Transfer Student Handbook

A Letter From the Associate Director of the Academic Advising Center

A Letter From the Director of the Academic Advising Center

How to Use an Academic Advisor, or Popular Myths About Advising

Directory for Academic Advising Resources

Advisor Directory

Selecting a Concentration

Concentration Advisor Directory

Planning for Orientation and Your First Term: Transfer Credit Evaluation

Frequently Asked Questions

The Transfer Student Handbook is published by LS&A Academic Information and Publications, University of Michigan, G411 Mason Hall, 764-6810; Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1027. The Transfer Student Handbook is intended as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the Bulletin of the College.

A letter from the Associate Director, Academic Advising Center

Using this Booklet

You are about to embark on a new journey as a student at the University of Michigan. Like yourselves, I was once a transfer student excited about being admitted to Michigan, apprehensive about what to expect. Much of my experience attending my first college prepared me for this University. Much did not.

What do I mean by this? I did not anticipate the marked difference in workload, the amount of responsibility for learning that was placed on my own shoulders, and the adjustment to a larger university. The rules and procedures were different. The expectations higher. The classroom more challenging. And I didn't know where to go to get my questions answered and to find the academic support I needed.

This booklet is meant to help orient you in this regard. It contains information about understanding campus advising resources, evaluating your transfer credit, selecting your concentration, and beginning to find answers to your questions.

This booklet should be used in tandem with the LS&A Bulletin in which you will find all the rules, regulations, and degree requirements of the College (see especially pages 12-30 of the 1996-97 book). I recommend reading it carefully and bringing any questions to your academic advisor starting right during Orientation.

Finally, you will be mailed a copy of the Course Guide. Take time to browse the course offerings. Planning a number of options will make it easier for you to register when you come to Orientation.

Best wishes for a successful journey,

April D. De Conick, Ph.D.
Associate Director, Upper-level Advising
LS&A Advising Center

A letter from the Director, Academic Advising Center

Welcome to LS&A. The educational opportunities available to you here are virtually unlimited. To assist you in making the most of your academic life at Michigan, the LS&A Academic Advising Center offers academic services, information, and assistance. Academic advisors in LS&A include more than twenty professional advisors in the LS&A Academic Advising Center and concentration advisors from the department or program you choose for a concentration (our term for a "major").

As a new transfer student at Michigan, you will be facing many adjustments in the coming year. Academically, many of you will find that the expectations here are greater than at your previous college. It would be wise for you to obtain early a sense of what level of performance is expected for each of your classes. Carefully read over the syllabus for each of your courses, discuss the content of each course with the instructor, and compare notes on what is expected with fellow students. If you are electing courses that are part of a sequence, you may find that a course in your previous school did not cover the same material that is covered in a comparable course here. The courses are considered equivalent but you will need to make up the material that was not covered.

Outside the classroom you will be making adjustments as well. As a new student it will take time to learn new policies, procedures, and new ways of dealing with the system. Because of the many adjustments you face, we recommend that new transfers take a slightly lighter academic load during their first term in LS&A.

In order to make the most of your educational experience at Michigan you need to take the initiative. Seek out the professors, the classes, and the advisors that best meet your needs.

We wish success and exciting, productive years at Michigan.

Louis C. Rice, Ph.D.,

Interim Director

LS&A Academic Advising Center

How to use an academic advisor, or, popular myths about advising

Academic Advisors

The advisor is your key to learning what is available here for you to use and how to make the most of these opportunities. This is a person you can turn to for help when you need direction, advice in planning your elections, evaluation of your study and time management skills, or help in approaching a college instructor. Your advisor is the logical person with whom to discuss your thoughts about possible majors, academic and career goals, or any uncertainty that you might have about where you want to go and what you want to do. Together you can plan how to make your LS&A degree truly a personal design, not just a formula degree.

A general academic advisor will:

Inform you about degree requirements and college policies and procedures.
Describe course options and useful campus resources.
Help you learn better study and time management skills.
Help you decide upon a concentration best fitted to your skills, interests, and future goals.
Help you plan strategies to achieve your goals.
Help you handle any academic difficulty you may encounter.
Be a skilled contact in making the university work for you.

