Academic advising is one key to your success as an undergraduate at IU. While you’re responsible for making academic choices and planning your studies, your advisor will help you take full advantage of the opportunities available to you. Be sure to meet with your advisor at least once a semester to review your academic plans and make sure you’re on track for graduation.
Advising + student support
Talk with your advisor often, whether in person, by phone, or through email. And be sure to meet with your advisor before registering for courses for the upcoming semester. If you have an advising hold on your account, you won’t be able to register until you meet with your advisor to have the hold cleared.
The Walter Center for Career Achievement can help you think about what your next steps will be after graduation. It provides career coaches who can help you consider which career is best for you. They give advice about how to search for a job, overseas study, and internship opportunities.
Make the connection to the Walter Center early in your undergraduate career to take advantage of its many resources. Learn about career options, job search strategies, and job fairs taking place on campus. Schedule an appointment with a career coach to discuss your interests or conduct a job or internship search. Explore the possibility of graduate school, too.
The College of Arts and Sciences offers four career courses to help undergraduates advance through every step of the career development process. Not sure which class is right for you? Your career coach can help you make an informed decision.
Visit the Walter Center website
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law that protects the privacy of your student record from outside access, including your guardian(s). If you wish to waive your rights under FERPA you may fill out a Release of Information form and designate specific third parties to whom your information can be released. It is important to fully understand your rights under FERPA before you decide whether or not to waive them.
Students from time to time may have concerns about some aspect of a class or how instruction is being delivered. If your instructor did not provide instruction during a scheduled class session, please complete the Undergraduate Instructional Concerns form (see item #3 below). For all other concerns, students should take the actions described below.
- Review your course syllabus to determine whether your instructor has outlined a procedure to bring issues forward. If so, follow those procedures to the extent possible; otherwise, contact your instructor via email or during office hours to bring the matter to their attention or to request a meeting to try to resolve the issue. This step may be skipped if there is a justifiable reason for doing so; note, however, students may be referred back to the instructor to complete this step if deemed appropriate.
- If you do not receive a response from the instructor within a reasonable amount of time (typically considered 3-5 days) or you are not satisfied with the response, you should contact the chair or director of the department/program in which the course is offered. This step may be skipped if there is a justifiable reason for doing so; note, however, students may be referred back to the chair or director of the department/program to complete this step if deemed appropriate.
- If you do not receive a response from the department/program within a reasonable amount of time (typically considered 3-5 days) or you are not satisfied with the response, take the appropriate action below:If the concern is with an undergraduate course, complete the College’s Undergraduate Instructional Concerns form.
If the concern is with a graduate course, contact the College's Graduate Office.
College Academic Advising Assistance
Need immediate help scheduling an advising appointment? Having trouble finding your Academic Advisor's office? Not sure where to turn with a question about your degree? Give the Academic Advising Help Line a call at 812-855-0211 and get back on track in a hurry. The Help Line is open Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. The Help Line is not staffed by Academic Advisors and cannot offer advising support—but it's a great resource for basic questions to get you headed in the right direction. Questions outside of Help Line hours can be directed to your Academic Advisor or collavsg@iu.edu.