The Georgia Tech Academic Advisors Network (GTAAN) defines advising as a developmental process in which we guide students through their educational experience to reach their full potential. In order for this process to be successful, advisors must have access to new information above campus resources and best practices in advising.
We abide by the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) and The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
GTAAN was created as means of improving and guiding the delivery of advising services at The Georgia Institute of Technology. A primary goal is to provide academic advisors:
GTAAN has a facilitator that is a direct link to the Vice Provost of Undergraduate Studies so that we are connected with the campus mission as well as a conduit for us to get information to the administration.
Below is the yearly progression of events important to advisors by term. Go to the Registrar's Web Page (Official School Calendar) for specific dates.
| Term | When | What |
|---|---|---|
| Fall | August |
Fall Freshmen/Transfer FASETs Phase II Registration for Fall Classes Begins (End of First Week) Last Day to Register for Class or Drop without "W" |
| September | ||
| October |
Study Abroad Fair Registrar's deadline to submit Degree Petitions for Spring Graduation |
|
| November |
Phase I Registration for Spring Classes Begins |
|
| December |
Final Exams |
|
| Spring | January |
Spring Transfer FASET Phase II Registration for Spring Classes Begins (End of First Week) Last Day to Register for Class or Drop without "W" Internship Fair Study Abroad Fair |
| February | ||
| March |
Drop Day Registrar's deadline to submit Degree Petitions for Summer Graduation Phase I Registration for Summer Classes Begins |
|
| April |
Early Registration for Fall Classes Begins Final Exams |
|
| Summer | May |
Summer Transfer FASET Phase II Registration for Summer Classes Begins (End of First Week) Last Day to Register for Class or Drop without "W" |
| June |
Progress Reports for Short Summer Session Drop Day for Short Summer Session Summer Freshman FASET Summer Freshmen session begins |
|
| July |
Fall Freshmen/Transfer FASETs begin Progress Reports for Full Summer Session Drop Day for Full Summer Session Registrar's deadline to submit Degree Petitions for Fall Graduation Phase I Registration for Fall Classes Final Exams |
Our goal is to give quick access to the information that you need to know about Tech. This is intended to be a guide to resources that can be accessed on an as needed basis.
By "Necessities" we are saying that these are aspects of advising at Georgia Tech that you should know backward and forward. Faculty and students will expect you to be the resource on all the topics below. For each area we give you some background and links to details.
As an advisor in a department or College, you are expected to know all the components within your department. Below we outline some of the key areas with ideas for getting up to speed quickly.
You will want to know in detail about these programs in your department/college:
As a starting point to learning about these go to your department/college's current web site.
(Note - you may later want to make changes to this web site based on how clear the information was to you - that is also the source for all prospective and current faculty and students.)
One way to learn some about the students in your department/college is to look up any student:
These should also be on your department/college website [http://www.gatech.edu/colleges-schools/].
Other helpful things to know:
These can all be found on AFACTS
Directions to this information:
In AFACTS, go to the "Student Query" folder. Run the "Student Data File for Delimited Exporting" report and export it to Excel data only. You can sort by year, gender, GPA, ethnicity, and many other factors. This just allows you to get a sense for the total number of students the general student body make up of your department/college.
These are computer based tools for advising. They include software for entering and accessing student information, as well as software for students to schedule appointments with you.
Banner is an administrative software package developed by SunGard SCT for use in higher education. Banner is used at Georgia Tech to maintain student, alumni, financial aid, and human resources data. Banner is the software that is used to enter permits, holds, overloads, schedules, and other student related data.
Full time Georgia Tech employees who need to have access to Banner in order to perform their job responsibilities must have the official requester in their department send a request, on their behalf, using the Banner request website. If approved for access, the employee will be notified by email regarding the procedure for obtaining their user ID and password.
Advising and Faculty Access to Students (AFACTS) is the software used by Georgia Tech to extract student data information such as classrolls, transcripts, admissions listings, and many other such reports. There are directions and information at the AFACTS home page. To get access to AFACTS, you go through the same route as for Banner access.
Curriculum, Advising and Program Planning (CAPP) is Georgia Tech's current on-line degree audit system. However, it is not currently properly programmed for all majors, and we are anticipating moving to a new degree audit system that is not only more user friendly, but will also allow us to keep the requirements up to date.
