Advising Resources for Current Students

This page provides academic advising resources for current SUNY Geneseo students, including tools for course planning, understanding degree requirements, and exploring majors and minors. 

Degree Planning

Degree Works

Degree Works (Geneseo Login required) lists all your required degree requirements for your declared major. As you take courses (at Geneseo or transferring in), they will populate in Degree Works and show you how courses meet different requirements and what you have left to take.

  1. At the top of the page, you can view your GPA, faculty advisor, G-number, graduation date, and your major(s)/minor(s). Scroll down to see your progress towards a BA/BS degree.
  2. Go to “Registration Checklist” at top of page to see exactly what you need to complete your program(s)!
  3.  Use “What-If” Function to see requirements for other/additional majors or minors
  4. It can be easy to for these pieces of your degree: 120 credits, Outside the Major, and Upper Division Requirements
  5. General education requirements 
  6. Major requirements
  7. See GPA for each subsection at the top for in major or related requirements GPA.
  8. Check the number of remaining credits required for each section in the top banner of that section.
General Education / GLOBE (Geneseo Learning Outcomes for Baccalaureate Education)

Geneseo's General Education curriculum is required of all students and meets the SUNY General Education requirements. Our faculty worked diligently to create a general education curriculum that is not a checklist. The collection of outcomes are meant to build liberal arts skills and help students excel in their major and their future career.

You can browse courses that will meet your gen ed requirements on this webpage and you can search courses by general education attribute in the course catalog.

These are two PDFs that can help you understand and plan courses for your gen ed:

If you have questions about courses taken at other institutions meeting General Education requirements, connect with the Office of Advising.

Details about different academic programs

Geneseo offers dozens of majors and minors as well as an ever growing list of microcredentials that can help you explore your passions and gain credentials for your career after graduation.

If you're curious about how many credits programs will be or if changing your plans will delay your expected time to graduation:

  • Visit the Academic Program section of the Undergraduate Bulletin. Clicking on your program (in the year you declare it) lays out the courses you need and potential timelines for completing those requirements. 
  • Utilize the "What If" tool in Degree Works - this will show you percentages of degree requirements as you change or add different programs
  • Fill out a 4-Year Academic Course Planner on your own or with an advisor
How do I choose a major? (or change or add a major, minor, microcredential, etc. to my degree plan?)

The best strategy to determine different educational paths is to talk to people! Family, Friends, and Peers can help you clarify what you're good at and what you love to do. Faculty, Advisors, and Career Design Advisors can help you figure out how to explore those passions through coursework and outside the classroom experiences and are able to connect your interests and skills to majors and professions.

  • Visit the Career Design Major Exploration Webpage
    • Take the Focus 2 and Forage quizzes
    • Connect with a Career Advisor in the Navigate Student App by clicking the "+" sign near the top right of the screen and choose "Hand Raise" > "I want to talk with someone about exploring majors"
  • Visit the Library Career Exploration Webpage
  • Set up a meeting with your faculty advisor or faculty member/chair of potential majors to learn more
  • Meet with a professional advisor to talk through options

Scroll down to "Registration Logistics" for the forms to make these changes once you've decided!

Pre-Health Programs and Advising

Most health professions don't require specific majors and Geneseo has a fantastic record in supporting students entering various health fields.

Visit the Pre-Health Advisement page to connect with a pre-health advisor and learn how to prepare for post-grad experiences during your time at Geneseo

Pre-Health Tracks: Pre-Chiropractic, Pre-Dental, Pre-Medical, Pre-Optometry, Pre-Pharmacy, Pre-Physical Therapy, Pre-Physician's Assistant, Pre-Podiatry, Pre-Veterinarian, Pre-Nursing

Pre-Professional Programs and Advising

Self-Service Advising Tools

Classroom Support

Time Management Skills/Worksheets

Resources

Utilizing your Advisor

Who is my advisor?
  1. Your home Navigate page lists your Success Team - this includes your primary advisor, a secondary advisor if you have it, as well as other professional staff who are supporting you (like a coach, supervisor, or academic coach).
  2. Your advisor will be listed on KnightWeb in the "academic status" box, directly under the subheading "registration." 
  3. You can also find your advisor’s name in the top box of your DegreeWorks page, which lists other information like degree progress.
How do I meet with my advisor?

