Freshman Advising Ends

Upcoming Dates, Deadlines, and Events

February 15: Are you considering majors within the Department of Health Sciences? Academic programs within this department include Athletic Training; Dietetics; Health Services Administration; Health Sciences with a concentration in Health Assessment and Promotion; Health Studies; or Public Health. The deadline to declare is February 15 so that you have access to courses required for the major during fall semester registration. To declare, review the Declare Your Major post from January.

Freshman Advising: “I’m Out!”

It’s hard to believe it’s already February and Freshman Advising is ending! I have enjoyed getting to know and support each of you as you’ve begun your time with the JMU family; I hope you’ve enjoyed your start to the JMU experience! 

Since Freshman Advising has ended, this will be the last regular blog post. However, the blog will remain up for the remainder of your first year as a resource for you to utilize, so think of it as your “advising textbook.” In the past few weeks, I’ve tried to prepare you for this transition (whether you’ve declared and will move onto a major advisor or whether you are still exploring as an Undeclared student and will still have me as your advisor). Please read over the past few weeks of blog posts if you haven’t read them already so that you know what’s going on. If you have any questions about this transitional time, please let me know.

Along with the rest of Career & Academic Planning, I look forward to helping you all with your resumes, cover letters, and internship and job searches. Keep in touch, and please let me know if there’s anything I can do to support you in the future!

Internships & Jobs | Career Fair

Internships & Jobs

Are you interested in finding a summer internship opportunity?  It’s never too early (or too late) to look for an internship!  Even if you’re Undeclared, you can obtain an internship.  First, get familiar with Recruit-A-Duke. This is the online system that Career & Academic Planning uses to allow employers to post internship and job opportunities. There’s so much more it can do, too.  Watch the Recruit-A-Duke tutorial to learn more!

Career Fair

The Spring Career & Internship Fair is happening Tuesday, February 17 and Wednesday, February 18, 2015 in the Festival Grand Ballroom. Attend the Career Fair for a chance to win one of three $1000 scholarships! Over 130 employers are registered to attend and recruit for internship and summer employment opportunities. Check out the great resources we have to help you prepare for the career fair, including this quick video:

Resumes

Need help creating your resume or writing a cover letter? It’s not too early to begin thinking about your resume. No matter how much or how little experience you may think you have, thinking about and creating a professional resume at this stage may help you imagine opportunities and set goals for the future. Take a look at the resume resources we have available at Career & Academic Planning (CAP). Or, better yet, attend a Resume Writing Workshop. Find the dates, times, and locations of all the workshops on the Career & Academic Planning Calendar.

Once you’ve put something down on paper, you can schedule a one-on-one appointment with me or any of the other advisors in CAP to get feedback on how to improve. Remember, once you’ve declared and moved on to your major advisor, I will still be here to help you with resumes, cover letters, the internship/job search, and so on.

Make Your Next Move Award

Career & Academic Planning is proud to seek nomination for the second annual Make Your Next Move Award. This award allows students to nominate a faculty and/or staff member who has helped them make significant progress towards making a decision on career direction and/or their post-graduation plans (be that job search, graduate school, etc.).

To nominate someone, please complete this short Qualtrics survey: Make Your Next Move Award by February 27. If you have any questions, please contact Laura Hickerson at hickerly@jmu.edu.

Freshman > Major Advising

Freshman Advising Ending Soon

Freshman Advising is ending soon, and that’s okay! You understand the basics of university policy and procedures, General Education and major requirements, and how to use the course catalog, MyMadison, Office of the Registrar, and the JMU website to find relevant information. If you are being assigned a new advisor, they expect you know this information; If I will still be your advisor, I expect you know this information, too. As I’ve mentioned since Summer Springboard Orientation - Your education is your responsibility; use the resources available to you to be prepared when meeting with your advisor. To understand what’s happening more, please read at least one of the three categories below (declared, not sure if you’re declared the right major, still exploring and “Undeclared):

If you’ve declared a major. From February 10 - March 14, 2015 if you have declared your major, your academic advisor will change from your current advisor to a major advisor, an academic advisor in your declared major. This is one large transfer that happens for once a year - going from a “freshman advisor” to your “major advisor.” Your advisor assignment is based on the major that is listed in MyMadison, as of February 6.

Depending on your major assignment, you may be required to attend a new majors meeting. To find out if your major is holding mandatory sessions and how your major department will be contacting you about these meetings, view the Department Notification Spreadsheet.

If you’ve declared a major and aren’t sure if it’s the right fit, you may also switch back to Undeclared  and I will continue to be your advisor. Let your advisor know if you think this might be the best option for you!

If you’re still exploring and declared “Undeclared”, that’s ok! You may remain Undeclared and I will still be your assigned academic advisor. (Remember, you must declare a major by the third Friday of the first semester of your sophomore year).  My role as an Undeclared advisor is to know a little bit about all the majors so I can help you with your decision-making and exploring. But, if you know what you want to declare for your major, there are no benefits to remaining Undeclared. A major advisor will give you better advice for summer registration and fall registration. Major advisors are good because they are the experts of their discipline and program.

If you have any questions about this process, please let your advisor know!

Major Advising and the Registrar

As you move on from Freshman Advising, you’ll want to recall all of the lessons I’ve taught you regarding graduation requirements, class enrollment (a.k.a. registration) processes, and more! A great resource to utilize for help-seeking is JMU’s Academic Advising website. This site is designed to provide you with important academic information regardless of your specific major. Additionally, you’ll want to utilize the Registrar’s website to find important academic dates and deadlines. The Office of the Registrar coordinates course enrollment (a.k.a. registration). Therefore, you can always visit the Registrar’s website to find important dates and deadlines, like when Summer and Fall Advanced Registration begins. You may even want to “like” the Registrar’s Facebook Page to keep up with these important dates. These two resources are essential for all JMU students. When you need (a) major information, or (b) do not understand information from these resources, utilize your major advisor! You should also utilize the Madison Advising Peers (MAPs), who are JMU students who care about you and are committed to providing supplemental academic advising information. You can just drop by their office anytime during their hours.