A... Although individual situations may vary, a good rule of thumb is to visit an academic advisor at least once a semester. Some departments and some programs require that students see their advisor more frequently. You should check with your advisor about their policy.
A... Use the Advising Offices Across Campus link for contact information for your academic unit and advisor.
A... If you have extenuating documented circumstances that impact your academic performance, you must talk with an academic advisor immediately. Extenuating circumstances would include medical problems, death or illness of an immediate family member, or military orders. Supporting documentation would need to substantiate your circumstances and must be from a third party such as a health care professional or doctor. To submit a withdrawal request for extraordinary circumstances, you only have until the end of the following semester.
A... You must complete a general education program, the requirements for a major, obtain at least 120 credits, and have a grade point average of at least 2.0. Your personalized DARS report will provide ongoing information about how far along you are toward your degree. For more information review the detailed University Degree Requirements section in the Undergraduate Catalog.
A... No, you cannot graduate with fewer than 120 credits. This is an absolute minimum.
A... In general, students who enter UB as freshmen are required to complete the World Civilization General Education requirement. Requirements, however, may differ by student status. It is best to meet with an academic advisor to gain assistance in selecting appropriate general education courses.
A... Yes you can, if the fields of study are significantly different. If you wish to obtain two different degrees, such as BA, BS, BFA, or Mus.B., you will have to complete the requirements for each major and obtain a minimum of 30 credits accrued beyond the first degree or 150 credits total, whichever is greater. In general, there can be no overlap of upper-division courses. It is important that you meet with an academic advisor early in your undergraduate career to seek interpretation of your plan and be sure that you are intending to pursue significantly different fields of study. Review the detailed guidelines in the undergraduate catalog
Examples: Acceptable: BA English/BS Biology, BFA Music/BS Biochemistry
Unacceptable: BA Psychology/BS Psychology, BS Mechanical Engineering/BS Aerospace Engineering
A... Yes you can under certain circumstances. You must be a Junior or senior and have been accepted in a major with an overall grade point average of a 3.0, including transfer credits. You must have the prerequisites expected of all students enrolled in the graduate course. You must also have written permission from the course instructor which clearly shows the academic necessity and rationale for taking the graduate course and this must be endorsed by the Chair of the Department in which the course is offered. The department offering the course will implement the registration only when permission is granted. You may not register for more than a total of two courses (in total not exceeding 8 credit hours) of graduate level course work that may later be applied to a UB post-baccalaureate degree program. Refer to the Registration, Registration in Graduate Courses for Undergraduate Credit section of the Undergraduate Catalog and consult with an academic advisor for more information and to obtain the necessary form.
A... A student may repeat a given course only once. When a course is repeated, the credits earned count only once for purposes of satisfying degree requirements and for purposes of calculating the student's GPA. When a course is repeated, the grade that is counted in calculating the GPA is the grade earned the second time, even if that grade is lower than the grade earned the first time. Both courses and grades will appear on the transcript, the second grade is what will be computed into the GPA. Students may not repeat courses in which they have a grade of incomplete. For more information review the grade repeat policy in the Undergraduate Catalog.
A... If the course is required for your major or required to fulfill General Education requirements, you may not take the course on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading basis.
A... Students may recover the letter grade earned in a course graded S/U if (a) that course is required for, or is a prerequisite for, a major(s) to which they have changed; or (b) they can document that a graduate or professional school to which they have applied demands the letter grade earned. (Once recovered, the letter grade will stand; that is, the student will not be able to change back to S/U grading.)
A... Incomplete grades are given by the instructor of the course. You usually have to have completed a portion of the coursework and have a passing grade in the course. The instructor will tell you what you need to do to complete the course. You have a limited period of time (12 months) to complete the course. You should NOT reregister for the course but follow the instructor's direction. It is at the instructor's discretion to grant you a grade of incomplete. For further information review the Incomplete Grade explaination found in the Undergraduate Catalog.