Advisors make appointments with students in a variety of ways (email, google calendar, navigate appointment, etc) so check with your advisor about their preferred method.

You can schedule a meeting with your advisor at any time! Building a relationship with your advisor is a great step in understanding Geneseo policies and navigating your paths.

If you are having trouble getting in touch with your advisor, contact the Chair of you Department first, and the Office of Advising.

Registration Logistics

Registration FAQ

Important Registration Dates

What if I have a hold on my account?

Not all holds prevent registration; visit the Student Account Holds to learn more and ask your Advisor about it!

What should I do to prepare for registration?

Consult DegreeWorks and/or an advisor to see what classes you still need to take. Then, find out what classes will be offered in the upcoming semester by viewing the Master Schedule. Log into you’re my.geneseo.edu account and click on registration, then make a plan. Create several plans (one preferred and a few backups). Find out your registration date and time (available on KnightWeb) and set an alarm for that day. Visit the Academic Peer Mentors in Erwin 219 if you have questions about preparing for registration.

How do I make a registration plan?

Go to KnightWeb. Click Student, then Registration and Plan Ahead. Find the semester you want to make a plan for. Now you can search and add potential classes to a plan. You can create up to 5 plans, but one must be your preferred plan. Ensure that your ideal course schedule is your preferred plan before registration begins. On registration day, you'll be able to quickly and easily upload your plan -- meaning that you can add all the classes in your preferred plan with one click. Having more than one plan will allow you to have a quick and readily available backup classes on your screen on registration day, rather than having to search for those classes.

How do I find out my registration time?

Once registration times are released, you'll see your designated time on you’re my.geneseo.edu page under the section titled Academic Status. Registrar’s Office will send you an email to notify you that registration time-tickets have been assigned.

Pass/Fail Information and Instructions

Pass/Fail is a grading option for all courses outside of your major, minor, concentration, and any related requirements of your major. A "P" grade does not meet major, minor, or concentration degree requirements.

The deadline for requesting pass/fail is two weeks before the last day of classes every fall and spring semester. There are different deadlines (posted on the academic calendar) for intersession and summer courses. Add the academic calendar to your google calendar so you don't miss deadlines!

Key Facts about P/F Grading

  • P/F grades are not calculated as part of your cumulative GPA. 
  • A P grade is a grade of at least a C-. A D grade will be an F.
  • You may not elect Pass/Fail grading for more than 4 courses in your career at Geneseo.

Why choose P/F Grading?

  1. If you are sure you are passing the class with a C- and looking to keep your GPA up.
  2. If you are sure you are failing the course (D or E) and are unable to withdraw from the course.

How to elect P/F Grading:

  • Go to knightweb: go.geneseo.edu/pfgrading
  • Clicking "Request P/F" will submit the request.
  • You will receive an email when the request is approved or denied. If it's denied, the email will include a reason and any appeal options.
  • Note: S/U courses are not eligibe for P/F grading mode.

Screenshot below shows the view of the KnightWeb page.

Preparing for Advising Meetings

You can meet with your advisor for lots of different reasons! Please schedule a meeting whenever you want.

When you have an advising or pre-grad check hold on your account, you must meet with you advisor to plan out your course and degree plan.

Below are some tools that may be valuable to prepare for this meeting:

Directed Study

Directed Studies are opportunities for students to work directly with faculty in research, projects, or other outside the classroom application of their studies. They are usually for students nearing the end of their degree and must be submitted by a Faculty Member. Talk to your advisor, chair, or other professors in your program about the opportunity.

Directed Study (faculty login required)

Declaring/Changing Majors, Minors, etc

Declaring and Changing your academic program can be exciting, confusing, stressful or all three! We have resources available to support you in logistics and decision-making.

You can find details of policies about declaring and changing your major in the Undergraduate Bulletin.

Career Design is a fantastic resource for you in helping to align your degree with a future career.

Taking Courses at Other Institutions
Registration Permits (credit increase, time conflict)
Graduation Support

Graduation RequirementsVisit the Graduation Records webpage to make sure if you're on track to graduate.

Get in touch with your advisor and/or the Office of Advising if you have any questions about missing requirements (red circles in Degree Works) or items on the checklist.

Ask SOONER rather than later. The earlier you ask questions, the more time you have to troubleshoot. Students are ultimately responsible for meeting all degree requirements.