A concentration advisor will:

Explain the concentration requirements.
Determine what transfer credit (including "departmental" credit) can be applied toward the concentration.
Waive concentration requirements or require additional course work depending on the background and experience of the individual student.
Assess what courses are still needed to complete the concentration plan.
Review residency requirements for transfer students who may wish to complete some remaining courses out-of-residence.

An Academic Advisor Cannot:

Make your decisions for you - tell you what you should concentrate in or what classes you should take. Advisors can describe logical options for your circumstances and your aspirations and give you the information you need to make logical, informed decisions.
Tell you what is a "good class." What makes a class "good" depends entirely upon your skills, interests, and goals. What's "good" for one student is not necessarily "good" for another.
Help you very much with specific problems or situations if you wait too long to discuss them. Problems don't go away when you ignore them; they only get worse. Usually there are more options available to correct or improve a situation the earlier you address it.

Directory for

Academic Advising Resources

The LS&A Academic Advising Center
1255 Angell Hall
764-0332 (Advisors)

The Academic Advising Center is here to assist you in planning your undergraduate experience in the College. Our advisors can explain degree requirements and help you select your classes and a concentration program. They may help you with any academic problem by sorting out the difficulties and referring you to appropriate resources on campus. Most importantly, advisors will help you think clearly about what you hope to achieve in your education. Concentration advisors will answer questions about the particular "majors" in their respective departments and help you shape the major appropriately.

The LS&A Advising Center is also the central distribution and collection point for most College forms and materials, including the LS&A Bulletin; Registration and Drop/Add Forms; Distribution Plan Worksheets; Concentration Declaration Forms; Concentration Release Forms; BGS Senior Release Forms; Diploma Applications; and GRE Forms.

Academic Standards Board
1255 Angell Hall
764-0311 or 764-0332

Members of the Academic Standards Board are able to help students individualize their programs of study and may grant exceptions to LS&A academic policies and degree requirements. A student may discuss with a member and, if necessary, petition in writing for a waiver or modification of College rules. The Academic Standards Board also administers academic discipline. Each term the board, after reviewing transcripts of students who show evidence of academic difficulty, acts in accordance with the policies set forth in Chapter IV of the LS&A Bulletin. The board has further responsibility for readmitting students dismissed because of unsatisfactory performance and for interpreting academic standards.

Academic Auditors
1401 Mason Hall
763-3101

The auditors check for the completion of all LS&A degree requirements, inform students of their progress toward graduation, and authorize graduation.

LS&A Academic Information and Publications
G411 Mason Hall
764-6810

LS&A Academic Information and Publications offers current information about LS&A academic policies, procedures, LS&A courses, and LS&A closed course/section information. LS&A Academic Information and Publications conveys this information in three ways: (1) a series of Newsletters mailed to all LS&A students at the beginning of September, November, and January, and again in mid-March. (They are also available on the table outside 1419 Mason Hall.); (2) the bulletin boards outside 1419 Mason Hall; and (3) a telephone information system (dial POINT-10, or 764-6810). The POINT-10 information service is open Monday through Friday, except on University holidays, from 8 to 5. LS&A Academic Information and Publications is also responsible for publication of the LS&A Bulletin, Course Guides, and the Transfer Student Handbook.

The LS&A Academic Information and Publications Office is also the College distribution point for the Course Guides and the University Time Schedule.

Assistant Dean for Student Academic Affairs
1402 Mason Hall
764-7297

Overall administration of LS&A Student Academic Affairs is the responsibility of the Assistant Dean. Policy and procedure matters are handled in this office, and academic judicial policy is administered by the Assistant Dean.

LS&A Scholarships
1402 Mason Hall
764-7297

Undergraduates who have completed at least one term in LS&A may apply for LS&A Scholarships. Students must have a high GPA and must show financial need.

Students' Counseling Office
G150 Angell Hall
763-1553

The LS&A Students' Counseling Office, staffed completely by undergraduates, offers a unique comfortable atmosphere in which to obtain relevant academic information. Providing peer counseling, SCO presents students with an opportunity to share and receive experiences in an informal fashion. The office maintains such resources as course evaluations and examinations. It disseminates information concerning the newest and most innovative classes. SCO also stocks graduate catalogs from schools across the country as well as the latest in post graduation materials.