A... Your overall grade point average includes both your credits at UB and your average at other colleges you may have attended. Your UB grade point average includes only grades from coursework completed at UB. To graduate from UB both your UB and overall grade point average must be at least a 2.0.
A... Course credits earned at accredited institutions as defined in the UB catalog can, generally, be accepted. Faculty approved articulation will determine how the credits may be applied to your degree requirements. You will see the application of transferred course work in your DARS report. If you are considering taking courses elsewhere to complete requirements you should consult www.taurus.buffalo.edu to view existing course articulation. You should also speak, in advance, with your advisor. While the grades for transferred course work will not affect your UB grade point average, these grades will be a part of your transfer grade point average and your overall grade point average (which includes both your credits at UB and your average at other colleges you have attended).
A... You should consider what you enjoy doing, such as whether you enjoy working with people or with things and processes. Then you should realistically consider the areas in which you excel. Then consider where these two things overlap. You might want to consider the array of job opportunities for each of your choices by talking with an academic advisor and an advisor from Career Services. If you have two areas that seem right for you, consider two majors or a major and a minor.
A... Consult the Undergraduate Catalog, visit the academic department directly, and talk with an academic advisor.
A... Some majors admit freshmen concurrent with admission to the university. For others admission to the major occurs after enrollment and completion of some course work. Depending on the major, you are eligible to apply to a department when you have successfully completed or are in the process of successfully completing all of the prerequisite courses required for that major. It is strongly recommended that you be accepted into a major upon completion of 60 credit hours. You should talk with an academic advisor about any application procedures and whether there is a special deadline to apply for your intended major.
A... It is possible to create your own major with the guidance of two faculty members and an academic advisor. You should first consult with the special major advisor in the College of Arts and Sciences who will familiarize you with the guidelines and steps necessary to complete the program.
A... Yes you can. You will have to complete the requirements for each major. You can also major in one department and do a minor in another department. Further information can be found in the Major Requirement/ University Degree Requirements section of the Undergraduate Catalog.
A... You may be surprised by the type of jobs that are out there for people who have degrees in many of these areas. You should consult with Career Services, an academic advisor, and a faculty member.
A... You should be careful to not overload yourself in any one semester. If you take an average of 15 credits each semester for 8 semesters you will have the required 120 credits. If you complete fewer than 15 credits a semester, consider enrolling in summer session courses.
A... Registering for more than 19 credits requires the approval of an academic advisor. It is recommended that you be in good academic standing and have at least a 2.5 or higher overall grade point average.
A... You can drop courses from your schedule the first 2 weeks of class. Beginning the third week through the 11th week of the semester you may resign from your course work by using BIRD or MyUB. If you would like to resign from a course, it is recommended that you first speak with an academic advisor and financial aid advisor to understand how resigning from a course could potentially affect your academic and/or financial status.
A... MyUB (http://www.buffalo.edu/aboutmyub) is a web-based, personal portal to UB's online resources. It provides links to important UB information and tools (like e-mail, web registration, etc.). "Views" of MyUB are available for various audiences: faculty, staff and students. In addition, It delivers customized information based upon the academic profile and interests of individual users (such as your semester's course schedule, final grades, personalized exam schedule, checkstops, and parking permit to name a few).
UBlearns is a web based course management and delivery application using the e-Learning software platform known as "Blackboard". It is the hub of the University's on-line learning system. UBlearns is where faculty post course documents and PowerPoint presentations, or host discussion boards or post links to web sites that relate to information relevant to their course. They may even use UBlearns to give assignments and tests.
Both of these online tools are valuable and should be checked on a regular basis.
UBLearns is one way that communication reaches you as a student, but many important and official communications to students are sent to their university email address. Some examples of official university communications that are sent via e-mail: mid-semester grades, academic warning and probation notices and lack of satisfactory academic progress to receive financial aid. So it's wise to check both on a regular basis.
Last updated: June 16, 2008 2:34 pm EST