Transferring Credits to Graduate

For various reasons, students leave Geneseo needing only one or two classes to graduate. Provided you have not maximized your transferred credits from other institutions, students can complete coursework elsewhere and then transfer the credits to Geneseo to graduate. A maximum of 90 semester hours (only 60 of which can be from a 2-year institution) may be applied toward the baccalaureate degree requirements. Follow the steps below to make sure your efforts have the desired end result.

  1. Contact Graduation Records via email to make sure what courses are needed to complete your degree.
  2. Use the Course Equivalency Databank to ensure the credits will transfer from the intended institution.
  3. Enroll as a non-matriculated student at the intended institution. 
  4. After completing the coursework, request a transcript be sent to SUNY Geneseo (registrar@geneseo.edu) from the individual institution(s) attended.
    1. SUNY Geneseo has authorized Parchment to send and receive electronic transcripts and respond to any inquiries regarding the transactions. If you need assistance, contact Parchment.
  5. Follow up with Graduation Records to ensure your credits are applied to your account. Also, this is a good time to make sure your graduation application is correct to receive your diploma.

Calculating your GPA

What is a GPA?

GPAs are calculated by this formula: Quality Points ÷ GPA Hours = GPA

To understand what these terms mean, take a look at your unofficial transcript (accessed through Knightweb). Look at the end of your most recent graded term. It might look like this:

Term Totals (Undergraduate)
Attempt Hours Passed Hours Earned Hours GPA Hours Quality Points GPA
Current Term: 16.000 16.000 16.000 43.2 2.7
Cumulative: 96.000 90.000 90.000 93.000 297 3.19

Quality points are determined by multiplying your grade in a course by the number of credits. So an “A” in a 4-credit course is worth 16 quality points because 4 is the numerical equivalent of an A (see chart below).

Numerical equivalencies to calculate Quality Points:

A 4
A- 3.7
B+ 3.3
B 3
B- 2.7
C+ 2.3
C 2
C- 1.7
D 1
E 0

GPA Hours are credit hours you take in a “normal-graded” course. Transfer, S/U, and P/F courses do not create GPA Hours, although they reflect Earned Hours.

If this were your transcript, you would have attempted 96 credits and passed 90 credits. You’d have 93 GPA hours, which means you didn’t pass a 3-credit course (but the E is calculated in your GPA).

Calculating your GPA

This excel spreadsheet is incredibly handy for testing out the impact of different grades for courses and clearly shows how credits and quality points work together to generate a GPA. 

Degree Works also has a GPA Calculator in the top right (3 vertical dots). You can use this to anticipate what your cumulative GPA will be with your estimated current grades.

P/F or S/U Courses

Courses taken with a pass/fail grading mode or satisfactory/unsatisfactory, if they are not repeats, have no effect on GPA Hours and no effect on Quality Points. Leave the courses OUT of your GPA calculations in the spreadsheet.

Repeat Grades

Scenario 1: repeating a course, second attempt (selecting "Normal Grading")

  • If you are replacing an E with a new grade, keep the same GPA Hours and add the new QPs to your Quality Points total, then calculate GPA.
  • If you are replacing a “D” grade (you earned credits), you will keep the same the GPA hours, just change the Quality Points from 1.00 (D) to you new or anticipated grade. 

Scenario 2: repeating a course, second attempt (selecting "P/F Grading")

  • If your first grade was an E, the credits are already counted, but the quality points are 0. So replacing an E with a P removes the credits from your GPA calculation.
  • If your first grade was a D, the credits and the quality points need to be removed from your GPA calculation.
Example of Scenario 2

You took MATH 222 and earned an “E.” Your repeated MATH 222 and earned a “P.” Using the sample transcript above, you reduce the GPA hours by 4 (it’s a four-credit course), getting “89” and subtract nothing from Quality Points, leaving “297.” 297 ÷ 89 = 3.33 GPA. 

If you replace a “D” with a “P” you reduce both GPA Hours and Quality Points:

93 - 4 = 89 297 - 4 = 293 293 ÷ 89 = 3.29 GPA.

PLEASE NOTE: If you replace a “D” grade with a "P" you do not earn additional credits. When that “D” is excluded, so are the credits you earned. 

Academic Calendar