holds on their SIS Student Accounts with Priority Registration. Note that at our university, fourth-year students who finished their pre-enrollment tasks will enroll first, followed by third-years, then second-years, and then first-years. All other students who have not finished their pre-enrollment tasks will enroll afterwards. Please double-check your SIS Student account to ensure that you do not have any holds, and then read the College’s instructions for spring course enrollment here: https://college.as.virginia.edu/course-selection.
If you are a third-year student who has not declared or deferred a major, then you will have a No Major hold on your SIS Student Account. To remove this hold, you will need to declare a major immediately or submit a Temporary Part-Time Status Request to Dean Ozment. These forms are available on the College of Arts & Sciences website under Forms.
If you are a fourth-year student who has exhausted your available number of full-time semesters, then you will need to submit a Temporary Part-Time Status Request to Dean Ozment and plan to enroll in no more than 6.00 credits per semester until you finish your degree.
Any student may voluntarily submit a Temporary Part-Time Status Request to take a light semester, and often will choose to do this if they are working more than 15 hours a week at their job, or if they have significant family responsibilities. You are welcome to discuss this with your assigned faculty advisor or during the College’s Dean of the Day drop-in Zoom advising.
Meet Dean Ozment
Dean Ozment hopes that you settled into your courses and are making the most of this fall semester. To get to know you, she e-mailed many of you individually over the last few weeks and invited you to office hours. But she'd like to hear from more of you. Please consider calling (434) 924-3351 to schedule a phone conference with her before the semester concludes. You do not need to have a problem to talk to her. She is one of your mentors and wants to hear about your progress. The more that she knows about your experiences, the better she can support you.
Due to the volume of daily email that she receives from students and faculty, Dean Ozment cannot schedule appointments via email. Please abide by the College’s instructions and call (434) 924-3351 to request an academic advising appointment with your Dean. Her assistant will find a convenient time to meet that does not conflict with your class schedule.
Please remember that academic advising appointments are taking place remotely until otherwise announced by the College. And Drop-in Zoom Advising is available to all transfer students from 2:30-4:00pm Monday-Friday, no appointment needed. You will find the recurring link and password to these Zoom sessions here: https://college.as.virginia.edu/DOD. If you have a couple quick questions or your class schedule does not align well with Dean Ozment’s office hours, then you should visit the Dean of the Day drop-in Zoom advising.
Final words from Dean Ozment
The next several weeks will be crucial for your success. You should expect the pace of the semester will continue to accelerate until final exams arrive. It is more important than ever to stay current with your readings and other assignments. If you are having trouble, do not simply hope things will improve. You must act. You must take good care of yourself. You must speak with your instructors and advisor promptly. You must seek out tutorial assistance, form study groups, and draw fully upon the University's resources such as counseling (CAPS). And you must not hesitate to make an appointment to see your faculty advisor. You were admitted to UVA because you are impressive students. You are all capable of succeeding here. Dean Ozment wishes you well.