Academic Calendar
Colleges & Programs
Testing Information
Academic Success Resources
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Time: A Precious Resource Time management skills play a vital role in the success of students. Your ability to learn effective time management skills will greatly aid you in achieving your academic and personal goals. The following ideas, taken from Becoming A Master Student, are some suggestions for effective time management: Schedule fixed blocks of time first. Start with class time and work time, for instance. These time periods are usually determined in advance. Other activities must be scheduled around them. Then schedule essential daily activities like sleeping and eating. Be realistic about how much time you take for these functions. Include time for errands. The time we spend paying bills, buying groceries, and doing laundry is easy to overlook. These little errands can destroy a tight schedule, so plan for them. Schedule time for fun. Fun is important. New information and ideas are challenging to your mind and you need to take time to digest them. Take time for you. Recreation and relaxation deserves to be a priority in your life. Set realistic goals. Don’t set yourself up for failure by attempting to do a four-hour assignment in two hours. Plan accordingly and establish goals that are SMART (Simple, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time Oriented). No matter what, there are only 168 hours in a week. Allow flexibility in your schedule. Expect the unexpected. Despite good planning, unexpected things will happen. Leave some room in your schedule for unplanned time. Consider setting aside time each week marked “flex time” or “open time.” You can use this time for emergencies, spontaneous activities, and catching up. Study two hours for every hour in class. Standard advice suggests that you allow two hours of study time for every hour you spend in class. If you are taking 15 credit hours, plan to spend 30 hours per week studying. The benefits of following this rule will be apparent at exam time. Remember that this is a guideline. Some subjects may require more time, while others may require you to spend less time. No matter what, your study time needs to be focused time.
Avoid scheduling marathon study sessions.
You are better off to break your study sessions up. Three
three-hour sessions are far more productive for most people than one
nine-hour session. If it is necessary to study in longer sessions,
stop and rest for a few minutes every hour. Give your brain a
chance to take a break. Also, if you study in a large block of
time, work on several subjects and avoid studying similar subjects
back to back. For example, if you plan to study sociology,
psychology, and computer science, sandwich the computer course
between sociology and psychology. |
Words to Know at YSU
Add—To add an additional class after finalizing registration, a student must also use the change of registration process. Appropriate dates and the actual procedure can be found in the Schedule of Classes booklet. Audit—To attend and take notes in a class for background information purposes only. No credit or grade is received for classes taken for an audit. Bursar—see "Student Accounts and University Receivables." Canceled Class—A class that is filled during registration which requires a closed-class permit from the department chair in order to admit additional students. Closed Class—A class which during registration is filled and no more students are admitted unless the chairperson of the department offering the course issues a closed-class permit. Credit/No Credit—A student may elect to take one course per semester for credit/no credit provided he/she has completed at least 30 semester hours and has a grade point average of 2.00 or better. This option may be elected for a maximum of twelve (12) semester hours for a bachelor’s degree or six (6) semester hours for the associate degree. Dean’s List—Undergraduate students who have earned a 3.4 grade point average or better in a given semester. Final Exams—See final exam schedule in the YSU Schedule of Classes for the appropriate dates and times. Take-home exams may be given by an instructor; a student may use the text or any other pertinent information in completing such an exam. Full-Time Student—A student who is taking a minimum of 12 hours for credit per term. GPA—To calculate, add the number of hours for courses taken, multiply the point value of the grade (A = 4 points; B = 3 points; C = 2 points; D = 1 point; and F = 0 points) to determine the Quality Points, then divide the total Quality Points by the total number of course hours taken to arrive at the GPA (Grade Point Average).
Below is an example of how to calculate your GPA: Total Quality Points ÷ Total Course Hours = Grade Point Average Hours—The number of credit hours listed is comparable to the number of hours the class meets per week. Lab hours may not be reflected in credit hours. Incomplete—May be given to a student who has been doing satisfactory work in a course, but who for reasons beyond control and accepted by the teacher, has not completed all requirements for the course when grades are due. Incomplete grades must be made up/changed within a year or “I” converts to an “F”. Part-Time Student—A student who is taking less than 12 hours per term. Student Accounts and University Receivables—All student financial records are kept by the Bursar’s Office, which is located on the second floor of Meshel Hall. Student fees may be paid in person at this office.
Time—Used in the YSU
Schedule of Classes to indicate class time based on the 24-hour system. By subtracting 1200 from any time in the
Schedule of Classes, you can arrive at the Eastern Standard Time equivalent.
Below is an example of how to calculate military time: Withdrawal—The withdrawal from a single course or all courses is accomplished through the change of registration process. Failure to attend the class, or notifying the instructor or other faculty or staff, does not constitute withdrawal. Appropriate dates and deadlines concerning withdrawals can be found in the
Schedule of Classes booklet that is distributed each term before registration. |
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College Success
Tips The following suggestions for success in college are adapted from John Gardner and Jerome Jewler’s text, Your College Experience - Strategies for Success. These keys to success are also called persistence factors and have been identified by researchers as important for success in college and in life. The information contained in this manual can help you implement these suggestions. As a college student, you will have to take more responsibility for learning in and out of the classroom; however, the faculty and staff of Youngstown State University are here to help in any way they can. Just ask!
