College of Media

Student Services Center

The Student Services Center is back!
The Student Services Center of the College of Media has returned to Gregory Hall. You can find us in Room 18, the middle wing of the basement, across from the vending machines. When you visit, please pardon the dust. Workers are still installing a few essentials (such as doors), but we are open for business.

Course scheduling, records and advising questions are welcome 9 to 4. We're open 8 to 5, but if you desire a conversation, come during the prime hours. We can be reached at 217-244-4329 or media-ssc@uiuc.edu. For more information on student services offered by the College, see details below.

To earn a degree at the University of Illinois, students must meet requirements set by their university, college and department. The Student Services Center in the College of Media is the hub were all of those requirements meet and can be discussed. The staff coordinates academic life in the College so students have the information they need to set and fulfill their educational goals. The Center serves students every step of their way from high school through college and on to alumni status.

The Student Services Center also assists faculty as they schedule courses and submit grades for the student record.

Academic advising

As a College of Media student, you have an academic adviser with whom you must meet at least once each semester. Then you register for the appropriate courses.

If you're not sure who your academic adviser is, please call the center at (217) 244-4329 or send e-mail to media-ssc@uiuc.edu.

After you have met with your academic adviser and after your time ticket becomes active, you can register for courses.

Mandatory and voluntary advising visits

Each semester before registration, students are required to meet with an adviser. Every student is responsible for registering for the appropriate courses. The adviser's role is to enlarge the pool of information about courses, degrees, careers and other opportunities.

Select and register for courses at courses.uiuc.edu/cis/.

Archives of notices sent to majors is at listserv.uiuc.edu/archives/.

Degree Audit Reporting System

Through the Degree Audit Reporting System, every student also has access to an unofficial individualized degree progress report that is updated nightly. If a class is added today, it will show tomorrow on the system, known as DARS. Students are responsible for fulfilling degree requirements as described in the Programs of Study at courses.uiuc.edu/programs/undergrad/communications/about_com.html. The DARS online is just one tool. Any questions about it or other student resources should be discussed with an academic adviser. Generate a DARS audit online at www.oar.uiuc.edu/current/dars/generate.html.

Tutoring

Students looking for extra help with course work can start by talking to their instructors. Sometimes departments offer tutoring or study sessions. Students who live in University residence halls can use tutoring offered in their residences. See the Weston Exploration Program at www-students.housing.uiuc.edu/floors/westonex/tutors.htm.

Forms & petitions

All forms and petitions should be filed with academic advisers in the College. The following forms are in PDF (some in editable format) or MS Word.

• Curriculum planning sheets:
  Advertising
  Broadcast Journalism
  Media Studies
  News-editorial Journalism
  
• Credit/No Credit form
• Intent to Pursue a Minor form
• Late Changes form: drop/add class (Academic Petition must also be filed for drop/add.)
• Change of Major form
• Academic Petition (petition for change due to unusual circumstances)
• Independent Study/Professional Internship Course Approval form (Academic Petition must also be filed for independent study.)
• Full guidelines and form for requesting "I" Grade (Academic Petition must also be filed for incomplete.)
• Concurrent Enrollment at Parkland College in Champaign form

Student code

The Student Code is the online starting point for policies on student academic standards and grades: www.admin.uiuc.edu/policy/code/.

Staff

Please send e-mail inquiries for Student Services to: media-ssc@uiuc.edu.

Kalee Mourer
Assistant to the associate dean

Mourer provides general administrative support to the Student Services Center, performs secretarial and receptionist duties and greets students and visitors in the Student Services Center.

Michele Andrews
Course-scheduling secretary

Andrews works with the College's academic departments to maintain the College's course schedule. She also performs other secretarial duties and greets students entering the Center.

Melvin B. Leach Jr.
Academic adviser

Leach helps College of Media undergraduate students select their courses and chart their academic paths. Previously at the University he served as an admissions counselor and recruiter, a counselor for Minority Student Affairs and a facilitator for leadership programs.

He also produced a radio music show on Rejoice 102.3 FM in South Chicago, and currently conducts a local church choir in Champaign.

Walk-in meetings are on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Fridays between the hours of 9-11:30 a.m. and 1-4 p.m. Appointment meetings are available.

Megan Tucker
Academic adviser

Tucker helps College of Media undergraduate students select their courses and chart their academic paths, and she has served as an adviser since February 2006. She served in graduate admissions at Illinois and earned a master's degree from Colorado State University and a bachelor's degree from Illinois College.

Walk-in meetings are on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays between the hours of 9-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-4 p.m. Appointment meetings are available.

Adrienne Harris
Assistant director of student services & advising

Harris helps students by providing academic advising and study abroad program selection. Her specialty is student recruitment and retention. She earned a bachelor's degree in English literature from Illinois and enjoys reading and writing short fiction.

Walk-in meetings are on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9-11 a.m. and 1:30-4 p.m. Appointment meetings are available.

Glenn Pence
Data & records administrator

Pence is the College's chief information and technology officer. He is responsible for directing academic recordkeeping, including degree audits, student academic and career counseling records, course scheduling, strategic planning and other areas. He formerly was assistant director of the University's Office of Admissions and Records.

Jennifer Follis
Assistant dean for student services & advising

Follis directs advising services and is also an academic adviser for the College of Media. She is a lecturer in reporting and editing for the Department of Journalism and previously worked as a journalist at Champaign-Urbana's daily newspaper, The News-Gazette.

Walk-in meetings are on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 1:30-4 p.m. Appointment meetings are available.

Eric Meyer
Associate dean for academic & administrative affairs

Meyer directs admissions and academic affairs for the College. He is also an associate professor in the Department of Journalism, teaching graphics and design, online publishing and professional projects. Meyer spent more than 20 years as a news editor, reporter, copy editor and photo and graphics editor. He ran an major Internet site for 10 years and currently runs three weekly newspapers and a regional Kansas magazine.

Appointment meetings are available.

Where we are

18 Gregory Hall, 810 S. Wright St., Urbana, IL 61801

Room 18 is a newly renovated space that is centrally located in the basement of Gregory Hall. An accessible entrance to the building is located at the northeast corner of the building, and the new Student Services Center is down the hall and around the corner to the left. Temporarily, students and visitors needing an accessible entrance to the Center are asked to ring the bell at the Center's entrance and meet at Room 25 until work on the lift is finished. An elevator to the upper floors is located in the basement hallway near the northwest entrance. Parking is available on Wright Street, some of the neighboring streets and in a small lot on the north side of Gregory Hall.

See the University map for the campus location of Gregory Hall.

For faculty

The Student Services staff are happy to help College of Media faculty members find resources they need — especially for submitting grades or scheduling courses. Forms may be needed by faculty for items such as Independent Study Proposals and Incomplete Grades. See the list of Forms & Petitions above.

The Office of Admissions and Records has rounded up resources for faculty, especially explaining grades and student privacy rights at www.oar.uiuc.edu/staff/.

As part of the UI Integrate system, the Web for Faculty at apps.uillinois.edu/selfservice/ is the door to class rosters and grade submissions. Faculty need to select the campus name before trying to log in.

The Office of the Provost provides a Senior Administrative Orientation guide with links to policies and handbooks that cover all aspects of life on campus. See the complete list at www.provost.uiuc.edu/resources/sao/policies/. See also the Student Code, the starting point for policies on student academic standards and grades at www.admin.uiuc.edu/policy/code/.

The Campus Administrative Manual at www.fs.uiuc.edu:1503/fsindex.html is one of several policy manuals for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Use this manual as a reference for creating new courses or for research protocol.