Academic advising is a partnership that helps you be successful at the university. Besides knowing your major or minor program, your advisor knows Ohio State policies and can also link you to services or support in other offices. Advisors help you make informed choices, but we can't do that alone. For a successful relationship, both advisors and students need to work together.
Like most other relationships in your life, you will get the most benefit from putting in effort to build a relationship with your advisor. You should meet your advisor with respect, prepare for your appointments with intention, have open conversations about your concerns, and be prepared to make difficult decisions with their guidance and expertise.
Advisor responsibilities
- Listen to you without judgement and refer you to helpful resources
- Write notes about your appointment to remind you of their recommendations and resources
- Talk to you about your academic performance and develop a plan for improvement
- Connect you to academic support offices
- Explain university policies
- Help you plan schedule based on major requirements and course options
- Explain how to get into the major you want
- Encourage you to explore your interests to help you choose interesting classes
Student responsibilities
Advisors have things they are supposed to do, but students do as well! The advising relationship is a partnership. Here’s a few things you should do regularly:
- Communicate with your advisor regularly
Check your university email daily (ending in osu.edu). Note that email forwarded to external email accounts are not likely to receive official Ohio State mail. You can update your Ohio State email account online via (buckeyelink.osu.edu). If you are having problems, contact (614) 688-HELP.
Meet regularly with your assigned academic advisor(s). You can speak with them about how often is appropriate or necessary to schedule appointments.
During busy times in the semester, appointments with advising offices fill weeks in advance. Please check your major scheduling dates and deadlines and plan ahead.
- Understand your major’s requirements
- Review updated information on general education requirements. It is important to know the requirements of the curriculum you are pursuing.
- Develop an understanding of what is considered "good" academic standing within your specific major/program and maintain those standards.
- Make class scheduling decisions that meet your needs
- Check the prerequisites for all the classes that you want to schedule.
- Know your class schedule, rooms, and meeting patterns. Log in to your Buckeye Link account to view your schedule at the start of every semester.
- Be aware of any course waitlists you may be on. Check your schedule regularly to see if you have been added to a class (the waitlist will not add you to any classes after the first Friday of the term).
- Make schedule changes within posted deadlines
- You must drop courses you have stopped attending and know the drop deadlines for each term; an instructor will not automatically drop you from a course simply because you stopped attending a class.
- Know the consequences of schedule changes (effects on your eligibility for financial aid, your projected graduation date, your athletic eligibility, your tuition and fees, etc.).
- Be aware of the university’s expectations for student behavior
- Read and understand the Code of Student Conduct (available under the "Bylaws and Rules" menu on the Board of Trustees page).
- Know both the university's and your college's policies, regulations, and procedures.
- Read and understand the definition and consequences of academic misconduct.
- Manage your own privacy and records access
- You have a right to privacy of your educational records. If you plan to bring any quest to your advising appointment (virtual or in-person), you’ll need to complete a Student Information Release in Buckeye Link.