Advising

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering is committed to providing academic advising to support its MS students education and professional development. When most effective, this advising relationship entails collaborative engagement by the advisor and the advisee. As a best practice, advising expectations should be discussed and reviewed to ensure mutual understanding. Both the advisor and the advisee are expected to maintain professionalism and integrity.

At the start of graduate study, each student is assigned a master’s program academic advisor who is a member of department faculty or lecturer. This advisor is intended to guide course selection and in exploring academic opportunities and professional pathways.  The program advisor is available to meet at the student’s request at any time  during the student's degree program. It is up to the student to determine the necessary support needed and initiate any meetings. If the student decides to pursue the MS thesis option, they may request to officially name their faculty research advisor as their MS program advisor during the declaration process.

One suggested timeline for advising meetings would be as follows: The first meeting between the program advisor and student  would occur in autumn quarter of the first year to discuss the student’s goals and objectives. Student and program advisor would meet again in the spring quarter of the first year to discuss the student’s course plans and goals for the next academic year. In the second year, and prior to the quarter of degree completion, the student and advisor would meet to review plans for the final quarter of study. The last meeting would allow both parties to review the student’s coursework and any remaining degree requirements. It is expected that the student initiates all meetings and allows flexibility for the advisor’s schedule.

In addition, the faculty Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) welcomes the incoming MS cohort during Orientation at the start of the first year. They are available during the academic year by email and/or appointment for any questions or concerns that can’t be addressed by the student’s primary academic program advisor. The DGS or program advisor may initiate a meeting with any student they feel could be in academic distress.

The MSE Student Services team is also essential to the master’s advising team. They inform students and advisers about university and department requirements, procedures, and opportunities and maintain the official records of advising assignments and approvals. Specifically, the Student Services Officer for MS students will approve program proposals, exception requests, and other academic petitions.

Finally, the department believes that graduate students are active contributors to the advising relationship, proactively seeking academic and professional guidance and taking responsibility for informing themselves of policies and degree requirements for their graduate program. As such, it expects students to read the MATSCI Graduate Handbook and any updates sent from the Student Services Office, which provides deadlines, web links, and other valuable information on graduate degree progress.

See Graduate Advising for a statement of university policy on graduate advising.