In general, the degree auditing systems are advising tools designed to help students track their progress towards graduation. The system list the specific requirements for graduation and shows whether the requirements have been satisfied and which ones are still pending. Students can use this system to track progress toward a degree or perform a "what-if" scenario prior to making a change in major. This report is what the registrar can use to verify that all requirements have been met for graduation.
At the advising web site a student can look up advisors for any major, minor, certificate, pre-professional area, and others. We keep a data base that has all the advisors' latest contact information. To keep this updated we use a login only program. This program is also an appointment scheduler.
Every advisor should login to make sure their contact information is correct. Once logged in advisors can also put in a comment that will show up when a student looks them up. The default assumption and goal is that all advisors will use the appointment scheduler.Students and advisors have found online scheduling to be extremely helpful.
However, if you choose not to use it there is a box to check at your contact info when you login. By checking this box it will prevent students from being sent into the scheduler to make an appointment with you only to find a completely blank calendar. If you do not wish to use this scheduler, but you have your own, simply check the box that you are not using this one, and put the URL to your own scheduler in the space below. Now students will be automatically sent to your scheduler to make an appointment.
This program is joint with GTAAN and the Office of Organizational Development (OOD). This is a set of several workshops to develop as an advisor. Please see the GTAAN website for more details.
Georgia Tech's Academic Advising Network (GTAAN) was created as means of improving and guiding the delivery of advising services at The Georgia Institute of Technology. A primary goal is to provide academic advisors:
There are monthly workshops, a certificate program, and many other advising resources. Advisors can enter and view announcements here as well.
Advisor information is kept live in an online database. You can access a spreadsheet of all advisors for majors, minors and certificates.
View classes offered for a designated semester.
On-Line Student Computer Assisted Registration (OSCAR) is what we call our self-service BANNER. Students login here to register, advisors login to view the degree audit, and you can also find the listing of all classes to be offered each semester, complete registration information and times and meeting places of classes, and calendar information.
When a class is full, students can request an overload in order to get into the class they need.Often majors will hold back spaces, or as students change their schedules, such as for math, the department can shuffle students based on their requests. Often this is an option in OSCAR when the student registers. If it is not, there is a list of contacts for requests.
Permits are needed for some classes that have restrictions. The method for requesting permits is the same as that described above for overloads.
There is a limit to how many courses a student can take Pass/Fail. Furthermore, majors can restrict which courses students are allowed to take Pass/Fail.
Cross-enrollment is a procedure to allow Georgia Tech students to take a course that is not offered at Tech at another institution while simultaneously enrolled in courses at Georgia Tech. Applications and further information are available.
A transient student refers to a student temporarily taking courses at one school while being enrolled at another. So, for example, Georgia Tech students who want to take summer courses near their home rather than at Tech, need to apply to that school as a transient student. Forms and more info are available at the registrar's website.
Students can drop and add courses during open registration periods. However, after the first week of classes, there are restrictions and rules to dropping courses and withdrawing.
Starting Fall 2005, first-time freshman students who receive a grade of D or F in a course within their first two terms in residence are eligible to repeat the course and apply for grade substitution to have the original grade excluded from the computation of academic average as calculated by Georgia Tech. If a student begins in a summer term, this term does NOT count as the first of his/her 2 terms in residence.
Academic standing is based on both the Term GPA and the Overall GPA. GPA required for "Good" standing varies by class standing. Negative consequences occur when students are not in good standing.
Progress report grades will be submitted to the Registrar on all classes numbered 1000 and 2000 each term. Progress report grades will be S or U (a grade of U indicates that based on work completed to that point the student's standing is in the D or lower range).These are only used for advising purposes and are not calculated into the student's GPA.
Every term workshops on academic success, time management, and other related topics are offered to support students who are getting U's in their classes.
Many advisors email their advisees who receive U's as midterm grades and ask students to schedule a meeting to discuss their academic progress and resources available. Email is used frequently to communicate with advisees.
A student, who for any reason has remained out of school for two or more consecutive terms, must apply for readmission.
A student who has been academically dismissed/dropped once for unsatisfactory grades must remain out of school for at least one term. The student must also submit a completed readmission application, petition to the faculty, and readmission contract. Different Colleges and Schools have certain stipulations regarding students on drop: how long they must sit out and/or if they will be readmitted back to the College/School after being dismissed/dropped.
