Undergraduate Advising

Our academic advisors work to ensure you stay on track with your course of study at the iSchool, from the day you sign your letter of acceptance, to the day you graduate.

Virtual Advising Sessions

Take advantage of our normal walk-in hours (MWF 9:00-11:00 or TTH 2:00-4:00pm) If you wish to speak to an advisor outside of these times, please request an appointment. Download Microsoft Teams on your preferred device and make sure you are signed in using your NetID and password. When you enter the waiting room, complete the prompts with your SU ID and reason for needing to see an advisor. An advisor will call you on Microsoft Teams when it is your turn.

Appointments: Appointments, scheduled via Orange Success, are still required if you are looking to have a Degree Check or a Student Success appointment. We require 24 hours’ notice for these appointments. You can find the link to Orange Success in MySlice.

Intra-University Transfers

Intra-University Transfers (IUT) are for current Syracuse University undergraduate students who would like to transfer into the School of Information Studies  (iSchool).

Advising Forms

Necessary forms for undergraduate students can be found on Syracuse’s Answers page.

Declare a Minor

To declare a minor in the iSchool, simply complete the Registrar’s Declaration of Minor form. Email your form to iugadvising@syr.edu. You will receive a notification of your application status in your Syracuse University Email Account.

After you complete this process, the iSchool Office of Student Services will take care of getting the appropriate signatures for you and send it to your home college/school for full processing. Process times vary for different schools and colleges. We recommend you reach out to your academic advisor with any questions or concerns.

It is advisable you meet with your academic advisor for guidance on adding a minor. They will help you understand graduation requirements, the time needed to complete your minor, and in some rare cases, any impacts to financial aid.

If you have questions about iSchool minors, please speak with our Undergraduate Academic Advisor.

Handbooks & Check Sheets

Students are to follow the requirements found in the advising handbooks applicable to the year you entered your program of study. You can find links to all handbook and check sheets on Answers. Please check with your iSchool academic advisor for the correct information for your year of entry.

If the handbook or check sheet that you need is not provided on Answers, please contact your academic advisor.

Fast Track Master’s Degree

For Syracuse University undergraduate students, we offer most of our master’s programs in an accelerated format called Fast Track.

Graduation Requirements

All students completing degree requirements in May, June, August, and the previous December are invited to attend the Commencement activities in May. It is important that you file the Diploma Request via MySlice by the published deadline dates to be included in Commencement mailings. You will not be included in the printed Commencement program if you do not complete the diploma request by the deadline.

Read the full diploma request instructions

Advising FAQs

Your advisor can be found at the top of your Degree Works page. Appointments can be made via Orange Success. To email our office, contact iugadvising@syr.edu

The name of your faculty advisor can be found on your transcript on MySlice.

Appointments are typically 15 minutes long and can be made via Orange Success. Walk in hours are:

    • M/W/F 9:00-11:00 am
    • T/TH 2:00-4:00 pm

If you are more than ten minutes late for a scheduled appointment, your appointment will be cancelled, and you will need to reschedule.

Through MySlice. Click the Enrollment tile. There are no waitlists. If the class is full, it’s full. We are not able to get you in.

Make an appointment with your advisor first, or email.

  • Majors: Fill out a Major Declaration form (on the Registrar’s website under Student Forms) and return it to iugadvising@syr.edu.
  • Minors: Fill out a Minor Declaration form (on the Registrar’s website under Student Forms) and email it to the department of the minor you wish to add (ie. Psychology minor email the psychology department. Don’t know the email? Google it!)
  • Undeclared students should choose a major no later than after their third semester.

Requirements for your degree are found in the Undergraduate Advising Handbook that you were given when you began your program. You can also see your full degree program by viewing your degree audit in Degree Works. Questions about degree requirements can also be directed to iugadvising@syr.edu.

Your academic advisor can assist you with registration. You can also check on MySlice.

Students may register for an independent study by completing a Proposal for Independent Study. This form requires the signature of the faculty member sponsoring the independent study and the student. Other signatures needed on the form can be obtained from the Undergraduate Academic Advisor.

The form must be submitted to the Student Records Office, 106 Steele Hall, for full-time students and to University College, 700 University Avenue, for part-time students.

The registration is pending until the completed form has been submitted and processed by the Registrar’s office. Since the Proposal for Independent Study is required to register for Independent Study, registration for the course cannot be done online.

You can view your iSchool GPA and cumulative GPA in Degree Works.

Petition to the Faculty forms are available on the Advising Forms page.

You should see your academic advisor at least once every semester.

See your academic advisor. An exit interview with the associate dean may be requested.

You must fill out an IUT form (Intra University Transfer) BUT FIRST, email the following contacts to see what specific requirements each program has and when their deadlines are:

  • (Whitman) Liz Turner: elturn01@syr.edu
  • (Newhouse) Suzanne McGuire: semaguir@syr.edu

You can only take a general elective as pass/fail. All iSchool courses (including IST electives) or Arts and Sciences courses must be taken as a letter grade.

You must have an OFFICIAL transcript sent from the outside institution sent to iugadvising@syr.edu. We also accept hard copies (ask the front desk for the mailing address.) Please make sure that you have already submitted your Transfer Credit Petition. If you would like us to review courses that you took outside of the United States, you’ll need to submit an official transcript and an external assessment from the JS&A or World Education Services.

We are here to help provide you with direction. Please visit your advisor in 114 Hinds Hall, or contact our Student Success Counselor via iugadvising@syr.edu or at 315.442.4265.

  • There is no such thing as an “excused” absence. Each professor can determine their own absence policy which is stated in the syllabus. It is your responsibility to contact the professor an explain the situation. Professors ultimately have the right to determine how they will count the absence. If it is a true emergency (serious accident, death in the family, etc) you need to contact the Office of Student Outreach and Retention. Be prepared with clear documentation.
  • If you drop under 12 credits you are no longer considered a full time student and risk losing financial aid, parking, housing, scholarships and sports eligibility. You must contact your financial aid counselor and/or Bursars Office for more information.
  • Students that go over 19 credits per semester will be charged an additional fee of $1,850 per credit hour.

Holds prevent you from registering for classes, obtaining official transcripts, applying for graduation, etc. To check for holds on your account go to MySlice and go to the Holds tile. If a hold appears, click on it to see who you must contact to have the hold removed. We can only remove Advising holds. If you have a probation hold this will not affect your ability to register, it is simply a “flag.”

If you drop a class, you must do so before the Financial Drop Deadline. When done, it will not show on your transcript; its as if you were never enrolled in the course. If you withdraw from the course, you must do so before the semester withdraw deadline. This WILL show on your transcript as a WD but will not affect your GPA.

Your academic advisor cannot help you research or secure an internship. You must work with iSchool Career Services. Career Services has walk ins T/W/Th 1-3 or appointments may be booked through Handshake. You can earn credit for an internship; 50 documented hours equals 1 credit and the maximum credits you can earn is 6. You must have your internship site approved prior to enrolling in the class (IST 471.) You cannot register for the class without permission.

You and your faculty sponsor will fill out and sign the teaching assistantship form.

This form should then be given to the Undergraduate Academic Advisor for processing.

Peer Advisors take application every spring semester. You can apply on the Peer Advisor page.