Comprehensive Studies Program (CSP)
G155 Angell Hall
764-6410

The Comprehensive Studies Program offers LS&A students a unique educational opportunity: to be part of a community of scholars who are striving to reach their potential for academic excellence. CSP aims its services particularly towards those students who apply for and receive status as "Program Affiliates;" however, some of its services are available to those not in the program. CSP's offerings include: personalized counseling, tutorials and skills workshops, specialized sections of some introductory courses, and educational enrichment programs.

English Composition Board (ECB)
1139 Angell Hall
764-0429

The English Composition Board helps students write successfully in their undergraduate courses. One of the most valuable services offered by the ECB is the Writing Workshop. Any LS&A student, any student enrolled in an LS&A course, and any graduate student may make an appointment with an ECB faculty member to obtain help with all stages of the writing process from interpreting an assignment, analyzing a draft, and polishing a paper. Writing Workshop faculty will help students work through writer's block and offer guidance for writing personal statements for graduate school applications. Students seeking assistance may drop in or make an appointment by calling 764-0429 to meet individually with a faculty member. The Writing Workshop offices are in 1111-1140 Angell Hall during the day, in residence halls on several evenings, and in the Shapiro Undergraduate Library on the weekend.

Academic Advising Center

Advisor Directory

Academic Advising Center
(1255 AH) 764-0332

Our Mission

Consonant with Socrates' dictum that the unexamined life is not worth living, we encourage students:

to examine themselves and the world around them;
to explore the liberal arts curriculum, a curriculum which provides a forum in which students can question who they are and who they want to become by providing the opportunity to reflect on the various ways humans have lived and the questions they have found worth asking;
to develop academic passions that they will want to pursue after they leave the University of Michigan.

The Academic Advising Center serves LS&A undergraduates by:
Helping them make informed decisions about educational goals and the LS&A curriculum.
Encouraging them to formulate an academic program appropriate to their individual interests and abilities.
Assisting them in evaluating their academic progress and performance.
Providing them accurate information about LS&A policies and procedures.
Furnishing them an opportunity to explore the purposes of a liberal arts education.

General advisors maintain regular hours in the Academic Advising Center.

Pre-professional advising assistance also is available to LS&A students in the Academic Advising Center.

Interim Director
Louis Rice (lcrice)

Associate Director, First-Year Advising
Virginia Reese (vjreese)

Associate Director, Upper-level Advising
April D. De Conick (deconick)

Associate Director, Senior Services
W. Harry Marsden (hmars)

Administrative Assistant
Cathy Conway-Perrin (cconway)

Academic Advisors

Cindy Barhyte (cbarhyte)

Marge Carter (mlcarter)

Margaret Elias (melias)

Louise Freymann (pomona)

Beth Hackett (bhackett)

Jean Leverich (leverich)

Marty McClatchey (mmcclat)

Toni Morales (weena)

Marsha Pumroy (mpumroy)

Doug Shapiro (dtshapir)

Joe Summers (jsummers)

Wendy Woods (wwoods)

Specialty Academic Advisors

BGS, Tom Collier (tcollier)

BGS, Chalmers Knight (thinknow)

ICP, Helen Olson (hio)

Organizational Studies, Ruby Beale

Pre-professional Advisors

Pre-architecture, Bill Werner

Pre-business, Marl Horton

Pre-education, Ina Bell

Pre-engineering, Shawn Salata

Pre-law, Karen Wittkopp (klwitt)

Pre-med, Nancy Anderson (stfelix)

Pre-med, Wendy Wyte (wytewein)

Academic Standards Board
(1255 AH) 764-0311 or 764-0332

Members of the Academic Standards Board help students individualize their programs of study and may grant exceptions to College-level academic policies and degree requirements. A student may discuss with a member and, if necessary, petition in writing for a waiver or modification of College rules. They also administer academic discipline. The purpose of academic discipline is to help foster good performance and to protect a student's chance of graduating from the College.