A student who is readmitted signs a contract agreeing to devote him/her fully to studies and achieve academic success. In addition, the student agrees to take specific classes recommended by the advisor, to maintain a specific GPA, to maintain full-time status, to see the advisor before making schedule changes, etc.
Degree petitions are completed by the student and advisor. The student must take the completed petition to the Bursar Office and pay the Graduation fee, then submit the petition to the Registrar, usually early in the semester prior to graduation. Undergraduate degree petitions may be printed here. Graduate degree petitions may be printed here.
Students are allowed one change of major before they earn 60 hours without any restriction. If students change majors more than once or after they have earned 60 hours, departments may impose restrictions on academic standing, GPA, etc. You may access the Major Change form here.
The Regents' Test is a test of reading and writing skills required by the Board of Regents for all students seeking an undergraduate degree from a University System of Georgia institution.
Campus Advisors sign sheets for student-athletes about what classes they should take in the upcoming semester and certify that the classes are required for graduation. Campus Advisors recommend degree applicable classes for student-athletes.
A "Petition to the Faculty" may be filed by a student when asking for an exception to an Institute rule or policy. Some examples of exception requests include to withdraw from school past the deadline; to be readmitted after being placed on DROP status; and to take a class at another university when within 36 hours of graduation.
Students who offer satisfactory evidence that they are qualified to do so may receive credit for a course by examination for advanced standing. This requires the recommendation of the department of instruction in which the course is offered, payment of the appropriate fee to the Bursar's Office and authorization by the Registrar. Students normally take this exam during Finals week and they receive a grade of S or U.
Access the Academic Catalog on-line to see "official" degree requirements for each major and program offered on campus.There are many minors available. Certificates are also offered in many departments. The certificates do not show up on the transcript or diploma.
We keep a data base that has all the advisors' latest contact information.You can download the list of advisors and their contact information.
We offer campus-wide pre-professional advising for Pre-Health (pre-med, pre-dental, pharmacy, etc), Pre-Law, and Pre-Teaching. All their contact information can be found at the advising web site.
Georgia Tech keeps all courses from all schools that have been evaluated at the Transfer Equivalency website. If the courses are not there, or there are other questions, you can read more about the Transfer Credit Policy.
There are many tutoring and academic support programs. Success programs serves as an excellent resource on these.
The Dean of Students office provides advocacy and support for students. This office assists students in resolution of academic, financial, and medical/personal problems, provides information and referral about campus resources, and promotes initiatives that address students needs and interests. The Dean of Students has the following departments to deal with student issues:
Disability Services (ADAPTS) provides students with information and support regarding students with disabilities. The ADAPTS Office, located in the Office of the Dean of Students, assists students self-identifying as having a disability. Official documentation of disability is required to determine eligibility for accommodations or adaptations that may be helpful on campus. Staff members in the ADAPTS Office serve as full-time advocates for students with disabilities. Their role is to ensure that all students have physical and programmatic access to all college programs, thereby enhancing their interactions in all activities of the campus community.
The Office of Student Integrity encourages a comprehensive learning environment through the promotion and implementation of the Academic Honor Code / Student Code of Conduct to foster integrity and ethical conduct within Georgia Tech community. Their goals are to enhance and facilitate awareness, understanding and compliance with community standards; to maintain a fair and clear judicial process; and to promote awareness and understanding of the judicial process. The Student Code of Conduct can be found at the website as well.
The Women's Resource Center strives to be a comfortable, gathering place for all women at Georgia Tech. Located next to the Student Center in the Student Services (Flag) Building Suite 131, students can learn about resources available on campus and in the community, receive assistance in a crisis situation or just relax. They also provide programming on a wide range of women's interests.
The Ally level training provides an introduction to the problem of sexual violence, a brief overview of advocacy and response at Georgia Tech, and a foundation of basic information needed to continue in the Advocacy Training and Volunteer Program. Through discussions and scenarios, we will explore concepts such as consent, power and control, bias, and the Georgia Tech Policy on Sexual Harassment and Misconduct. You will also learn about options for continuing education and involvement with the VOICE Initiative to address and end sexual violence in the GT community.