Find and get to know one individual on campus who knows you
are there and who cares about your survival.
One person is all it takes to help you become
connected to the University. YSU has formal programs that will
provide you with a peer assistant, a faculty/staff mentor, and an
advisor, or you may find your own support person along the way. The
Center for Student Progress is a campus resource that can put you in
touch with peer, faculty, or staff support. It is important to know
that there are many people on campus willing to guide you along the
path to success. Understand why you are in college. Your college experience will be more productive if you have specific goals you wish to accomplish each day, each quarter, each year. Writing down goals and setting deadlines that are realistic, specific, and yours alone will make them easier to achieve.
Set a daily/weekly schedule and stick to it.
This can actually be a stress reliever.
Setting aside, on a calendar or daily planner, specific times for
study, employment, and family can help you become more organized and
accomplish more. You may even find time you didn’t know you had.
The challenge is not to manage time, but to manage yourself. In
college you should set aside approximately two hours of study time
for every one hour you are in class. Being a full-time student can
be a full-time job. Improve your writing. Visit the Writing Center. Good writing will serve you well throughout your career. The Writing Center staff can help you hone your writing skills whether you’re writing for an English course or a History course.
Develop critical thinking skills.
Challenge. Ask why. Before coming to a
decision, look at issues from all viewpoints. Listen to others with
the intent to really understand that person and why he/she feels the
way he/she does. Be aware of your own background and emotions and
how they affect your responses. In so doing, listen very carefully
to those you are inclined to dislike and very critically to those
you are inclined to like. Visit Career and Counseling Services. Make an appointment with a career counselor as a first-year student. He/she can help you decide on a plan to make you more employable as a senior. At Career and Counseling Services, you can register with EASE CareerConnections, an automated system that connects you with the hundreds of local, regional, and national employers seeking YSU students and alumni.
Make one or two close friends among your peers.
College is a wonderful time to meet a great diversity of people.
Now that high school cliques are a thing of the past, you may find
that you have
many things in common with people you may never
have approached before. One or two close friends may be all it
takes to feel a sense of comfort and belonging on campus. Get involved in campus activities. You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take. Open yourself to as many academic and cultural activities as possible. Push yourself to get to activities that might not appeal to you at first glance. You may find that you learn a lot at no extra cost. Take your health seriously. Now that you control your life, make good decisions about your lifestyle. How much sleep you get, what you eat, whether you exercise, and your decisions about drugs, alcohol, and sex will contribute to how well you feel. Be good to yourself. Visit the Student Health Clinic at the first sign of illness. Sign up for campus recreation programs, and stop by the Andrews Student Recreation and Wellness Center to inquire about their wellness programs. Learn how to handle stress. Stress can’t be avoided. It’s your body’s natural response to the demands made upon it. You can learn to keep the negative effects of stress to a minimum. Changing your outlook on life is the most reliable and effective way of reducing stress about the things you cannot change. Of course, taking action—even small steps—with the things you can change will also make a difference. YSU’s Career and Counseling Services has dozens of handouts with suggestions of ways to deal with stress. Attendance, attendance, attendance. Show up for class. Show up for work. Show up for life. There is no substitute for being there. Remember that you are not alone. Thousands of first-year students face the same uncertainties you face. First-Year Student Services and your peer assistant can help you connect with students who are just like you, and students who can offer suggestions from having been where you are now. Learn to appreciate yourself. It’s not who we are that holds us back, it’s who we think we’re not. Take the time to think about your accomplishments. Think about all the times you had to begin anew: a new school, a new job, a new home. Think about your positive personal attributes. Place reminders of your successes in your study area to show yourself that you can do this.
Establish realistic expectations for yourself.
Begin slowly. Try to do a few things
well, not many things badly. If you experience failure, hear
the lesson. Failure is not the end, but only a new place to
start. The challenge is to analyze how you can begin again
differently. The resources in this manual provide a starting
point. Good luck - good learning! |
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Academic
Advising All students are urged to consult with advisors in their area of study. Each department or college has a procedure for either assigning an advisor to a student or for the student to select an advisor. Advisors can provide students with information that can assist the student with academic, career, and personal goals. In addition, advisors are able to communicate accurate information on academic programs, policies, procedures, and established deadlines. Advisors can help students select a major, design a program of study, develop course schedules, monitor academic progress, and clarify goals. Advisement is required for the following students:
The responsibility for fulfilling all requirements rests ultimately upon the student; the advisors provide assistance in that process. Students have the following responsibilities:
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Academic
Planning If you have selected a major and would like assistance with developing your academic plan, see your department faculty advisor or college academic advisor. If you are undecided about a major and would like assistance, contact the Office of Career and Counseling Services, Room 1034, Jones Hall (330-941-3515). |
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Center for Student Progress The Center for Student Progress (CSP) is YSU’s College Success Place. It is designed to actively intervene in the lives of students and to assist them in achieving academic and social success in college. The CSP works to cultivate the skills of new students, expand the skills of developing students, and enhance the skills of exceptional students. To assist students on their quest for success, the Center provides Individual Intervention Services, Adult Learner Services, First-Year Student Services, Orientation Services, Multicultural Student Services, Disability Services, Student Tutorial Services, and Supplemental Instruction Services. The CSP additionally assists students in making connections on campus through referrals to services and resources available at YSU. Information about the CSP may be found at http://www.cc.ysu.edu/csp/.
