Frequently Asked Questions
Many students have similar questions throughout their academic experience at Arizona State University. We have prepared general answers to some of our most frequent questions from students. If you do not find the information you are seeking, please do not hesitate to contact our office directly.
Important to know as a Freshmen Exploratory student
- Why should I attend orientation?
- What does University College Academic Advising Services office provide?
- Who is advised by University College Academic Advising Services?
- What is a Major Map? http://www.asu.edu/programs/majormaps/tutorial/index.html
- What is the ASU 101 course?
- What is the UNI 194 Career and Major Exploration course?
- What are General Studies?
- What is a DARS Report or a degree audit?
- What is drop/add?
- What does Course Withdrawal mean?
- What happens if I just stop attending class?
- What is an academic status report?
- What is an enrollment appointment?
- Can I take a course without the prerequisites?
- What are the rules for repeating courses?
Important to know as a Sophomore Exploratory student (prior to 45 credit hours)
- Do I need to see an advisor every semester to register?
- How many credits do I need to graduate?
- What can I do with this degree?
- How long will it take to finish a degree?
- What does “good standing” and “probation” mean?
- What does “disqualification” mean?
- What is an “incomplete”?
- What is a medical/compassionate withdrawal? Am I eligible?
- What is a petition? Why is it used?
- What happens if I repeat a course at the community college that I received a “D” or “E” in at ASU?
Important to know as a Sophomore Exploratory student (at 45 credit hours)
1) Why should I attend orientation?
Orientation programs are designed to help new students transition into ASU. In
them, you will be made aware of those university policies and procedures that
an in-coming student should understand. You can not register for classes
without first being advised, and these orientation programs are often your best
opportunity to meet your advisor.
Because there is a considerable amount of information to be addressed at these orientation programs, students will be required to complete "homework" before registering for orientation. This homework helps you learn ASU vocabulary, requires you to establish your e-mail account, and educates you on various University policies and procedures
2) What does University College Academic Advising Services office provide?
University College Academic Advising Services provides academic advising to
students regarding general studies and some major requirements. All exploratory
students are required to meet with an academic advisor before they can register
for their first two semesters. Academic advising consists of planning your
class sequences, clarifying academic policies and procedures, and making
students aware of various resources available on the ASU campus.
University College Academic Advising Services advisors are available to meet with students in small groups, one-on-one appointments, or phone advising for students outside of the Phoenix metropolitan area.
3) Who is advised by University College Academic Advising Services?
University College Academic Advising provides
academic advising for exploratory students at Arizona State University. The
mission of University College Academic Advising is to promote student
development and success by helping students to identify, clarify, and achieve
their academic goals. Through individualized professional advising and teaching
practices, University College academic advisors challenge and support students
in their process of becoming self-directed lifelong learners.
Exploratory students are assigned to a specific professional academic advisor. Transfer students entering ASU as an exploratory student will receive their assigned academic advisor upon scheduling their initial advising appointment. ASU students who choose to change their major may also meet with a University College academic advisor to explore their academic and career goals.
4) What is a Major Map?
A Major Map outlines:
- What classes you need (degree requirements).
- When you need to take them (course sequences).
- And what grades you need to get (GPA and course grade requirements) in order to graduate.
ASU recommends that full-time students earn an average of 15 hours each semester in order to graduate in four years.
5) What is the ASU 101 course?
ASU 101 is a required, free-standing, one-credit course designed to introduce all new first-time ASU freshmen to the unique elements, culture, challenges, and
opportunities of being a college student at ASU. The course is an essential part of the unique experience of being an ASU student. The course connects all ASU students and introduces them to the
benefits and opportunities of being part of a large metropolitan research university.
6) What is the UNI 194 Career and Major Exploration course?
This one-credit student development course will actively engage students in
their educational and career planning process. The classes (limited to 19
students or fewer) are 5 weeks long and are offered at three different start
times during the semester.
At the end of the course, students will:
- Have completed assessments and clarified their understanding of their personality, interests, skills, and values.
- Have developed skills to research the major(s) or career(s) they are considering.
- Know how to use information they gather to make a good decision.
- Have an understanding of cultural diversity that improves success in today’s workplace.
Students will create an action plan for their academic and career achievement in this class.
While the course is practical and applied, it also addresses the broader view of work in our lives. The course will include discussion of the trends that affect our careers today such as globalization, decentralization, the knowledge worker, and the need for life-long learning.
7) What are General Studies?
General Studies are 35 credit hours that ALL ASU student must complete to
graduate, regardless of their chosen major. General studies information can be
found at http://www.asu.edu/aad/catalogs/general/genstudiesintro.html.
8) What is a DARS Report or a degree audit?
