Orientation
New student orientation for students occurs prior to the beginning of class in the fall (for Regular standing and part-time students) and in the summer (for full-time Advanced Standing students). Online students will be provided access to an online orientation shell prior to the beginning of classes to facilitate the orientation process. During orientation, students are given the opportunity to interact with faculty in the MSW program, learn about program requirements, the field placement/progression process, review relevant policies and procedures related to MSW program. Students also meet with their advisors to review their degree plans, complete forms, and go over any questions prior to the start of field. The field office coordinates separate orientations for both the Generalist Field Experience and the Advanced Field Experience.
Advising
Students are assigned a faculty academic advisor, whose job is to assist them in preparing their schedule and registering for courses. This includes completing any necessary registration forms, adding or dropping courses, and requests for credits overloads.
Students will work with the faculty member assigned as their academic advisor to initiate and review their degree plan. Students should be in contact with advisors at least once a semester to review course planning and registration as well as for any other issues that arise.
Dual Roles
Faculty members should not engage in dual or multiple relationships with students in which there is a risk of exploitation or potential harm to the student. In instances in which dual relationships are unavoidable, faculty should take steps to protect students and are responsible for setting clear, appropriate, and culturally sensitive boundaries. Examples of instances in which faculty may serve in dual roles with students include serving as a student group advisor, academic advisor, and class/field instructor or as a research, assistantship, or project supervisor and class/field instructor. In order to protect the integrity of the problem-solving protocol for field education, faculty may not serve as both field liaison and field instructor for students. Under no circumstances should faculty engage in sexual activities, inappropriate sexual communications through the use of technology or in person, or sexual contact with students, whether such contact is consensual or forced.
Course Registration
The University announces pre-registration dates for graduate students, allowing students time to consult with their advisor and complete the necessary registration process.
Class listing information can be accessed via STAR. When classes for the semester start, students have a limited amount of time to finalize their schedules. Students may not add courses after the add/drop deadline at the beginning of the respective semester. Courses that are dropped after the add/drop deadline but before the final deadline to drop a course will show as a “W” (Withdrawal) on the student’s transcript. Courses may not be dropped after the final deadline to drop a course. Students can find current add/drop dates at the Registrar’s Add/Drop Date Website. Students should notify their advisor anytime they add or drop a course. It is the student’s responsibility to register and/or drop courses by the appropriate deadlines.