Academic Advising Center
Dani Kvanvig-Bohnsack
Email: Danielle.Kvanvig@ndsu.edu
Phone: 701-231-9849
Office: EML Hall 269
Academic Advising Frequently Asked Questions
WHAT IS AN ACADEMIC ADVISOR?
The academic advising program at NDSU is designed to facilitate the student’s intellectual and personal growth, to assist students in using university resources, and to guide students in making informed choices regarding academic and career plans. An advisor assists a student in selecting courses to ensure a well-balanced education and helps interpret university and college policies and requirements. However, students are fully responsible for their academic decisions including selecting courses, meeting course requisites, co-requisites/prerequisites, and adhering to policies, procedures, and deadlines. -Undergraduate Bulletin
You can find out who your assigned advisor is by logging into CAMPUS CONNECTION and click on STUDENT CENTER. In the right hand blue box you will see your assigned advisor’s name and contact information.
WHAT IS THE PHILOSOPHY BEHIND ADVISOR ASSIGNMENTS?
In accordance with the College of Human Development policy, Dani Kvanvig-Bohsack is the professional advisor who works with students who have less than 60 credit hours. Once a student has completed 60 credit hours, they are then assigned to an HDFS faculty advisor. The philosophy behind this transition is based on the fact that while you are a freshman and sophomore student, you may need an advisor who can provide advice on general education recommendations as well as the requirements of the major. But once you become a junior, you need the expertise of a faculty member who can give you much more detailed information about careers and graduate school, and have someone to help you who is in the position to write letters of recommendation.
WHEN DO I CHANGE ADVISORS?
AT EXACTLY 60 CREDIT HOURS
This change is done a few weeks after the end of the term that you complete 60 credit hours, regardless of how many semesters you have been at NDSU.
For instance, if you have 59 credits when you start the fall of your third year, you will still be with Dani Kvanvig-Bohsack until the end of that term when grades post. (Even though you are in your third year of school, officially, you are still a sophomore for the whole semester). Similarly, if you transferred credit to NDSU and happen have 60 credits while you are in your second or year of school, because you are officially a junior, you will be assigned to a faculty advisor at that time.
WHAT IF I CHANGED MY MAJOR TO HDFS AFTER I WAS ALREADY A JUNIOR
Students who change their major to HDFS but already have 60 credit hours will be immediately assigned to a faculty advisor. These students may be temporarily assigned to Dani Kvanvig-Bohsack while paperwork is processed, but once the process is complete, you will be assigned a faculty advisor. In addition, Dani Kvanvig-Bohsack may meet with you initially, just to explain the program, but this is just an informational meeting.
Again, all students with more than 60 credit hours are assigned a faculty advisor, even if they are brand new to the major.
HOW CAN I MAKE AN APPOINTMENT WITH MY FACULTY ADVISOR?
Faculty advisors obviously have several job responsibilities in addition to advising. But they truly look forward and enjoy meeting with students. If you need to make an appointment with a faculty advisor, simply email them. Just be aware of the fact that they are all busy and be respectful of their time. However, when you want to meet for “advising” or to plan for the upcoming semester and sign-up for classes, then the procedure is different.
WHAT IS ADVISING WEEK? HOW IS IT DIFFERENT WHEN YOU HAVE A FACULTY MEMBER AS YOUR ADVISOR?
When it is time to register for the next semester, all students need to meet with faculty advisors during the same time period. Therefore, there is a one-week window set aside for students to meet with faculty members to plan for the upcoming semester. This is a campus-wide policy. Advising week is posted in the official dates and deadlines links on the Registration and Records homepage.
Students are expected to take the initiative to sign up for an advising appointment during advising week. How you make an appointment depends on the location of your new advisor's office.
• For HDFS faculty located in EML, the schedules are posted outside the HDFS office, EML 277.
• For HDFS faculty located in the SGC (on 19th Ave across from McDonalds) students should email the faculty member to set up an appointment.
• For College Academic Advisor: Use the Advising Center Website: http://www.ndsu.edu/hde/academic_advising_center/
WHY IS IT TAKING ME SO LONG TO GET AN ADVISOR?
The advisor assignment process is time consuming and must be done by hand, checking each student's file and the number of credit hours they have. It also involves several entities including the department of registration and records. Therefore, depending on how busy each office is, it can sometimes take a few weeks in order for the assignment to be finalized on campus connection.
HOW DO I KNOW WHO MY NEW ADVISOR IS AND WHERE ARE THEY LOCATED?
Faculty advisors are assigned to students with more than 60 credit hours at the end of the semester (once grades are posted). Once the assignment is finalized, students can view who their new advisor is on CAMPUS CONNECTION. Click on the blue STUDENT CENTER link in the left hand tool bar. Once you are there, you will see your new advisor's name and contact information listed in the lower left hand blue box.
You can also learn the location and see a photo of your new advisor by looking at the FACULTY and STAFF link on the HDFS website:
http://www.ndsu.edu/hdfs/faculty_staff/
Just click on the Green Name to learn more about your new advisor.
I STILL DON'T SEE MY NEW ADVISOR LISTED, WHY IS IT TAKING SO LONG?
The advisor assignment process is time consuming and must be done by hand, checking each student's file and the number of credit hours they have. It also involves several entities including the department of registration and records. Therefore, depending on how busy each office is, it can sometimes take a few weeks in order for the assignment to be finalized on campus connection.
THE SEMESTER HAS STARTED AND I HAVE 60 CREDIT HOURS AND I AM STILL LISTED WITH DANI. WHAT SHOULD I DO?
This is probably just an oversight on our part. If you have more than 60 credit hours, you should have your new advisor assignment. Please contact Dani Kvanvig-Bohsack immediately and she will remedy the situation. Again, the advisor assignment process is time consuming and must be done by hand, checking each student's file and the number of credit hours they have. It also involves several entities including the department of registration and records. Therefore, depending on how busy each office is, it can sometimes take a few weeks in order for the assignment to be finalized on campus connection.
I HAVE MORE THAN 60 CREDIT HOURS, BUT I STILL WANT TO STAY WITH DANI-CAN I STILL MEET WITH HER?
No, for several reasons:
· Dani will no longer have access to your information
· In fairness to ALL students, Dani's advising load must be kept at a reasonable limit. She already has almost 200 advisees at one time. If she were to continue to see juniors and seniors, her current advisees would not be able to get an appointment in a reasonable amount of time. She is already booked out weeks in advance
· Most importantly, for your own sake and future, students need to create a good working relationship with their new faculty advisor. We strongly encourage all students to make an appointment with their new faculty advisor so they can immediately start building that relationship today.
