Academic Advising

Academic Advising Goals & Shared Responsibilities

Academic advising at LVC is a collaborative process designed to guide and empower our students through their educational paths and career goals. Each degree-seeking student has a faculty advisor who is a member of the department or program in which the student is seeking a major, minor or other areas of specialization. Full-time students who have not yet declared a major are designated “Exploratory;” the Assistant Dean for Student Success and Retention coordinates the advising of these students with the exploratory advising team.

We expect academic advisors to:
  • Maintain regular communication with advisees, post and keep regular office hours, and during registration periods provide ample opportunities for advisees to discuss their schedules
  • Maintain knowledge of the curriculum, academic policies, LVC learning opportunities, career opportunities (in the advisor’s field of expertise), and College resources and services that support student success
  • Provide mentorship to support student growth and development
  • Guide students in exploring and achieving their educational and career goals
  • Help students transition from one major to another, when appropriate
  • Support timely progress to completion of all degree requirements, as stated in the College Catalog, through careful guidance of course selection
  • Support students’ success by discussing strategies proactively, directing students to appropriate resources, and communicating with appropriate faculty and staff
  • Apply inclusive excellence principles to student advising
We expect students to:
  • Accept responsibility for their decisions and understand that staying on course to meet degree requirements is ultimately their responsibility
We encourage students to:
  • Schedule regular meetings each semester with their academic advisor
  • Be prepared for each advising meeting by completing all tasks assigned in advance of the discussion
  • Understand degree requirements, LVC policies, and procedures
  • Ask questions if they need clarification or have concerns about their academic experience
  • Share their curricular, co-curricular, and career goals with their academic advisors to allow for more meaningful guidance

Working with Your Academic Advisor

Students will be assigned to an academic advisor from the academic department of each declared major and minor. The student is expected to obtain an advisor’s counsel and approval before course registration, withdrawal, election of pass/fail option, and/or change in credit/audit status. Your advisor is also ready to provide professional advice in their field so don’t be afraid to ask questions about internships, graduate school or careers. Academic advisors are a key element in your LVC support system for successful academic and personal development.

Find your advisor. The name(s) of your academic advisor(s) can be found in Starfish under your “Network.” Sometimes your designated academic advisor will change for administrative reasons.

Pre-Advising Checklist to Prepare for an Academic Advising Meeting

Make an appointment with your advisor.

Students are encouraged to meet with their academic advisor(s) at least once each semester and are expected to meet with their advisor(s) before course registration. Your advisor will let you know how to schedule your appointment either through Starfish, email, or another sign-up tool.

  • 1. Review of current semester courses and grades.

    Using Canvas, review your current course schedule and grades. Share any concerns you may have regarding your courses or grades so that your advisor can offer support and resources.

    Log in to Canvas

  • 2. Review your Degree Progress Report and Student Planning in AccessLVC.

    Using the AccessLVC Video Tutorial and the instructions to review your progress report on LVC Registrar’s Office website, log into AccessLVC, and consult the My Progress tab to view the list of major/minor and general education requirements you must complete for your program of study. Make note of what you have completed and what you still need to complete. Review how many credits you have completed and how many credits you still need to complete to earn your degree. Some academic departments provide students with a printed course plan which shows recommended courses students should take each semester over the course of their degree. Consult this if you were provided with it.

    AccessLVC Video Tutorial Instructions to Review Progress Report

  • 3. Prepare a list of courses for next semester.

    Using My Progress and, if available, your academic department’s printed course plan for your major, prepare a list of courses and add them to your AccessLVC course planner. Verify that the planned courses selected will meet the requirements that you need by reviewing your My Progress tab.

    Log in to AccessLVC

  • 4. What other items would you like to discuss?

    Make a list of other questions or plans you’d like to discuss with your advisor. Have questions on future courses, adding another major or minor, study abroad or internship opportunities, graduate school or career advice? Want to talk about your personal experiences with athletics, music ensembles or student organizations at LVC? Your advisor is interested in your entire LVC experience and will be excited to hear of your accomplishments as well as your challenges!

Transitioning to a New Major

Whether you are currently an exploratory major, or a student contemplating a change from one declared major to another, we have the resources and recommendations to help you make the transition. LVC offers a variety of programming to assist students in finding the right major to match their interests and career goals including career coaching, job fairs, interest and strengths assessments, and informational interviews.

  • Students interested in changing their major can meet with their academic advisor or with The Center for Academic Success & Exploration (CASE). CASE is the home of the exploratory major and offers a team of people who are happy to assist students looking for a transition. CASE, with the support of the Registrar’s Office and the academic department of interest, can help students determine a timeline to completion in a new major.
  • The Breen Center for Career & Professional Development offers career coaching, job fairs, Pizza with Professionals workshops and VIPS Assessments which allow you to discover and explore majors and career options that match your interests.

 

How do I change or add a new major or minor?

Current degree-seeking undergraduate students should use the Program Declaration form to declare or drop any major, minor and/or specialization or concentration programs. It is recommended that you meet with the department chair or director of any new program you are declaring before you submit the Program Declaration form in order to understand your new degree progression plan.

General Undergraduate Program Advising FAQs

The undergraduate academic advising questions below are commonly asked and importantly answered. Your academic advisor, the Registrar’s Office, or the Associate Dean of Academic Success can address any remaining questions you have regarding advising and your degree progress.

