Georgia Institute of Technology School of Biological Sciences | Georgia Institute of Technology | Atlanta, GA | Georgia Institute of Technology | Atlanta, GA

Note for Fall 2020:To follow best public health practices, all Biology major advising will be virtual through email or through BlueJeans videoconference for Fall 2020. When possible, first reach out to your advisor through email or post your question to the Biology Majors Piazza site to see if your question or concern can be handled without requiring videoconference. Details for scheduling advising meetings via BlueJeans are below. Please be aware that remote advising will make it difficult to ensure privacy for FERPA protections.  We recommend that students join the videoconference from a private location to minimize the amount of information which could be overheard by others. By agreeing to videoconference-advising, students are confirming they understand this situation.

You will be able to schedule a BlueJeans meeting with your advisor using GradesFirst (see instructions below). Once you have scheduled, you will be sent a confirmation email from GradesFirst with details for how to meet with your advisor via BlueJeans. Please check the fine print details of this confirmation email, which will include a link to join the remote advising session. Do not join the advising meeting early, as your advisor may be meeting with another student at that time.

We recognize that providing advising support for our undergraduates helps students succeed in effective course selection and career planning, which includes finding on-campus and summer research and internship opportunities, establishing a timeline for career planning, and exploring the range of options you have with a B.S. in Biology. We advise by last name for Biology majors and Biology minors so that you always meet with the same academic advisor; this advising structure allows us to build better individual relationships and fosters more personalized advising. All Physiology minors work with Dr. Adam Decker.

To schedule an appointment with a Biology advisor using GradesFirst, first select your major (Biology), then select the reason you want to meet (i.e., "Advising"), select "Biology" as the location, and finally select your specific advisor from the list to bring up your Biology advisor's calendar.  Be sure to check for Drop-In availability if you do not see any meeting times posted, and you can also email your advisor for help with appointment scheduling.  The location of your meeting will be a Bluejeans link which will be emailed to you when you register through GradesFirst.

Required Advising Meetings

To help you succeed in effective course selection and career planning, Biology majors are required to attend a 15 minute advising meeting once each year. Each semester Biology majors will receive an email according to your academic standing, freshmen and sophomores in the Spring and juniors and seniors in the Fall. The email will give the scheduling deadline and detail what you need to bring to your advising appointment.  

This appointment is a chance to work one-on-one with your advisor to devise an optimal pathway to achieve your academic and career goals. Before your annual advising meeting with your advisor, be sure to print and fill out the required form:

• First/Second/ year advising form (Spring semesters only): complete and bring to your annual advising appointment in the Spring (note this form can be completed electronically) 
• Third year+ advising form (Fall semesters only): complete and bring to your annual advising appointment in the Fall (note this form can be completed electronically)
• Midterm U advising form: complete and bring to your meeting to discuss any midterm Us
• General advising form: complete and bring this form to any other advising meeting that isn't specifically for Annual Advising or Midterm U advising (for example, Registration Advising, Change/Addition of Minor, Change/Addition of Major)

Schedule an advising appointment