Director
Chuck Judge (cjudge)

Assistant to the Board
Carolyn McCullum (cmpurple)

Board Advisors

Jeffery Harrold (jharrold)

Robin Stephens (robda)

Advisors' uniqnames are indicated in parentheses. You may e-mail any advisor by attaching @umich.edu to an advisor's uniqname. General questions also may be addressed to ask.lsa.advising@umich.edu.

What You Should Know

Selecting A Concentration

Many transfer students already know their field of concentration. Whenever possible we will arrange for you to meet with a concentration advisor in addition to a general advisor during orientation. The concentration advisor can go over requirements with you and help you interpret any transfer credits you have in the field of concentration. When we cannot arrange a concentration appointment, your general advisor will be able to get you started. The LS&A Bulletin specifies the requirements for concentrating in all of the departments and programs in the College.

If you have not yet chosen a concentration, you will need to begin thinking about your areas of interest so that you can choose your concentration in a timely manner. Probably the most helpful hint we can give you in selecting your concentration is to choose one which satisfies you. Success in a concentration depends on a combination of interests, skills, and aptitudes. If you choose a concentration only because of its job possibilities while failing to look at your own interests, skills, and aptitudes, you could be heading for trouble. Before you decide, learn all you can about the requirements demanded by your proposed concentration. If the concentration doesn't satisfy your interests and fit with your aptitudes, you may find it necessary to change.

Once you have formally declared a concentration you can change your mind without much difficulty. You simply discuss the new concentration with the appropriate advisor and file a new declaration form. If you change concentrations late in your academic career, you may add a term or two to the length of your degree. This is probably still preferable to continuing in an area that has ceased to interest you.

Our second bit of advice is to ask you not to be misled by today's job market in choosing your concentration. Many of you, understandably, desire economic security and mobility, but it is important to avoid using your College career only as a vehicle for gaining those ends. Using current job opportunities as a basis for choosing a career and determining a concentration may be ill-fated for two reasons. First, you may be dissatisfied with the career once you have entered it if you do not consider your personal needs, desires, interests, the type of person you want to be, and how that concentration or career suits you. Second, in a rapidly changing society, today's job market may change substantially in the next four years. You are better off choosing a concentration (and a career) that suits and reflects you as a person.

Finally, in selecting your concentration, we urge you to exhaust every informational resource at your disposal. These resources include the offices for the Academic Advising Center described on pages 3-4 above; the faculty who, even if they may not have the information you seek, can usually refer you to someone who does; and the Office of Career Planning and Placement (3200 Student Activities Building, 764-7460). Career Planning and Placement can assist you in making career decisions and conducting effective job searches. Seminars, career conferences, counseling sessions, and an extensive career library are among the resources available to help you in making and implementing career choices. Information is provided on preprofessional preparation, career fields, experiential opportunities, linking choice of concentration to career decision, and job search strategies.

Academic Advising Center

Concentration Appointment Directory

Concentration advisors are, most often, faculty or staff members from LS&A departments who help students shape and focus their academic goals. They discuss with students how best to progress in a concentration program and to utilize the skills acquired in the study of a particular discipline both in graduate or professional schools or on the job. Students meet with most concentration advisors in their departmental offices.

