First Steps

Students walking on steps at Wells Library

Planning

The information on this page is for students who were new to IUB during the 2011-2012 academic year.  If you will be a new student in summer or fall, 2012, please check this page again in early May, 2012.  The Academic Planning Worksheet and course lists will be changing.

Use the Academic Planning Worksheet (APW) as your initial guide, or conversation starter, for your academic advising conference during New Student Orientation.  Be sure to print your completed APW, and bring it to your advising session. 

What courses should I take in my first semester?

You should take courses that interest you.  Courses of interest can help you fulfill general education requirements, explore majors that sound appealing, and make progress toward the major that will be the best for you.  

The Course Lists page provides tools to help you make your choices, including:

  • Course descriptions for the Fall 2011- Spring 2012 courses that are good choices for first year students 
  • Lists of Spring 2012 courses that fulfill General Education requirements

Use these tools to choose courses you would like to take and write them on your Academic Planning Worksheet. Be open to lots of possibilities!  Include every course that might help you make a great start in your first semester at IUB. 

Your orientation advisor will help you turn these choices into a spring semester schedule that is the best one for you, and understand how those courses will help you take your first step toward a college degree. The best spring schedule will have a mix of courses that fulfill basic requirements, help you explore possible majors, and count as elective credit.

What are the general education requirements?

Each course description tells you if that course satisfies general education requirements at IUB:

  • Arts and Humanities (A&H)
  • Social and Historical (S&H)
  • Natural and Mathematical (N&M)
  • World Languages and Cultures (WL&C)

Your Academic Planning Worksheet has room to list six courses from each category above. These courses are certain to count for general education for every major at IUB.

A complete explanation of the new General Education requirements at IUB, and lists of all the courses that count, can be found here: http://gened.iub.edu/index.html

If a course does not have a General Education designation, then it will count for elective credit, and may count as a major requirement (if you choose that major). List these as “other courses” on your Academic Planning Worksheet. 

Remember: If you read the course title and description and they sound interesting to you, then that course is a good candidate for your spring semester schedule.

What if I already have college credits?

It’s up to you to know everything you have taken that counts (or may count) for college credit.  List all courses and tests taken on your Academic Planning Worksheet. Your advisor will help you understand how this credit may fulfill degree requirements so that you can avoid duplicating coursework.

Can I get credit for AP, IB or SAT II test scores?

List all tests taken, and credit that you have earned or may have earned, on your Academic Planning Worksheet.

Check the AP and IB charts to see if the scores you have received on AP, IB (HL), or SAT II Subject tests are high enough to earn course credit and credit hours at IUB.

Not all exams are accepted, and in some cases, you will see the designation “-UN.”  This means that the credit earned is “Undistributed,” and so it does not equal a specific course at IUB.

If you have earned specific course credit and credit hours through any of these tests, then you have completed a course that will count toward degree requirements. However, some programs (such as medical schools) may not accept SAT II/IB/AP test credit to fulfill admission prerequisites.  Also, course credit earned through such tests may not be the strongest preparation for the courses that come next toward your major or a professional program.

I am a transfer student.  How should I prepare for my advising appointment?

In addition to your completed APW, you must bring a transcript or a list of courses you’ve taken at your previous school to your advising appointment.    

List any questions you have on your Academic Planning Worksheet and discuss them with your orientation advisor.

If you have any questions before you come to Bloomington, please use your IU email account to contact us at udivhelp@indiana.edu.