New Media

Meeting With Your Advisor

Can I just stop by to see my advisor at her or his office? *
Most advisors are very busy during pre-registration period. Your advisor will probably contact you to let you know how to reserve an advising timeslot. However, if you haven’t heard within a week of your registration date, please contact your advisor or Velma to let them know.

*Year 2020-2021: Advising can be done via Zoom, but you will need to look out for Advisor emails setting up time slots for advising. In order to accommodate all students in a short time frame, please be prepared with a Wish List of courses for your major, minor and GenEds.

Winter Sessions use the Spring PIN and register at the same time.

Can I use my May term or Summer term PIN number to sign up for courses held the following Fall?
No. Students who have signed up for May and summer courses still need to see their advisor for fall classes, including non-New Media classes

Registering

When I see a deadline for “senior registration” etc., does that mean the deadline for students who are or who will be seniors?
Students who are seniors now. The deadlines pertain to your standing now, not next semester.

Technically, you register on the day corresponding to the number of credit hours you have accumulated. To find out how many hours you need to have sophomore, junior, or senior standing, visit the Deadlines page or look at your Student Center on MaineStreet.

Graduating

How can I be sure I have enough credits to graduate on time?
Use the “Degree Progress” and look for any red text that indicates something is missing. If you use the Maine Street Planner (highly advised), then you can schedule your courses ahead of time and use the “Plan by Requirement” button to check if all of your planned courses add up to graduation.

Computerized degree audits are also available from the Office of Student Records in Wingate Hall.

How do I satisfy the Bachelor of Arts (BA) Degree upper-level course requirement? Take three courses that are

• Courses with a prerequisite.
• At 200 level or above.
• A total of 9 credit-hours (such as three standard courses).

• Inside your major (see exception below).
• Used to satisfy Gen Ed requirements.

• Courses cross-listed with New Media that you didn’t take as a NMD courses (eg, if you took digital music as MUS250 instead of NMD250).
• Used to satisfy ethics or writing intensive requirements (such as ENG 317).

I’m a graduating senior in my last semester. Do I need still to set up an advising appointment when everyone else does?
No, but you should check with Student Records to confirm that you have enough credits to graduate. Also, if you receive financial aid, you may need to set up an exit interview.

Seniors in their next to last semester will still need a PIN number from their advisor to register for their final courses (such as NMD Capstone II).

First Year Majors

Your schedule will likely be set up for you if you declare a New Media major in your first year. You can also get in touch with your advisor or the New Media Admin Assistant Velma Figgins (see NMD contact on this website) to check on your courses.

 

Other Years

It is very helpful to use the Curriculum chart to set up your course, semester by semester,  in the MaineStreet Planner. First put in all your Major classes, then add core for your minor, the add some GedEd choices. You can leave some possible choice in the “Unscheduled” top box for use later. Then you can select the “Plan by my Requirements” button at the stop to see if you can graduate with all the courses in our Planner. Your Planner will allow you to “move” course from one semester to another, so it’s a great tool for advising. 

You should then create  Wish list based on your Planner, with options in the “Unscheduled” area.

Grade Options

If I audit a course, how does that affect my standing as a full-time student?

AUDITS DO NOT COUNT TOWARD FULL-TIME STANDING. If a student does not have FT standing, that will affect financial aid and/or housing eligibility. Also, loan repayments will not be deferred as they are for FT students.

This will also affect students who begin the term with the grade option but want to switch to audit later. In most such cases, the student would be better off to withdraw than to change to audit status.

Pass/Fail and developmental classes (university but not graduation credit) DO count toward Full-Time Standing, but may affect athletic eligibility. 

*Year 2020-2021:

Pass/Fail and course withdrawal policy and procedure for Fall 2020 are:

Pass/Fail
1. Students will have one week after grades are posted to select the P/F option. The deadline for posting grades in MaineStreet is December 26, so the deadline for selecting the P/F option is January 2, 2021. You can select P/F for one or more fall courses by completing an online form that will be made available through the Office of Student Records on December 14, 2020. Do not submit the form until final grades have been posted. Students are encouraged to discuss their grading choices with their academic advisor.
2. Pass/Fail grades will follow the definitions in the Faculty Handbook, which are:
a. LP, Low Pass, for a course passed on the pass/fail grading option
equivalent to a D+, D, or D-. Credit is earned, but the grade point average
(GPA) is not affected.
b. P, Pass, for a course passed on the pass/fail grading option equivalent to a
C- or above. Credit is earned, but the grade point average (GPA) is not
affected. Students will need to consult with Faculty about requirements
necessary to earn a Pass.
c. F, Failed means that no credit is earned and the GPA is not affected.
3. With this policy and procedure, the university will allow students to take multiple courses P/F. A P/F course will be treated as a graded course for the purpose of degree completion and coded by Student Records to allow the course to meet requirements within allowable limits (e.g., a P may be required as opposed to a LP).
4. P/F courses will not count in the GPA. A grade of P will not meet a “C+ or higher” prerequisite requirement. For Fall 2020, a grade of P will be counted as a C rather than a C-.
5. Once you have chosen a P/F for a course, there is no-opt out. From that point the course will remain P/F.
6. Please note: in some majors, a P will not satisfy licensure or accreditation requirements.
Also, the transfer of a P or LP grade to another academic institution will depend on that institution’s transfer policies. If you have questions, please contact a faculty member, professional advisor, department chair, associate dean, or dean. They are all here to assist you in making this choice.
7. Faculty members and professional advisors will communicate with students to ensure that each is aware of the opportunity to select P/F in one or more courses by January 2, 2021.

Course withdrawal
1. Students may choose to drop a course and receive a W grade (withdrawal) without academic penalty. The deadline for dropping is 4 p.m. on December 11, 2020. To drop a course, contact the associate dean or director of your department or college to get an official course add/drop request form and the required signatures. Check with your academic department for its procedure. Please note: Courses dropped will show on the student’s academic record with a grade of W. The grade will not be computed into the semester average as a failing grade. (Bottom line: It is costly to pay for courses and drop them, but sometimes you may need to drop a course to reduce stress. Please see your academic advisor if you have questions.)
2. Please note: students need to maintain 6 or more credit hours to keep their student loans deferred. Because each situation varies, students who receive financial aid should contact the Office of Student Financial Aid in person (Wingate Hall) by phone (207-581-1324), or at http://www.umaine.edu/stuaid. If you have a scholarship, check with the provider about any special stipulations. Special conditions may apply to international students and student athletes. They are encouraged to contact staff in the Office of International
Programs (Stodder Hall, 207-581-3437, http://www.umaine.edu/international) and Academic Support Services for Student Athletes (207-581-1833), respectively, with any questions.
3. Dropping a course may affect your academic standing or eligibility to live on campus. You are encouraged to talk with an academic advisor and a representative of Residence Life or the Director of Housing at 207-581-4580 (http://umaine.edu/rlp) to determine your status if you drop a course.