* Afroamerican and African Studies 200 West Hall, 764-5513

* American Culture G410 Mason, 763-0031

* Ancient Civilizations and Biblical Studies 3074 Frieze Building, 764-0314

* Anthropology 1020 LS&A Building, 764-7274

* Anthropology-Zoology 1020 LS&A Building, 764-7274

* Arabic, Persian, Turkish & Islamic Studies 3074 Frieze Building, 764-0314

* Asian Studies 2099 Frieze Building, 764-3399

* Astronomy and Astrophysics 833 Dennison, 764-3454

* Biochemistry 1500 Chemistry, 647-2857

* Biology 1121 Nat. Sci., 764-2446

* Biology (General) 1121 Nat. Sci., 764-2446

* Biophysics 4204 Chemistry, 764-5280

* Biopsychology and Cognitive Science 1044 East Hall, 764-2580

* Botany 1121 Nat. Sci., 764-2446

* Cellular and Molecular Biology 1121 Nat. Sci., 764-2446

* Chemistry 1500 Chemistry, 647-2858

* Chinese Language and Literature 3068 Frieze Building, 764-8286

* Classical Archaeology 2160 Angell Hall, 764-0362

* Classical Civilization 2160 Angell Hall, 764-0362

* Classical Languages and Literatures 2160 Angell Hall, 764-0362

* Communication Studies 2020 Frieze Building, 764-0420

* Comparative Literature 2015 Tisch Hall, 763-2351

* Computer Science 1255 Angell Hall, 764-0332

* Dramatic Writing 2512 Frieze Building, 764-0147

* Economics 238 Lorch Hall, 763-9242

* English Language and Literature 3187 Angell Hall, 764-6330

* Environmental Geology 2534 C.C. Little, 764-0597 or 764-1435

* Film and Video Studies 2512 Frieze Building, 764-0147

* French and Francophone Studies 1255 Angell Hall, 764-0332

* Geological Sciences 2534 C.C. Little, 763-2298 or 764-1435

* German 3110 Modern Languages Building, 764-3227

* Greek Language and Literature 2160 Angell Hall, 764-0362

* Hebrew and Jewish Cultural Studies 3074 Frieze Building, 764-0314

* History 1029 Tisch Hall, 764-6305

* History of Art 110 Tappan Hall, 764-5400

* Individual Concentration Program (including Organizational Studies) 1255 Angell Hall, 764-0332

* Italian 4108 Modern Languages Building, 764-5344

* Japanese Language and Literature 3089 Frieze Building, 763-3556

* Judaic Studies 3032 Frieze Building, 763-9047

* Latin American and Caribbean Studies 351F Lorch Hall, 763-0553

* Latin Language and Literature 2160 Angell Hall, 764-0362

* Latina/Latino Studies G410 Mason, 764-9934 or 763-0031

* Linguistics 1076 Frieze Building, 763-9177 or 764-0353

* Mathematics (Actuarial, Pure Math, Mathematical Sciences) 2072 East Hall, 763-4223

* Medieval and Renaissance Collegium 3405 Modern Languages Building, 763-2066

* Microbiology 1121 Nat. Sci., 764-2446

* Middle Eastern and North African Studies 144 Lane Hall, 764-0350

* Music 1255 Angell Hall, 764-0332

* Near Eastern Civilizations 3074 Frieze Building, 764-0314

* Oceanography 2534 C.C. Little, 764-0597 or 764-1435

* Philosophy 2215 Angell Hall, 764-6285

* Physics 2061 Randall Lab, 936-0659

* Physics (General) 2061 Randall Lab, 936-0659

* Political Science 5602 Haven Hall, 764-6312

* Psychology 1044 East Hall, 764-2580

* Religion (Studies in) 445 West Hall, 764-4475

* Russian 3040 Modern Languages Building, 764-5355

* Russian and East European Studies 204 Lane Hall, 764-0351

* Social Anthropology 3001 LS&A Building, 764-7239

* Sociology 3001 LS&A Building, 764-7239

* Spanish (Hispanic Literature, Hispanic Studies) 4108 Modern Languages Building, 764-5344

* Statistics 1439 Mason Hall, 764-4413

* Theatre and Drama 2550 Frieze Building, 764-5350

* Women's Studies 234 West Hall, 763-2047

Planning for Orientation and Your First Term

Transfer Credit

Transferring courses taken at another College or University: The maximum number of credits that can be transferred into LS&A is 60 semester credit hours (62 if you come with an associates degree from a community college that requires 62). If you have more than 60 credits from other schools, the courses may all transfer but the credit hour total on your LS&A transcript will appear as 60+.

Transfer credit is defined as out-of residence. LS&A students are required to complete 60 credits in residence, at least 30 of which must be among the final 60. You should carefully read the section Residence Policy in Chapter IV of the LS&A Bulletin.

Transfer credit criteria: The criterion for establishing which courses are transferable is that the course content is basically parallel to a UM class and is completed with a "C" or better. Your past school's transcript is evaluated by the Office of Undergraduate Admissions and is reflected on the Academic Report. Credit earned at other institutions is posted without honor points (i.e., without grades) and will not affect your UM Grade Point Average (GPA). (The only exceptions are UM-Flint and UM-Dearborn; in these two cases, credit is transferred together with honor points and credit is granted for courses passed with a D- or better. Credit from UM-Flint and UM-Dearborn is defined as out-of-residence.)