Degree Audit Reporting System (DARS) is a computerized program that allows
students and advisors to evaluate all courses taken against any major
requirements at ASU. DARS reports can be utilized for checking general studies
requirements as well as major and minor/certificate requirements. Students
transferring in credits from another school must have those credits evaluated by
an academic advisor before they will be included in the DARS report. Students
may run their own DARS report from www.asu.edu/interactive
9) What is drop/add?
DROP/ADD is a limited time offer. During DROP/ADD, which is typically the first
week of each semester, you may drop any class you are registered for, get a
full refund of tuition and fees (if appropriate), and have no record on your
transcript that you were ever in the course. Similarly, space and prerequisites
permitting, you may add courses up to 18 hours. After this deadline, you can no
longer add a course, and the only way out of a course is through withdrawal. Withdrawals
should be conserved to cover unanticipated changes in your circumstances.
10) What does Course Withdrawal mean?
During the second week through the 10th week of a fall or spring semester, or
the third day through the third week of a summer session, or until the midpoint
of the term for winter and flexibly scheduled sessions, a student may withdraw
from any course with a mark of “W.” See the Registration and Tuition Payment
Guide or the Summer Sessions Bulletin for dates of the withdrawal period.
11) What happens if I just stop attending class?
DON’T DO THIS! Some students think that what happens is that the professor just “drops” them for
non-attendance. That is not what happens. Instead, the professor gives you an E
at the end of the semester. So, process the withdrawal.
12) What is an academic status report?
It’s likely one of your instructors sent you a warning that you were not
doing well in his or her class. This communication effort occurs at the 5th
and 9th week of the semester. The good news, however, is that you
have time to address these issues if you act now.
First things first, if you haven’t done so already, go talk to your instructor. He or she wants you to succeed and is your best resource. Your syllabus will list office hours and contact information, but you have to make that next step. Prepare for your meeting by listing the issues you want to address. You might ask:
- Where do I currently stand in the class?
- What can I do to perform better in class?
- What am I missing and how can I get caught up?
- Am I studying the best way possible for this class?
- What scores do I need on future tests and assignments to get an A, B, or C?
13) What is an enrollment appointment?
An enrollment appointment is assigned to you each registration cycle. This is your first opportunity to
sign up for classes for the following semester. Check your assigned date at www.asu.edu/interactive.
14) Can I take a course without the prerequisites?
Yes, but you will need to request an override for a class in which you do not
meet the prerequisites, please go to the department that is offering the
course. For example, if it is psychology, go to the psychology department. Even
if that department is willing to issue the override, carefully consider whether
or not it is a good idea to take a class that you may be unprepared to take.
15) What are the rules for repeating courses?
An Undergraduate student may repeat a course once if the initial grade was D or
E. This repeated course must be taken at ASU. Classes completed with grades of A, B, or
C cannot be repeated.
If they have taken the course twice at ASU and received grades of D or E both times, the student must petition to repeat the course a third time.
If the course is at the 100 or 200 levels, only the best grade is used in computing the GPA. For courses at the 300 or 400 level, both grades count towards the GPA. Credit is only given one time per course.
16) Do I need to see an advisor every semester to register?
All University College Exploratory Freshmen are
required to meet with an academic advising office prior to registration for
their first two semesters. Failure to meet with an advisor will result in your
registration request being denied. After your first year, you are encouraged to
meet with an advisor if you have questions about your course schedule, but it
is not required.
17) How many credits do I need to graduate?
120 total credit hours (minimum) are required to graduate from Arizona State University. These 120 credit hours must consist of:
- 35 hours in General Studies (minimum)
- 3-6 hours for English composition
- Major requirements
- 45 hours of upper-division courses (300-400 level classes) are required to be part of the 120 graduation credits
18) What can I do with this degree?
The office of Career Services will assist students in setting career and
professional goals. Resources are also available to help students in
determining possible careers with specific majors. Additional
information is available at www.asu.edu/majorexploration.
19) How long will it take to finish a degree?
The amount of time required to complete 120 credit hours (the minimum required
for graduation; different majors may require more hours) is variable depending
upon each student’s situation. Generally, students can complete a degree in four
years by completing 30 credit hours each academic year (15 per semester). It is
crucial to consult with your academic advisor when planning class sequences to
maximize your academic strategies.
20) What do “good standing” and “probation” mean?
Academic good standing for degree-seeking students is defined as shown in the table below.
| Academic Good Standing | |
| Total Earned Hours | Minimum Cumulative GPA to be in Academic Good Standing |
| 24 or fewer | 1.60 |
| 25-55 | 1.75 |
| 56 or more | 2.00 |
A student who does not maintain the minimum GPA standard is placed on academic probation or is disqualified. A student on academic probation is permitted to register for classes. A student who has been disqualified is not permitted to register for classes for fall or spring semesters.
Students on probation may remain on continuing probation as long as their semester GPA is above or meets the GPA required for academic good standing noted above. Failure to do so will result in disqualification from the university.
