August 2008
Dear New Students,
My name is Mary Cisar. As Registrar, my goal is to make sure you get off to a good start on your St. Olaf academic program. In your Binder, you've already received a letter from me introducing the Registrar's Office and our general education curriculum. In this message, I provide some additional important details designed to help you navigate the academic pieces of new student orientation (Week One) and your registration for first semester.
What should I have done so far?
By now, you should have:
- Received and read the Binder you received in May, and returned
all necessary forms. - Set up your St. Olaf account.
- Completed all relevant placement exams.
- By August 15, please also submit your choices for GE 111 or Religion 121, following the instructions sent to you by Cheryl LaCroix of the Academic Advising Center.
If you have not completed one or more of these steps, please do so immediately, using instructions from the Binder or from emails sent from Cheryl LaCroix, Academic Advising Center. If you have any questions, please contact Cheryl at lacroix@stolaf.edu or me at cisar@stolaf.edu.
What academic information can I access through my St. Olaf account?
You can practice checking your account on the Student Information System (SIS).
As you do this, please be aware that we are still editing and proofing entries for AP and PSEO credits. What appears on your record this summer is subject to change.
With that in mind, you may check your student account as follows:
Go to the SIS: http://www.stolaf.edu/sis and log in.
Click on "Courses and Grades" on left side to see your current registration.
To check pre-college credits, pull down the menu on the right and click on "degree audit."
If you have any questions about either of these parts of your record, Katherine Baker (bakerk@stolaf.edu), Cheryl LaCroix (lacroix@stolaf.edu), and/or I will be available to answer them on Sunday afternoon, August 31, 2008 as part of the Registration Planning Workshop. See http://www.stolaf.edu/stulife/weekone/sundaywednesday/ for details about this important workshop.
Is there anything else I can do to prepare for registration before arriving on campus?
I would like to call your attention to an important resource, now ready for your use: Academic Resources: A Guide for Students and Advisers. This is an introduction to the St. Olaf Academic Catalog, the Class and Lab Schedule, the Registrar's Office web site, and much more. The Guide is available at http://www.stolaf.edu/offices/registrar/Academic-Resources-Guide-Word-Format-8-06.pdf. Please spend some time studying the Guide and exploring the resources.
What happens during Week One orientation?
Several pieces of orientation week, which we call Week One, are designed to help you plan your academic program and to get you ready for registration. There are other activities on the schedule as well. Please consult the Week One website, http://www.stolaf.edu/stulife/weekone/ , for further details. These REQUIRED sessions that pertain to academic planning and registration are:
* the picnic with your adviser (Saturday afternoon, August 30, after the
Welcome Ceremony)
*
the Registration Planning Workshop (Sunday afternoon, August 31)
* the Language and Liberal Arts Breakfast (Monday morning, September 1)
* the Department Information Sessions (Monday morning)
* individual adviser/advisee appointments (Monday afternoon)
* registration (Tuesday morning, by appointment, between 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.)
What other resources are available to help me prepare for academics at St. Olaf?
Consult the Week One website for details about these sessions:
*
Monday, September 1, 1-5p.m.: Additional Help with Schedule Planning (optional)
*
Tuesday, September 2, 1-5 p.m.: Meeting Academic Challenges at St. Olaf (optional but highly recommended opportunity to learn about developing excellent study habits right from the beginning)
*
Statement about General Education at St. Olaf, contained in the Binder.
*Idendity and Mission for the 21st Center (re:liberal arts at St. Olaf):
http://www.stolaf.edu/church/identity/index.html
http://www.stolaf.edu/church/identity/liberalarts.html
*Academic Resources: A Guide for New Students and Advisers:
http://www.stolaf.edu/offices/registrar/Academic-Resources-Guide-Word-Format-8-06.pdf
*The Registrar Website: <http://www.stolaf.edu/offices/registrar>