Translating your Academic Report: You will receive in the mail a transfer credit evaluation from the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

Whenever possible, credit is assigned using a University of Michigan-Ann Arbor course number. When the transferred course cannot be matched with an existing UM-Ann Arbor course, it is assigned a three-digit departmental or interdepartmental number. In this case, the first digit will indicate level; the middle digit will be an "X" indicating that departmental credit has been granted; and the third digit indicates the number of courses taken at the same level from a given department. For example, an Academic Report for Winter 1997 could show:

Psychology 112 3 cr.

English 2X1 3 cr.

English 2X2 4 cr.

Biology 1X1 4 cr.

This means that the student will have been given credit for an introductory Psychology course similar to one described in the LS&A Course Guide, two second-year English courses and one first-year Biology course. 3X1 or 4X1 would indicate upper-level credit.

If you have questions about your Academic Report, ask your academic advisor. If the question or discrepancy cannot be easily resolved, show relevant transcripts and/or course materials to the Admissions Office and ask for reevaluation. Credit is usually evaluated on the basis of catalogue descriptions which may not correspond with actual course content. As a last resort, contact the Academic Standards Board (1255 Angell Hall) and explain the problem.

Applying Transfer Credits to College Requirements

During Orientation your Academic Advisor will review your transfer credits with you and indicate how these credits can be used to meet College requirements. At that time the Advisor will complete a Transfer Students Check List, giving one copy to you and placing the carbon in your student file for future reference. Below are some issues that you should note with regard to applying transfer credit.

English Composition: Every single student attending the College of LS&A must submit a writing portfolio; composition placement is determined by the assessment of the portfolio. Composition transferred from your former school will be given English Composition Departmental credit and can be used toward the 120 required degree credits. It will not, however, exempt you from the composition requirement here.

Language: Students entering with fourth-term language credit from their previous schools have met the language requirement. They do not have to take a language placement exam unless they plan to take advanced-level work in that language. All students with less than the fourth term of a language must take a placement exam if they intend to continue in the same language. Frequently, the placement exam will recommend a placement that repeats or is lower than the transfer course. If this happens, you should have a careful discussion with your advisor about the appropriate level to elect. Repeating a course or starting at a level lower than that transferred will forfeit the transfer credit. On the other hand, electing a course above your predicted performance level can be risky. Note: If you decide to forfeit 4th-term (232) transfer credit for the election of a lower level course, you also forfeit satisfaction of the language requirement by transfer credit.

Race & Ethnicity and Quantitative Reasoning: Transfer credit is never automatically applied to these requirements but is often appropriate. If you think you have met either of these requirements with transfer courses, ask your advisor how to apply for a waiver.

Mathematics and Science courses: The sequence of topics taught in mathematics and science courses varies between colleges, making it difficult to find the appropriate course in mid-sequence. The Biology department, for instance, tends to give departmental rather than specific credit for introductory courses. Students planning to take advanced-level Biology courses would then need to speak with a Biology advisor to determine if the transfer courses had prepared them sufficiently for the next level. Similar situations occur in other areas, especially Chemistry and Mathematics. Your advisor can help you track down this information.

Course load: Most transfer students are on a "tight schedule" and feel they need to graduate within a set number of terms. Nonetheless, you might consider taking a slightly reduced load your first term here. Change does take adjustment in both one's personal and academic life and adjustment takes time and energy. It is often wiser to start a little cautiously until you get the "feel" of the College and life in Ann Arbor. Often you can make up the credits in subsequent terms by electing just one or two "extra" credits per term.

Rules and Regs: Every College has a different way of handling such issues as dropping classes, non-graded courses, incomplete grades, etc. Never assume you know an answer until you have checked an authoritative source. The LS&A Bulletin, which you will receive during Orientation, contains the rules that will apply to you during your tenure here. You will be held responsible for those rules, so keep the Bulletin where you can use if for reference.

Your advisor is also a good resource and can be reached by e-mail, through walk-in hours in the residence halls and by appointment in the LS&A Advising Center, 1255 Angell Hall. There is also a "generic" e-mail advisor:

Ask.LS&A.Advisor@umich.edu.

