Hi!! I️ am wondering what SOAR will be like and kind of the general outline of it. I️ am also wondering what advisors are like, if they work a lot of people who have already took college classes. Yes, i️ know a lot of people have but I have 49+ credits going into madison already and i️ don’t want to somehow end up taking classes just to take them, i️ am already advanced and i️ wanna keep it that way! Thanks in advance:)))
I️ want to add, i’m in no way bashing or questioning the ability of the advisors i’m just wondering if they work with and can help people that are starting with all of their gen ed and most breadth requirements done.
@babybadger11 Lower your expectations about how much the “advisors” will do for you. They will not hold your hand. Come prepared and do the research in advance which I strongly advise. Visit your school dept’s website and determine what pre-reqs you still need. Your biggest issue is with 49 credits coming in you in all likelihood will already be at the 300 level course level for some classes. This is where you will get screwed since sophs, juniors will have already registered and the classes you want will be filled. Do give up. Get on the waitlist. And remember you can still add, drop, and reshuffle your schedule after SOAR.
SOAR starts with all students and their parents together. There’s a general welcome and an overview of what to expect. After the general session, students will be separated from their parents, and go with the advising group they signed-up with for SOAR. There is separate programming for parents while students are with their advising unit. The most popular schools/majors (Engineering, Business, L&S) have fairly large groups of students at SOAR. Every school or college with have peer advisors and professional advisors working with students at SOAR. Once you go with your advising group you’ll get an overview of the school/college etc you chose to go with. They’ll outline the requirements for a degree, give a demonstration of the enrollment tools, and then you’ll have time to look for classes and start building a schedule. Many, I repeat, many students come to UW with a ton of credit as freshman, so you are not unique - advisors see it all the time and know how to work with students that have AP/IB/Dual Enrollment credit. You will not be enrolling in classes just to enroll in classes, you’ll be advised to take courses required for your degree (not all credit earned while in high school fulfills degree requirements). Many programs save seats in upper level classes for SOAR, so that if they have a student that is ready for advanced courses they will have spots for then to enroll. By the end of the first day, you should have identified courses that you’ll be enrolling in. There will be evening programming for both parents and students. On day two of SOAR you will return to your advising unit, there may be some more programming information presented, then you’ll finish up creating a schedule. If you need to see a consultant (language placement, math placement etc.) you’ll see them the second morning. All students begin enrolling at the same time at SOAR. Once you’ve successfully enrolled in courses a professional advisor will go over your schedule with you. After that their is an activities fair then you’ll meet back up with your family for closing ceremony.
Son was in the Honors Program and had an Honors advisor. He was a UW professor (one of the many jobs they have in addition to teaching and research is advising students). Son told me he was not only advised on classes but also told how to get into a full class - the above about once classes start (he ended up choosing to not bother with the one credit class). Other L&S students will get other advisors, hopefully with major based knowledge (one reason to have a declared major). UW may be a huge school but it has humans who care in charge.
It has been years since my son had SOAR (and eons since my experience as a student). The above schedule sounds familiar. But- while some things change, a lot remains the same. The separation of students and parents was great. I do recommend that even parents who have gone to UW or are from the local area attend the parents’ sessions. Saves a lot of question asking of their student (who may/may not be helpful). Parents have no say in what their kids choose. You tell them what you are doing as a college student- adult behavior (versus needing parental input in HS).
My assumption is that UW professors still do SOAR advising. They know the ins and outs of the system (and how to work it to a student’s advantage). Your advisor may not be in your particular major but will be familiar with courses freshman take.
You will be done with Admissions. You will become part of the UW student body. SOAR will cover a lot of things and then you will also be done with that.
Do spend time before SOAR looking at the UW info for your major and courses to take. Be prepared with several choices for electives to meet requirements before you go to SOAR. Be flexible. All students need to make compromises with their ideal schedules, even senior year.
@wis75 no sorry, professors do not advise at SOAR. Professional academic advisors and peer advisors do all the advising at SOAR. Even the honors program has professional advisors, no faculty.
Parent of very recent grad – for a L&S Honors student, SOAR advising was thorough and helpful. There was regular L&S advising and Honors advising, and student fell well-prepared to register. As my student progressed through UW, as a double major in the Honors program, the Honors and departmental advisors were very responsive and helpful.
How do you access the link for honors program? I’ve heard that every student admitted to L&S can apply for Honors, but I have not received the link.
For Honors application, there is usually a separate email sent to you, with the link for the application. The deadline fore submitting the application is specific to you, based on your date of acceptance to UW. The application, in the past, has been basic demographic and EC info plus several essays which my kid, at least, found fun to write.