Advising and Selection of Courses
Academic placement, course selection forms, academic program progress sheets, and class availability determine the initial semester schedule for incoming students. After check-in day, students must meet with their assigned academic advisor to review program requirements and career goals. The name of the academic advisor is printed in the upper right-hand corner of the student’s semester schedule.
All students are assigned an academic advisor in the student’s selected program of study. Students who want to change their degree, major, concentration, or advisor should obtain a ‘change of curriculum and advisor’ form from the University Registrar’s office. Since the academic advisor is an integral part of the student’s educational program, it is important for students to establish an ongoing relationship with their advisor.
The academic advisor provides the student with assistance in the following areas:
- Reviews general academic practices and policies of the university.
- Discusses employment, transfer, and degree completion.
- Explains assessment.
- Distributes and reviews copies of program requirements and recommended course sequence. Points out specific credit and course requirements.
- Shows student how to draft a semester schedule and tentative degree completion schedule, using the master schedule and the recommended course sequence as a guide.
- Meets with each student individually to plan, review, and approve semester schedules.
- Answers questions and refers student for help as needed.
- Discusses course substitution requests as needed. Students should meet with their advisors on a regular basis. Students must see their academic advisors after mid-semester to obtain a copy of their grades. The advisor’s signature is required on all drop and add, change of advisor and curriculum, and registration cards.
The progress sheet is a valuable guide to chart the student’s progress toward a degree. Progress sheets for all academic programs are available in this publication and at the University Registrar’s office. The sheets list course requirements on one side and the suggested course sequence on the reverse. They are updated yearly with any program changes. Students follow the progress sheet for the academic year in which they entered Finlandia University.
Dropping and Adding Courses
The drop and add period is used to rearrange class schedules. The period ends six class days after check-in day during the fall and spring semesters, and four class days after check-in day during the summer semester. Courses dropped during this period do not appear on the student’s transcript or grade report. Courses may not be added following the drop and add period. Any course schedule changes must be approved by the student’s academic advisor. To be accepted, signed drop and add cards must be received in the University Registrar’s office by 4:00 p.m. of the sixth day of classes after check-in day during the fall and spring semesters, or by noon of the fourth day of classes after check-in day during the summer semester. Students are charged for all registered courses at the end of the drop and add period.
Withdrawing from Courses
Students may withdraw from a course(s) by submitting a drop and add card, signed by the advisor, student, and instructor, to the University Registrar’s office. Drop and add cards without all required signatures are not honored.
Students may withdraw from courses through the end of the 10th week of the semester; a “W” grade is assigned as a non-punitive grade and is not included when computing the GPA.
Course Audit
Registering as an audit student requires the permission of the Registrar and the course instructor. No university credit or grades are given for courses that are audited. Students interested in auditing a course should apply through the Office of Admissions. Audit students are permitted to enroll in courses only after all degree-seeking students have registered. Some courses cannot be audited, check with the Office or Admissions for more information.