Advocate training is the final phase of the Advocacy training series. Advocate trainees become familiar with a wide range of agencies and organizations that provide support to victim-survivors of sexual assault and violence, and they practice the skills to work with survivors through scenarios and role plays.
The main objectives of the Safe Space programs are: (a) to provide a supportive environment for GLBT members of the campus community, (b) to facilitate their "coming out" process, (c) to foster a social climate in which others do not feel the need to express anti-gay attitudes in order to "fit in," (d) to dispel negative stereotypes and present factually accurate information about GLBT people, and (e) to publicize other support resources or structures that are available on or off campus.
The Georgia Tech Counseling Center provides individual and group counseling, workshops on such topics as stress management and study skills, career counseling and psychological testing. The Center is staffed by licensed psychologists, counselors, and marriage and family therapists, as well as counselors-in-training, and is free to Tech students. They are located on the second floor of the Student Services (Flag) Building. For after hours help, call the Counseling Center number, 404-894-2575 for voice mail instructions for reaching a dispatcher. The dispatcher will page the counselor on call who will contact the caller directly.
Cyberbuzz is a website whose goal is enhancing student-life by enabling and supporting an online community. It is their mission to help alleviate some of the pressure, by helping open the lines of communication among students, their peers and faculty.
Also, the Center for Involvement, Leadership, and Fun provide orientations for all new student group officers and advisors (which are faculty and/or staff at Tech).
The President's Scholarship is Georgia Tech's most prestigious merit scholarship and is offered annually to about 100 outstanding high-school seniors who have demonstrated superb leadership skills, are among the top few in their class in academic performance, and show promise of continuing such performance in college and beyond. President's Scholars enjoy a multitude of benefits while at Georgia Tech, including priority housing and study-abroad stipends. The deadline for students to apply is October 31. Transfer students are not eligible.
The Honors Program combines challenging academic standards with the closer connections between students and faculty that one might expect to find in a smaller college. The goal is to create a lively environment in which students and faculty members learn from each other. The Honors Program is currently for select students during their first two years at Georgia Tech, and includes small sections of introductory classes, small topical seminars, and well-coordinated advising. Honors students are expected to live together in Howell Residence Hall.
Students interested in the Honors Program are expected to submit two of the five Optional Short Essays included in the standard application for admission to Georgia Tech, and these essays will be part of the materials reviewed by the Honors Program selection committee.
The International Plan is designed to give a student a solid, global competence within the context of their major. Typically, a student:
The Research Option offers students the opportunity for an in-depth, longer-term research experience that culminates in a final paper or thesis. While the exact requirements for a research option vary by academic unit, students typically take the following steps:
See here for more information on participating majors.
The Georgia Tech Undergrad Co-op Program is a five-year, academic program designed to complement a student's formal education with paid practical work experience directly related to the student's academic major. It is available in all engineering majors, as well as in many majors in other colleges at Georgia Tech.
Co-ops alternate semesters of on-campus study with semesters of full-time employment through their junior year, then continue in school through their senior year. Co-ops are classified as full-time students during each term, regardless of whether they are attending classes on campus or working full-time at an employer location. Most undergrad Co-op students begin the program as freshmen or sophomores. Georgia Tech's program is currently the largest optional co-op program in the United States
The Office of Student Financial Planning and Services (OSFP&S) is dedicated to helping students and parents obtain the financial aid necessary to pay for a college education at Georgia Tech. Financial aid is available through scholarships, grants, loan and work.Please see their web site for information on HOPE.
The Office of Financial Planning and Services provides a Financial Aid Advisor to answer any questions or concerns students may have about their financial aid.
Tech Promise is a new program designed to help Georgia students whose families have an annual income of less than $30,000 earn their college degree debt-free. The program will be offered to all currently enrolled students and incoming freshmen for Fall Semester 2007 who meet eligibility requirements. It is the first program of its kind offered by any public university in the state of Georgia.
The list of expectations below comes from a collaboration of GTAAN and SGA (Student Government Association). Communicate these to your advisees as well as any other departmental expectations. One place to start is the Advising Syllabus.
FASET is the Georgia Tech Undergraduate Orientation Program. The dates are posted on the web site.The freshmen orientations are currently two days long, and the morning of the second day the students spend a few hours in the departments learning about their major and getting advising. For the transfer students, the orientation is one day, and again the morning is used for advising.
