First year students receive interim grades each semester. This semester interim grade reports are due by October 15 and some professors have already sent reports to their students. Students receive their interim grades via email, so students must check their washcoll.edu email account in order to see their interim grade reports. Interim grades do not appear on transcripts and are not included in grade point average calculations. Faculty may include comments with the grades and advisors receive copies of their advisees' interim grade reports.
Interim grades are a good snapshot of how a student is doing so far, and students should already have a pretty good idea of how they're doing based on feedback such as quiz and exam grades, grades and professor's comments on essays and papers, and conferences with professors. Some students, though, may be surprised or disappointed to discover that they are not doing as well as they thought they were.
Students whose interim grades are poor but who are uncertain about how to improve should meet with their professors as soon as possible. Faculty genuinely want students to master course material and do well. They are happy to advise students about how to improve and to work with students who need help or clarification of course material or expectations for assignments. Students can see professors during their office hours—drop in times, no appointment needed—or make an appointment to see them.
Students with poor interim grades can also expect to hear from their advisor, who may want to meet to discuss what they can do to improve. Students should consider this request to meet as an opportunity, not a punitive sanction. Advisors also want to see their students succeed; they're happy to give advice and encouragement and to refer students to academic resources and other on-campus supports.
In many courses, much of the work that determines a student's final grade is due during the second half of the semester. So students with poor interim grades shouldn't be discouraged; there is time to improve, though the work will get harder and the assignments more demanding. And students with good interim grades shouldn't rest on their success so far but should continue to work to meet the demands and expectations of their courses.
Though it seems like the fall semester has just begun, students will soon begin registering for Spring 2009 courses. Students must meet with their advisor to discuss their academic plans and choose their courses; students cannot register for courses without meeting with their advisor. Advising day for first year students is November 5, though some advisors may arrange to meet with their students earlier. Thursday and Friday, November 6 and 7, and Monday, November 10, are also available for advising first year students. Course choices are entered randomly, beginning on November 11, so there is no advantage for students in meeting with their advisor before November 5.
Advisors usually email their advisees about setting up an advising appointment, though some may post a sign-up sheet for advising times on their office door or with their faculty secretary. It is the student's responsibility to schedule and attend a meeting with his or her advisor.
At their meeting with their advisor, students will complete a program card listing the courses they want to take and including alternative choices. Program cards are due in the Registrar's Office by 4:30 on Monday, November 10. It is the student's responsibility to bring this program card to the Registrar's Office after their meeting with their advisor.
First year students' course choices will be entered after upper class students have been registered. So some first year students will not get their first choice of courses. We encourage first year students to be flexible and to consider several different combinations of four courses for next semester. Students can check which courses have openings on the Registrar's Office web site (http://registrar.washcoll.edu/); that information will be updated at the end of the day on November 4.
By Friday, November 14 students and advisors will be notified if they have been closed out of any courses. The week of November 17 is set aside for these students to meet with their advisors again and add courses to complete their schedule. Advisors will work with students to make sure that they can register for appropriate courses; good communication with advisors is the key to a good course registration process for first year students.
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