The Center for Student Progress is located in Kilcawley Center West,
below the Bookstore (330-941-3538).
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Language Learning and Resource Center Assistance in foreign language skills such as conversation, grammar, writing, and listening is offered to any YSU student currently enrolled in specified foreign language courses.
The Language Learning and Resource Center is
located in Room 558, DeBartolo Hall (330-941-3465). |
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Maag Library The William F. Maag, Jr. Library provides students with a state-of-the-art information environment for study and research. The library employs advanced technology for access to digital information as well as a comprehensive collection of books and journals. Maag Library houses an extended-hour, full-service computing lab as well as an advanced, interactive, computer-based classroom and it is equipped with a wireless digital network. Print collections extend from current issues of national newspapers back to rare books and archival collections focusing on YSU and the physical and cultural communities of the Mahoning Valley. Most importantly, highly trained professional staff is available to assist in all aspects of information access. Maag Library is a member of OhioLINK, a statewide library and information network linking university, college, and community college libraries as well as the State Library of Ohio. OhioLINK provides straightforward, easy access to a combined online catalog of over 31 million records as well as more than 100 databases featuring many full-text articles. The library offers instructional research materials in a wide variety of formats: books, compact discs, audiotapes, videotapes, periodicals, and microforms. The current collection numbers over 700,000 volumes. In all service areas, Maag Library is committed to serving the special needs of patrons with disabilities. The Curriculum Resource Center (CRC) library on the main level of the Beeghly College of Education is a satellite library of Maag. Its collections include curriculum materials for teachers, children’s literature, textbooks, and more.
Fall and Spring Semester Hours: |
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Mathematics Assistance Center The Mathematics Assistance Center (MAC) is an academic support service whose mission is to assist YSU students in strengthening the fundamental mathematics skills that are necessary for success in the study of mathematics and to provide resource materials for independent study. Tutoring is available for students currently enrolled in one or more mathematics courses ranging from Elementary Algebraic Modeling through Calculus I. In addition to tutoring, the Mathematics Assistance Center offers other services such as computer-assisted instruction, video-assisted instruction, course solutions manuals, mathematics “hand-outs” for selected topics, etc.
The Mathematics Assistance Center operates
on a walk-in basis and is located in Room 3090, Cushwa Hall (330-941-3274). |
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Reading and Study Skills Center
Assistance is given to help build or refresh personal reading skills and study strategies in the following ways: Reading and Study Skills Courses: Students may be mandated to take Basic College Success Skills (R&SK 1510B) or Advanced College Success Skills (R&SK 1510A) based on COMPASS Reading Placement Test (CPT) scores.
Self-Referral Tutoring Program: Specially trained Peer Tutors work with students, at no charge, to diagnose and improve skills in time management, note taking, reading college texts, test preparation, test taking, test anxiety, memory, and vocabulary. Students are encouraged to use the Computer-Assisted Instruction Lab to increase reading rate, fluency, and comprehension. Assistance with college-level standardized tests (Praxis II, MCAT, GRE, etc.) is also available. Stop by the Reading & Study Skills Center to sign up to work with a Peer Tutor. Workshops: These are free, one-hour workshops offered throughout the semester at various times and campus locations. Topics for the workshops include: goal setting and decision making; time management and procrastination; learning styles; note taking and mind mapping; test preparation; exploring reading speed; studying texts; healthy eating; test anxiety and relaxation; tips on college etiquette; research on the internet; memory techniques; tips for advisement and registration; and writing successful short answer and essay exams. Semester workshops are cosponsored by the Reading and Study Skills Center and Center for Student Progress.
The
Reading and Study Skills Center is located in Room 3312, Beeghly
College of Education. For more information, call 330-941-3099 or
visit
http://www.ysu.edu/rdg-studyskills. |
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Writing Center The Writing Center at Youngstown State University is a free resource for students, faculty, and staff who want one-to-one guidance with their writing. Their goal is to help clients become more independent, confident, and successful writers. Consultants will help writers on all kinds of assignments from history papers and lab reports, to resumes and application letters. Since getting started is often the most difficult challenge writers face, clients don't need to have a paper written to meet with a consultant. The center assists with prewriting tasks such as understanding assignments and brainstorming. To make an appointment, register on WCOnline at http://www.rich35.com/ysu or call 330-941-3055, or stop by Room 3002, Coffelt Hall (tentatively moving to the lower level of Maag Library, fall 2008). Appointments last 15-45 minutes. Because Writing Center services are in such demand, we recommend scheduling an appointment at least a day or two in advance. Consultants are also available for walk-in sessions on a first-come, first-served basis. Visit the Writing Center at http://www.as.ysu.edu/~english/wc/Writing_Center_Homepage.htm or email them at wcenter@ysu.edu.
Tutoring Hours:
Office Hours: |