Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Advising

Category: Academic Advising

What are Brooke’s office hours?

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Office/Advising Hours

Current office hours:

Monday-Thursday: 9:30am-noon, 2pm-4pm

Friday: 9:30am-noon

The Advising Office is located within the CMLC Learning Commons, 310 Chem-Sci building, in 310 A. Students can schedule a time to meet with me, or email me at cmadvise@mtu.edu if you have a question. Let me know ahead of time if you would like a Zoom meeting instead of an in-person meeting.

If you do not have an appointment, feel free to stop by during my office hours; however, appointments take precedence.

Email me if you’d like to meet at a time that does not display on my appointment page.

Helpful Advising Links

If you are looking for the flowchart or elective lists, these are available on the Degree Requirements page.

Check out our FAQ’s for answers to many common questions. Also, feel free to contact one of our amazing Peer Mentors with questions.

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What happens if I retake a class?

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Important Information on Retaking Classes

You may retake any class.  However I only recommend repeating courses in which you receive a CD, D, or F because a C is good enough.  Before choosing to retake a class, be aware of the following:

The second grade always replaces the first grade.  If you retake a class and receive a better grade, this will improve both your semester and overall GPAs.  However, you can retake a class and get a worse grade.   For example, if you have a D (a passing grade) and retake a course and receive an F (a failing grade), you now have a failing grade in the course and will have to take the class for a third time.  

You may only take a class three times.  You must receive permission from the Dean of Students Office and your academic advisor to register for a class the third time.  If the class that you are retaking is a required class for your program, and you do not pass the class during the third attempt, then you may no longer continue in the program.  Below is the link to Michigan Tech’s policy on retaking classes. www.mtu.edu/registrar/students/registration/policies/repeat-course/

Retaking classes you have previously passed may impact your financial aid.  Contact the Student Financial Services Center (www.mtu.edu/finaid/) for an evaluation of your situation.

You may retake a class at another school and transfer in the credit. Only a grade of C or better will transfer. A C- or below does not transfer. It is the credit that transfers, not the grade, and so when you transfer in the course it will remove the previous grade from your Michigan Tech GPA calculation.

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How do I get to my online degree audit?

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Go to Banweb to get to your online degree audit. Be sure to run the default audit titled “Latest” because this will run the audit with your correct catalog year. Degree Services has more detailed information on how to run the audit on their webpage. New students will be able to run audits 30 days before the semester starts.

Run your online degree audit every time you change your schedule to check your progress towards graduation.  Unfortunately, the online audit is not perfect. This is why it’s important for you to know where your classes should be counting and which requirements should be complete.  If you have questions then contact your academic advisor to investigate.  

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How do I figure out what classes to take next semester?

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Plan your future semesters based on your interests.  Things to consider:  co-ops, undergraduate research, Enterprise program, minors, study abroad, graduate school.  The more credit you came in with the more flexibility you’ll have and the sooner you can start doing some of these things.  Remember that your plan is a draft and subject to change as you explore your interests. 

The general process for planning out future semesters is as follows: 

  1. Find your degree requirements on the department’s advising webpage or Registrar’s Office webpage.  This is based on your catalog year, which is usually the year that you started at Michigan Tech.  Print out either the flowchart, 4- or 5-year sample schedule, or degree audit to use as a checklist.  
  2. Cross off completed or in-progress requirements.  Write elective courses next to the corresponding requirement to keep track of them.
  3. Run your online degree audit on Banweb to make sure classes are counting where they are expected to.  If they are not then contact your academic advisor to find out why.  Online degree audits for new students will be available 30 days before the semester starts.
  4. Print out a blank academic plan sheet from the department’s advising webpage or set up a spreadsheet and start writing down the classes you plan to take for each future semester.  It usually makes the most sense to start with the major required classes, then minor classes if you are doing a minor, and finally remaining elective classes.

Be aware that the last step takes work. We’ve put a lot of information on the department’s FAQs to help you find your way through the process.  Once you have a rough plan, review it with your academic advisor to make sure you’ve got all the details right. 

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What is my catalog year?

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In most cases your catalog year is the year in which you started at Michigan Tech.  You may be on a newer catalog year for any of the following reasons:

  • changed majors,
  • left the university for two semesters or longer,
  • or requested to move to a newer catalog year.

You can find your catalog year in the upper right-hand corner of your online degree audit on Banweb.  It is labeled catalog term and is a six digit number. The first four digits are the year and the last two digits represent the semester.

  • Fall semester = 08 (semester starts in August)
  • Spring semester = 01 (semester starts in January)
  • Summer semester = 05 (semester starts in May)

For example, if your catalog term is 202108 then you are following the 2021-22 degree requirements. The academic year starts in the fall and runs through summer.

If you are pursuing a minor, the catalog year for the minor may be different than the catalog year for your major.

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If I am on probation, how does taking summer classes affect my academic standing?

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If you are taking summer classes at Michigan Tech then it is treated just like any other semester, regardless of whether or not you are taking a full load of classes. Doing well in your summer classes can bring you off of academic probation. Doing poorly in your summer classes can put you on academic probation or count towards an additional semester of probation if you are already on probation. Go to the Dean of Students webpage for more information on the academic probation policy.

If you are taking summer classes at a different school then it will not affect your academic standing at Michigan Tech.

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Where can I find my final grade for a course?

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Grades that you see in Canvas are not final grades. Final grades, which are used to calculate your GPA, are posted on Banweb.

It’s really important that you check your final grades at the end of every semester because final grades are not always the same as what you see in Canvas.  Many times your final grade in Banweb will match what you see in Canvas, but not always. Some instructors will adjust the grading scale down (or up!), sometimes a mistake is made, and in certain situations the instructor may give you a temporary grade (P, I, or X grade), which means you have limited time to complete something before receiving a final grade. All of this is important to know so that you can follow up promptly with your instructor if you have questions.

You can see your final grades by logging into Banweb.  Go to the Students tab, then Student Records, and then Final Grades or Academic Transcript (unofficial).  Either place will give you access to your final recorded course grades that are used to calculate your GPA. If you see something that you don’t understand then check out the definition of the grade codes in the Undergraduate Catalog under Grade Policies.

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I want to change my major to Chem Eng; what are the requirements for this?

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We require a meeting with the ChE advisor prior to approving any change major requests.  If you’d like to change majors or are considering changing majors into ChE then make an appointment with the ChE academic advisor.  After your meeting you may submit your request to change majors through the Curriculum Change Portlet that is on your MyMichiganTech webpage.  There are directions on how to do this on the Registrar’s Office change major page.

Our general policy for major changes is as follows:  Students admitted to the College of Engineering may switch their major to chemical engineering.  Students admitted into a different College may also switch their major to chemical engineering provided they have earned a grade of C or better in key math and science classes (calculus, university chemistry, and university physics).  Students who do not meet these requirements will need to develop a course plan with the ChE academic advisor, which may include retaking key classes prior to switching majors.

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