Advisement and Orientation

[easybreezy]

Hey everyone! So, good news I got into my top choice school.  I've received my official acceptance letter and completed some preliminary tasks (i.e. immunization form, proof of residency, etc.).  Now that I've completed that tasks, I was told to either go ahead and make an appointment with a general advisor as far as classes or to just wait until orientation.

I've figured that I want a one-on-one advisement that doesn't feel too rushed, so I'm thinking of going ahead and scheduling an appointment.  My question is what types of questions would you suggest asking the advisor?  Would you guys recommend solely taking the mandatory classes your first year or mix those general classes with classes related to your specific concentration?  Finally (for further down the line), what questions did you all ask at orientation? 

Thank you in advance!

[rising_star]

On 3/29/2016 at 7:20 PM, easybreezy said:

I've figured that I want a one-on-one advisement that doesn't feel too rushed, so I'm thinking of going ahead and scheduling an appointment.  My question is what types of questions would you suggest asking the advisor?  Would you guys recommend solely taking the mandatory classes your first year or mix those general classes with classes related to your specific concentration?  Finally (for further down the line), what questions did you all ask at orientation? 

This is going to be really program specific. Our orientation covered most of the things that you might think about asking, from getting an ID card to discounts available with a student ID to expectations for grads in the program and TAs more specifically. So, I wouldn't ask about those things because I'd assume that all of the major things you need to know will be covered in either the graduate school-wide or department-specific orientation. 

As for what classes to take, I'd consult with more experienced students in the program about their experiences. They'd know more about whether to take just the mandatory classes or not as they'll have recently made a similar decision.