See the visiting website regarding special visitation events, information sessions, campus tours, etc.
Target groups and format: Connect with Tech (CWT) is an invitation only overnight visitation program for prospective students and their parents. Most of these students are in their senior year of high school.
Advisor/School commitment: Annually, eight sessions are held between September and April, each one hosting approximately 80 students plus their parents. These are one hour academic information sessions from 2-3 pm on Monday. Department representatives sit at major-specific round tables in the Student Center Ballroom and answer questions about their major to any student who visits. It is helpful if current students are present to give their perspectives.
Target groups and format: PREVIEW Georgia Tech is a one-day open house type visitation program offered to prospective students, parents, and school counselors. Only admissible candidates are invited to PREVIEW; however, unlike CWT, anyone can attend.
Advisor/School commitment: PREVIEW is offered three times per academic year. Forty-five minute academic information sessions are grouped by College, and each College gets its own room in the Student Center, or Ferst Center for the Arts. Student and parents attend these presentations together. It is helpful if current students are present to give their perspectives.
Target groups and format: FUTURES is a one-day visitation program for 10th and 11th grade women. They're selected by nomination from high school counselors or AP teachers.
Advisor/School commitment: FUTURES is offered annually in February. Two academic information sessions are held on the same day, back- to- back, 40 minutes each.Session 1: 11:00-11:40; Session 2: 11:45-12:25. Each major has their own room and conducts information sessions for prospective students. Some colleges provide student panels and bring women faculty and students to speak with the prospective students. Some Colleges just have one advisor speaking with them. Event has been held in the Student Center, Student Services and Ferst Center for the Arts. Select panel of students/staff/faculty to meet with students or choose one advisor to talk about major and, if possible, special options/programs for women. Utilizing students in presentation is highly effective.
Target groups and format: Girls Night Out at Georgia Tech (GNO @ GT) is an invitation only overnight visitation program for women in 11th grade (prior to May 1st) and their parents.
Advisor/School commitment: GNO @ GT is offered annually in June.These are one-hour academic information sessions. Department representatives sit at major-specific round tables in the Student Center Ballroom and discuss their major, and if possible, special options/programs for women.
It is helpful if current students are present to give their perspectives.
Target groups and format: Family Affair is an evening visitation program to attract top minority high school juniors and seniors. Prospective students and families are invited. Guests tour campus, attend info sessions.
Advisor/School commitment: Family Affair is offered annually in November.These are two-hour academic information sessions typically held on Thursday or Friday night. Department representatives are seated at tables and answer questions about major. Event has been held in various locations on campus.
Target groups and format: All students are welcome to attend the Georgia Tech Majors Fair.
Advisor/School commitment: The Georgia Tech Majors Fair is offered annually in November. These are two-hour academic information sessions from 11am-1pm. Department representatives sit at major-specific round tables in the Student Center Ballroom and discuss undergraduate majors, answer student questions, and provide information on related careers. It is helpful if current students are present to give their perspectives.
Target groups and format: Welcome Weekend allows accepted minority students the opportunity to visit Georgia Tech. This program is designed to bring accepted African American and Hispanic students to campus overnight. They spend the night with a student. Parents often come with them.
Advisor/School commitment: Welcome Weekend is offered annually in April. Approximately 2 hour commitment. Colleges assigned to tables.
Target groups and format: The President's Scholarship award is offered to approximately 110 outstanding entering freshmen. Finalist are invited to attend President's Scholarship Weekend at Georgia Tech. Prospective students visit campus (with their parents) for President's Scholarship weekend.
Advisor/School commitment: Academic majors tours in each department, and academic information session in the Student Center.
Target groups and format: Family Weekend is a visitation program for current and prospective students, and their families.
Advisor/School commitment: Family Weekend is held annually in the Fall. College receptions are from 3:00pm to 4:30pm on Fridays with a departmental tour/visit following.
Commencement is the day after finals are completed each term.A representative from each department (usually the advisor) attends the commencement to line up their graduating majors.
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords students certain rights with respect to their education records. As such, the Georgia Institute of Technology does not release information (other than "Directory Information") to anyone without the written consent of the student. For further information regarding FERPA, please see the Registrar's Office FERPA webpage.