Spring Advisement Tips
Since Spring advisement is happening now, we want to help you prepare for your advising appointment and upcoming registration! Your class scheduling for the spring will be a bit different from fall because it won’t be completely laid out for you ahead of time. Instead, you’ll get to be more active in the advisement and course selection process. We don’t want you to be overwhelmed or feel alone in this process, so we have created a checklist of things to do before, during and after your academic advisement meeting.
Before your meeting:
- Take a look at your major’s curriculum and become familiar with the requirements and
prerequisites. You can find them in the 2023-2024 undergraduate catalog and your Degree
Works audit.
- Review Degree Works, a degree audit system, that shows what courses you have already taken (and in progress
of) and how those work for your major; this tool will also show what additional classes
need to be taken to fulfill your degree requirements. If you are thinking of changing
your major, this tool also lets you plan "what if" scenarios to see how the classes
you've already taken will fit into other majors. (Eagle Online (click to open) > then Student tab > then Student Records link > Degree Works link > click the button
to open Degree Works)
- Pick four to six classes that fit within your program of study for the following semester.
If you have credit hour requirements for a scholarship or financial aid, make sure
you have enough classes to reach those requirements. Also, if you have options for
electives then use these credit hours to explore courses that could be of interest
to you and benefit your personal growth or hobbies.
- Set up a meeting time with your academic advisor through TechConnect. Make sure to add it to your calendar so you don’t forget, and most importantly, plan to arrive on-time!
During your meeting:
- Bring your list of desired classes and be prepared to discuss those with your advisor.
Your advisor will check to make sure that you’ve completed prerequisites and may suggest
alternative class options.
- Be open to your advisor’s input and discuss any questions or concerns you may have.
They are here to help and guide you in the right direction.
- Communicate any long-term goals you want to discuss. This allows your advisor to better
support you.
- If you’re interested in picking up a minor or even double major, take some time to
ask them about those requirements. You will also want to discuss how that may impact
your timeline to graduation.
- Add your finalized class choices to Schedule Planner and verify that those courses
don’t overlap. Schedule Planner will create multiple schedule options, so take some
time to look through them and pick the one that would work best for you. Once you’ve
selected one of the schedules, add it to your registration cart to save it for registration
day. You can access Schedule Planner from within your TechExpress (express.tntech.edu) QuickLinks. Just look for the "Planner" icon.
- Make sure to get your Alternate PIN and registration time. Write them down so you don’t forget! You won’t be able to register for classes without it.
After your meeting:
- Feel free to email your advisor if you come up with other questions or if you have
difficulties with Eagle Online or Schedule Planner.
- Double check that your desired schedule is showing up in Eagle Online from your Schedule
Planner cart.
- Register for your classes right at or after your given time. Classes will fill up
quick, so don’t wait too long. If your registration time is during a class, register
right after that class.
Advisement can be exciting and stressful, but you have your advisor to walk you through
the process. Take advantage of this one-on-one meeting to set yourself up for success
and build a professional relationship with your advisor. They are a great resource
and can provide answers to most questions. They can also connect you with other departments
that may be better equipped to assist you.
Locating Your Academic Advisor:
- Login to TechConnect through your TechExpress portal.
- Look for the "Connect" icon in your TechExpress QuickLinks.
- Once logged in, locate "Your Success Team" section on the student home screen. Your advisor should be listed here.
- Then click on the "Make an Appointment" button to follow the prompts to schedule an appointment. If you do not see any times available for your advisor, you can click on the mail icon under their name on the "Your Success Team" to message them to determine how to setup an appointment.
