It is important to carefully prepare for your advisement appointment with your advisor. He or she cannot adequately help you if you do not properly prepare. Complete the following steps prior to your advisement appointment.

Student Responsibilities

• Prepare for advising session
• Review your degree progress using DegreeWorks
• Have a list of courses you plan to take next semester
• Have a copy of your degree requirements for your minor
• Prepare a list of questions and concerns to discuss with your advisor
• Review the  Undergraduate Bulletin
• Schedule and attend academic advising appointment
• Schedule your advising appointment online using EAB Navigate. If you can't make your scheduled appointment, reschedule in a timely manner. Email your advisor if you have any issues!
• You must meet with your academic advisor each semester before you will be able to register for courses. Your hold will not be lifted until you meet with your advisor.
• Meetings are available virtually or in person. Virtual meetings are held on Microsoft Teams, so be sure to download the Microsoft Teams app and login with your USC credentials. In-person meetings are held in Barnwell, Suite 237. All scheduled appointments include confirmation details.
• In addition to registration advising, you can schedule additional appointments with your advisor throughout the year to get assistance with other issues/concerns and consultation on your academic plans and options.Visit the college website often for information on academic dates, policies and procedures
• The University of South Carolina Registrar’s Office assigns each student a date to register for classes. Students may check their scheduled registration date on the Self Service Carolina registration system.
• Accept responsibility for your decisions and actions. Seek assistance and ask questions when needed. 

As a new psychology major, you will be placed in Lower Division.

Please note that all transfer students, despite their status in the former school, are placed in lower division for at least one semester.

There are progression requirements which must be completed during the first forty-five credit hours as a declared psychology major:

• Students must complete the following courses:
• PSYC 101 (Introduction to Psychology)
• PSYC 120 (Professional Development in Psychology)
• PSYC 220 (Psychological Statistics)
• PSYC 221 (Research Methods in Psychology)
• Achievement of at least a 2.25 cumulative USC grade point average.

GROUP ADVISING SESSION:  Only during the New Student Orientation Advising Session, , you will participate in a large group session. Otherwise, you will be in one-on-one personal advising appointments.

The large group session will cover information which all majors need to know and provides an opportunity to ask questions. You will then be individually advised by an undergraduate academic advisor. The staff advisor already has your records and will discuss your course needs with you at that time.

Students will be assigned an academic advisor by the end of the Summer and will remain with that advisor until graduated.

After successful completion of the progression requirements within your first forty-five hours in the major, you will be moved into Upper Division and  remain assigned to your undergraduate academic advisor. 

The Advisement process will remain the same with one-on-one personal advising.  

Minor and Cognates

Please note to your students that they must have a minor or cognate to graduate. If they are pursuing a double major, a minor or cognate is not necessary. If they are pursuing a double degree, the student will need to choose a minor or cognate to graduate. 

The different between a double major and double degree follows:

• It is a double major if the students' other course of study is a major within the College of Arts and Sciences, such as English.
• A double degree is when a student takes a second major outside of the College of Arts and Sciences, such as Business.

Students must earn a "C" or better for a class to count towards a minor or cognate. Note that pre-med, pre-law and pre-pharmacy cannot be minors. They can qualify as cognates but classes must be taken at the appropriate level.

Notes on Cognates

Please note to your students who choose the cognate option that most areas of study require them to take courses at the 300-level. 

• For example, if a student wants to pursue an "education cognate," all their courses should start at the 300-level and higher.
• There are exceptions to this rule such as philosophy cognates which can begin at the 200-level. The exceptions can be found in the student handbook.

Minor Bulletin

• Encourage your students to choose a minor as soon as possible. Some minors require classes which are only offered in certain semesters or require prerequisites. The current minor bulletin can be found on the Undergraduate Bulletin.

Senior Checks

Students are advised to get a senior check done for them the semester before the semester they plan to graduate (so if they are graduating in May of any given year, they should do their senior check in the previous fall semester).

This way, the undergraduate office in combination with the Dean's office can catch any errors in the student's file or warn them of classes they need to finish in order to graduate.

Waiting until the semester of graduation poses a risk of not being able to sign up for a class that might be needed for graduation.