Welcome to the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS)! We are looking forward to seeing you at our New Student Orientation (NSO) events this Winter!
If you have general questions about New Student Orientation (NSO), please visit the Orientation and Transitions Program (OTP) website.
Meet Your ​​​​​College
You have received an invitation to sign up for a Meet Your College session in your student portal, My Blue Hen Home. At this session, you will join Academic Advisors from the College of Arts and Sciences, and other students, to learn about our College, your general degree requirements, how advising works in our College, and what to expect at your individual advising appointment. Please plan to attend the Meet Your College session before attending your individual advising appointment.
​​Academic Advising Appointment
Beginning in early December, your College of Arts and Sciences Academic Advisor will email you with information and a link to schedule your individual academic advising appointment. Here is some information to help you prepare:
UD Email​​
You must set up your UD email address so you can receive your Advisor's invitation to schedule your advising appointment. Instructions for setting up your UD email are in your student portal, My Blue Hen Home. Please do this right away, and check your UD email regularly.
Pre-Advisement ​​​Survey
You have received a link (also found in My Blue Hen Home) to an online Pre-Advisement Survey that you are required to complete. The survey will ask about your AP credit, transfer credit, language background, and your interests in breadth courses. This information will help your Advisor, during your NSO advising appointment, determine what courses are best for you to take during your first semester at UD. It will take you about 10-20 minutes to complete the survey. Not completing the survey may put you at risk for not being registered for Spring courses, so please complete it right away.
Breadth Courses​
Please use this list to review breadth courses. You can also find current course offerings and availability by looking in Courses Search and WebReg. You can discuss these courses when you meet with your Advisor.
Math Placement​​
If you haven't already completed your Math Placement Program, you will need to do so as soon as possible and before your advising appointment. You can access it through your student portal, My Blue Hen Home. Please note that your Math course registration is entirely dependent on your performance on this exam and your intended major. It is important for you to take the exam seriously. If you do not take the exam prior to your advising appointment, you will be at risk for not being registered for Spring courses, so please complete it right away.
If your desired major is different than your declared major, you should pursue the placement score for your desired major. See the minimum and preferred scores for each major.
Students are permitted to take the exam up to three times, so if you don't earn the score you need for your major, please take it again prior to advisement. Please note: to repeat the exam, 5-20 hours of guided preparation are required before re-testing.
Transfer Credits​​
Students who have taken courses before matriculating to UD in the Spring 2021 semester: please review detailed information about steps to take before advisement.
Please be sure to have an official copy of your transcript sent directly from the other college/university to the UD Registrar's Office. Paper copies should be sent to: Office of Undergraduate Admissions, University Visitors Center, 210 S. College Avenue, Newark, DE 19716. Electronic copies should be emailed to: admissions@udel.edu. If possible, it would also be helpful if you have an unofficial transcript that you could refer to during your advising appointment.​​​
AP & IB Credits​​
If you have taken any AP or Higher Level IB exams in high school, please list the subjects and scores (if known) on the Pre-Advisement Survey. If you don't know your scores yet, that is fine. You will be able to discuss your AP exams with your Academic Advisor during your advising appointment. See how your exam scores equate to UD credits and course equivalents​. Be sure to have official scores sent to the University of Delaware, so your credits can become part of your UD record.
Semester Course Load (Finish in Four!)​
Students are considered full-time when they take at least 12 credits in a semester. A typical semester course load is 4-5 courses (14-16 credits). Students who take 15 or more credits every semester are more likely to graduate in four years, so we strongly encourage you to take at least 15 credits each semester.
Registration for the Spring Semester​​​
When you meet with your Advisor, you will discuss the best course choices for your first semester at UD. You and your Advisor will create a list of the courses that are recommended for the Spring semester. After your advising appointment, you will be able to register for Spring courses.
Please be aware that there is no guarantee that you will get your first choice for courses outside your major or for specific class times/sections. Time conflicts with required courses in your major may make it impossible to be enrolled in one of your top choices; this is why we ask you to select several choices in each of the four different breadth areas on the Pre-Advisement Survey. It is important that you answer the Pre-Advisement Survey completely and give your Advisor as many course choices as possible. Think broadly about your interests, and prepare to be flexible about your Spring course selections.​​​
​Questions about CAS NSO Eve​nts and Academic Advising
Before your Academic Advisor contacts you, you can email your questions to us at nso-advise@art-sci.edu. After you receive an email from your Academic Advisor, they will be your main contact person for these questions, and you can email them directly.
Thank you for preparing for your advising appointment and your Spring semester at UD! The CAS advising staff looks forward to meeting you!
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