Also check the Directory on pp. 3,4, and 6.

What You Should Know

Frequently Asked Questions

Introductory Composition

1. If I have transfer credit for an English Composition course, do I need to take a composition course in LS&A?

Composition placement is determined solely by the English Composition Board's assessment of your portfolio. If you took a composition course elsewhere, it may be counted as English Composition departmental credit. This means that it will count as general credit towards graduation but does not satisfy the composition requirement. It is wise to submit your portfolio before your arrival on campus for Orientation.

Junior/Senior Writing

1. How many credits am I required to have before I can elect a course to meet the Junior/Senior writing course?

Fifty-five.

2. Can a transfer course meet the Junior/Senior writing requirement?

No.

3. Can a Junior/Senior writing requirement course also count in my concentration or toward distribution?

Yes, in one or the other, when applicable.

Quantitative Reasoning

1. If I have taken a course at my previous institution which I have found listed in the LS&A Course Guide as a "Quantitative Reasoning" course, have I satisfied the requirement?

Only if the class is a Statistics course or the equivalent of Physics 125-7, 126-8 or 140-1 and 240-1. Otherwise you must petition Academic Standards for a waiver.

Race & Ethnicity

1. If I have taken a course at my former institution that seems to meet the R&E requirement, then have I satisfied the requirement here?

No. You must petition Academic Standards. In your petition you must include a syllabus of the course and the reasons why you believe the course you took meets the criteria that constitute the requirement.

Foreign Language

1. If I started a foreign language at my previous institution, can I go back and finish the LS&A language requirement there?

No. Once you enter the College of LS&A, you must complete the language requirement here.

2. If I test into one of the semesters of a language for which I was granted transfer credit, what should I do?

If you elect a course for which you already have credit, you will lose transfer credit. If you are confident in your language skills, you could elect the next course in the sequence and see how it goes. You have three weeks to change your mind. Language departments will let you move ahead of your placement, but not below it.

Distribution

1. How do I interpret departmental or interdivisional credit?

If any of your previous coursework has been transferred in to Michigan as departmental or interdivisional credit, you should talk with an academic advisor during Orientation or soon thereafter to get an explanation of how you may use these credits toward your LS&A degree.

2. Can I use a concentration (major) course for distribution?

No, not if you are completing one concentration only. If you are doing two concentrations, however, only one of the two concentrations must be independent of distribution.

3. Can my Race & Ethnicity (R&E) and/or my Quantitative Reasoning (QR) courses count toward my distribution?

Yes, when applicable.

4. Can I use foreign language courses for distribution?

Some third and fourth year language courses in each language department are designated for humanities (HU) distribution, but no course in the four semesters required for meeting the language requirement counts toward distribution (unless it is the fourth semester course in your third language!).

5. How do I know which LS&A courses are natural science, social science, and humanities courses?

The LS&A Bulletin designates natural science courses as NS, social science as SS, and humanities as HU. The LS&A Course Guide also designates distribution courses this same way, but the Course Guide also contains listings by distribution category at the front of each edition of the book.

Concentration

1. Do any of my transfer credits count toward my concentration (major), and, if so, how many?

This is determined by your concentration advisor.

2. When should I declare my concentration?

Normally during the second term of the sophomore year, or as soon thereafter as you can.

3. What is a cognate?

A cognate is a required concentration course that exists in a department outside your concentration department but whose subject relates closely to your concentration.

4. Can I use a cognate course for distribution?

No, not if you are completing one concentration only. If you are doing two concentrations, however, only one of the two concentrations must be independent of distribution.

5. Can my Race & Ethnicity (R&E) and/or my Quantitative Reasoning (QR) courses count toward my concentration?

Yes, when applicable?

6. What are the requirements for my concentration?

They are spelled out in the LS&A Bulletin.

7. Does the College of LS&A have minors?

No.

8. Is Bachelor of General Studies (BGS) a concentration?

No, it is a degree program, akin to but differing from the A.B. and B.S. BGS degree requirements are listed in the LS&A Bulletin.

9. Can I take any of the courses in my concentration pass/fail?

No.