Candidates for a baccalaureate degree must successfully complete 120 credit hours, including the requirements for the General Education Program and requirements for a declared major and additional majors and minors if planned. Credit hours are accumulated through General Education requirements, major requirements and elective courses. Go to Degree Requirements for further information.

Please note that some courses fulfill more than one graduation requirement (i.e. one course could fulfill both a major and general education requirement OR fulfill two distinct general education requirements). This can be of benefit to a student’s progress, but we encourage both student and advisor to make sure that the student is successfully tracking to the 120-credit minimum required for degree completion.

A 2.000 cumulative GPA (overall) and a 2.000 major GPA are required for a student to graduate.

Any student who does not have a major GPA of 2.000 by the completion of any given semester will have their academic record evaluated. Depending on course progression in their major, students could be changed to an Exploratory major while repeating courses in their original major and/or exploring other areas of interest. This decision will be made together by the Academic Affairs staff, the academic advisor, and the chair of the department. Go to Academic Standing Requirements for further information.

Students are classified academically according to their completed credits:

  • 1-27 credit hours completed – First Year
  • 28-55 credit hours completed – Sophomore
  • 56-83 credit hours completed – Junior
  • 84+ credit hours completed – Senior

Advisors or advisees may request a change by consulting departmental chairpersons, or, when inappropriate or when the chair is unavailable, by consulting the Associate Dean of Academic Success.

Students who studied French, German, and/or Spanish for at least one year in Grades 9 – 12 OR speak one of these languages in their home MUST take an online Language Placement Test in French, German, and/or Spanish. Go to the Language Placement Test webpage for instructions. Language placement test scores are viewable on Access under Test Scores tab. If the student wishes to continue the language studied in high school, they must complete the course equivalent to their placement score on the test to fulfill the LAC requirement (i,e. If a student places in SPA 102, they must successfully complete SPA 102).

For a 101-level language to count as an LAC, a student has either​…

  • Never completed a class in that language before, or​
  • Completed two years or less of that language during Grades 9 – 12 and their last course was two or more years ago​

Students do not need to take the language placement test if they​…

  • Did not take French, German, or Spanish in high school​
  • Have received college credit for a language​
  • Are a transfer student with 28+ credits and do not intend to take a language course

During LVC’s official fall and spring semester registration periods, students are assigned a registration date/time when they can submit their preferred course schedules through AccessLVC for the following semester or year. In advance, students will plan a list of preferred and alterative course selections with the guidance of their academic advisor(s). Step-by-step instructions and a video are available to help students prepare for registration and advising meetings.

Independent Activities Requiring Special Approval

Registration for a course requiring special approval—such as internships, independent studies, and tutorial studies, which require special permission to enroll—may be completed using forms available on the Registrar’s Office website.  A form will need to be submitted to the appropriate faculty member for approval (see instructions on the form for details), who will then forward it to the Registrar’s Office at registrar@lvc.edu.

Students are allowed to DROP a course without penalty (the course will not appear on your transcript) within the Add/Drop period during the first week of classes each term. Students who want to remove themselves from a course after the Add/Drop period must WITHDRAW from a course, resulting in a grade of W which will not factor into your GPA. You can withdraw from your course using the Change of Registration form. You’ll need approval from your academic advisor to either drop or withdraw from a course.

Yes, you can retake a course to replace the grade earned. All attempts of a course will remain on your transcript. However, the highest grade you receive will be calculated into your cumulative GPA. Please note that some programs have limits on the number of times a course can be repeated and counted toward program requirements.

An undergraduate student may elect to take up to two courses per term on a pass/fail basis; however, only six such elected courses can be counted toward graduation requirements. No courses elected by students to be taken pass/fail may be used to meet the requirements of the General Education Program, the major(s), the minor(s), specializations(s), or secondary education certification, unless the course is already designated as pass/fail in the Course Catalog. A student may select or cancel a pass/fail registration at any time during the first 10 weeks of a 15-week semester or, for other course lengths, during the first two-thirds of a course. Students in their first semester or first session at LVC may change to or from a pass/fail registration through the last day of class.

Passing with honors will be designated by the grade PH, indicating that a grade of B+ or higher was earned. If a student does not pass the course, the student will receive an F on the transcript.

Academic work completed before a student enrolls at LVC will be evaluated for credit provided the coursework has been satisfactorily completed with a grade of C- or better (some academic programs require a higher minimum grade for specific courses) in a program of study similar to LVC’s program requirements. It is the student’s responsibility to request the delivery of all transcripts from previous colleges and universities. The Registrar will perform the transfer evaluation upon receipt of an official transcript.

Students who are already enrolled at LVC and wish to transfer a course from another institution to fulfill LVC credit and requirements must receive approval BEFORE enrolling in the off-campus course through submission of the Undergraduate Transfer Course Approval Form with requested accompanying documents.

The credits earned, not the grades received in approved transfer courses, will be applied toward your LVC graduation requirements. Approved transfer courses/requirements are listed with a grade of T and are not factored into your LVC cumulative GPA. Credits and requirements approved to transfer from another institution can be found on a student’s record in Access LVC and listed on a transfer evaluation form.

LVC offers semester and short-term summer programs across the world which provide our students with the opportunity to earn credits toward graduation requirements while studying at a partner college or university. You should schedule an advising meeting with the Office of Global Education to learn about our program options. Email Jamie LaPine, Associate Director of Global Education at lapine@lvc.edu to schedule. You’ll also want to speak with your academic advisor(s) to determine the best time for you to study abroad and the course requirements that you might need to complete while away.