Your cumulative GPA is reviewed twice each year, in May and December (after spring and fall semester). Therefore, grades earned during summer session, winter session, or academic grade changes (such as incompletes) are not considered until the next review period. This means that even if your summer grades, for example, improve your GPA to above 2.0, you will remain on probation until after your fall grades are posted and reviewed. Check out our disqualification and low GPA page for more information.
21) What does “disqualification” mean?
It means that you have not met ASU’s academic standards and are no longer eligible to take classes at ASU.
If you are disqualified, you will be notified by mail.
You can request reinstatement if you are disqualified. To do so, visit the following link: Disqualification and Reinstatement
22) What is an “incomplete”?
If a student experiences difficulties at the very end of the semester,
generally the instructor may make arrangements with you to allow you to
complete the work later. If additional time is required past the end of the
semester, a grade of incomplete or I may be arranged. This requires the
completion of a form, signed by the student, the instructor, and the department
chair, that specifies what work is left undone, what the circumstances are that
prevent the work from being completed on time and a schedule for the completion
of the work.
The grade of “I” will appear on the transcript, and while the “I” stands as the grade of record, the course plays no role in the GPA computation and cannot be used to fulfill a graduation requirement. If the work is not done within one calendar year, the “I” grade reverts to a grade of E. The student does not need to reregister for the course or to pay any additional fees in order to complete the work.
Students should note that the grade of incomplete and medical/compassionate withdrawals are not intended to cover bad planning by a student. The emphasis is on circumstances that are beyond a student’s control. A student controls how many credits they take and how many hours per week of outside activity, including employment, enter their lives. Generally speaking, transportation difficulties and scheduling conflicts with outside activities that a student could decline without threat of imprisonment are not grounds for incompletes and compassionate withdrawals.
23) What is a medical/compassionate withdrawal? Am I eligible?
If difficulties beyond your control prevented you from completing the work in
classes during the previous semester or will prevent you from completing
classes this semester, then Medical or Compassionate withdrawals may be
possible. A student seeking such withdrawals should contact the appropriate
University College Academic Advising Office.
| Tempe | Downtown Phoenix | Polytechnic | West |
| Undergraduate Academic Services Building (UASB), Room 129 Phone: (480)965-4464 |
University Center (UCENT), Room 171 Phone: (602)496-4278 |
Academic Center Building Lower Level (CNTR) Phone: (480)727-1452 |
University Center Building (UCB), Room 201 Phone: (602)543-9222 |
Medical and Compassionate withdrawals differ from other withdrawals in several important ways. First, the grade received will be a “W” even if the student was not passing at the time of withdrawal. Secondly, a larger refund of tuition and fees may sometimes be arranged. Thirdly, such withdrawals do not count against the limited number of withdrawals a student is allowed. Lastly, this process can occur after the completion of the semester of interest.
Students should note that medical/compassionate withdrawals are not intended to cover bad planning by a student. The emphasis is on circumstances that are beyond a student’s control. A student controls how many credits they take and how many hours per week of outside activity, including employment, enter their lives. Generally speaking, transportation difficulties and scheduling conflicts with outside activities that a student could decline without threat of imprisonment are not grounds for incompletes and compassionate withdrawals.
24) What is a petition? Why is it used?
A petition is used in instances where the approval of the standards committee
is needed for a given transaction or request. A copy of the petition may be
downloaded from the Forms section of
the University College web site. You may wish to consult with an advisor before
you complete your petition. Completed petitions should be returned to the
appropriate advising office.
Petitions are often denied. A common reason is insufficient justification or lack of documentation. Petitions are typically used in asking for a favor in saying that we should not apply the rules to you. What is special about your circumstances? Please note that the mere fact that you “need” something in order to graduate by a certain date is NOT a special circumstance.
25) What happens if I repeat a course at the community college that
I received a “D” or “E” in at ASU?
The credit transfers back to ASU but not the grade. So, if you received an E in
calculus at ASU and then received an A in it later at a community college, ASU
will not force you to repeat calculus here. However, your ASU GPA will be based
on only the E at ASU. You can still re-take the course at ASU to improve your
GPA, but you will only get credit for the course once.
26) What do I need to do to change my major?
Students who need assistance searching for major options at ASU may meet with a University
College Academic Advising Services advisor. We can help students explore
different major requirements, and how your current and/or completed college
credits will apply to different majors.
If you already have one specific major in mind, it would benefit you to speak directly with an academic advisor in that major department. Please visit our ASU Academic Advising Directory to locate the appropriate advisor/office who can assist you with your new major.
ASU policy restricts students who are not in Good Academic Standing (see chart below) from changing their major outside of their current college.
| Total Earned Hours | Minimum Cumulative GPA to be in Academic Good Standing |
| 24 or fewer | 1.60 |
| 25-55 | 1.75 |
| 56 or more | 2.00 |
Some departments may require higher grade point averages or have other restrictions for students hoping to change their major.