Mason Families

Help Your Student Plan Ahead- Academic Advising Tips

Pre-registration for the fall 2016 semester is right around the corner.  Undergraduate students preregister from April 5 to April 15 with seniors being April 7 and freshmen on April 15. Prior to registering, your student should visit Patriot Web to verify his or her registration time ticket and prepare by scheduling a meeting with an academic advisor. Your student can request an appointment with an advisor in person or by e-mail, phone, or through the online appointment system.

Encourage your student to reach out to an advisor early to increase the availability of meeting times prior to registration. If your student is unsure of how to contact an advisor, he or she can consult the advisor locator.

Before meeting with an advisor, your student can consult several Mason resources to review planning sheets, course offerings and degree requirements. These resources include:

  • Academic Planning SheetsThis resource is especially helpful if your student has not declared a major.  The academic planning sheets can assist your student in reviewing degree requirements for several different majors.
  • Patriot WebBy utilizing Patriot Web, your student can view his or her transcript and review the degree evaluation. Instructions for accessing the degree evaluation planner can be found on the University Registrar website (link to: http://registrar.gmu.edu/students/degree-evaluation/degree-works/).
  • Plan for Fall 2016: Also on Patriot Web, your student can plan his or her fall 2016 semester schedule by reviewing the course offerings. This information is found in the Student Services section.

If your student has questions about the registration process encourage them to visit the registrar website or contact their academic advisor to learn more. Remember, students who register on time get better opportunities to get the classes they need!

Ann Lewis
Assistant Dean
Center for Academic Advising, Retention, and Transitions

Important Dates for March

March 1FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) priority filing deadline
March 1Immunization record deadline
March 7 - 13Spring Break

Student Resource: The Writing Center

The George Mason University Writing Center provides free one-on-one tutoring for Mason students, faculty and staff. We are ready to work with your student at any step of the writing process, from brainstorming for topic ideas and building a thesis to citing sources and polishing a final draft.

Tutors provide writers with feedback on their drafts and with strategies for drafting, revising and editing. The goal is to support students as they write in their majors and prepare them to write in professional settings. All professionals, whether they are in the academic, non-profit, public or private sectors, put their high-stakes documents through cycles of feedback and revision. The Writing Center encourages students to begin this habit of soliciting feedback while they are still in school.

Writing Center tutors come from an array of disciplines including accounting, biology, creative writing, criminology, economics, engineering, global affairs and psychology. With this diverse group we can work with students on any kind of writing: essays, research papers, memos, proposals, resumes, cover letters, creative writing and personal statements for graduate school.

All tutors are trained to work with multilingual writers, and the center also has three ESL specialist tutors.

We offer face-to-face appointments at four different locations on the Fairfax campus, as well as on the Arlington campus. For added convenience, we also provide email and video sessions. During the academic year, the Writing Center is open Monday through Friday and on Sunday afternoons in Fairfax, and on Tuesdays in Arlington. Students may make up to fifteen appointments each semester.

Your Mason student can make a face-to-face or online appointments at writingcenter.gmu.edu. The website also provides many great writing resources including over sixty quick-guides. If your student is looking for feedback on any step of the writing process, encourage him or her to visit the Writing Center’s main location in Robinson A, room 114 or to reach out to [email protected] with any questions.

Kristin Brida
Tutor
University Writing Center

Important Dates for March

March 1FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) priority filing deadline
March 1Immunization record deadline
March 7 - 13Spring Break