Your Academic Journey Begins — Course Info & Advising

Dear new student,

It’s our great pleasure to welcome you to the Mount Holyoke community! We look forward to having you join us this fall. As you begin to think about the exciting intellectual journey ahead, we’d like to offer some guidance. We know this is a long email, but we promise it is packed with really helpful information!

Selecting Your Courses

• Advising sessions: For guidance on course selection for the fall, you are invited to participate in online Zoom advising sessions with faculty from May 29 to June 16. During the sessions, faculty will discuss course selection and registration and answer general academic questions you have. Please provide your advising session preferences by May 28.

• Major requirements: To find the courses required for any potential major, the online catalog is the best place to look. You can also use this list of majors to view their initial requirements.

  • There are also videos from Department Liaisons to watch that explain the beginnings of several (but not all) majors. 

• Placement exams: Information about placement exams for math, computer science and languages can be found on the my.mtholyoke portal. Please note: many students do NOT take any placement exams. 

• Pre-health: A Zoom session for students interested in pre-health will be held on June 9 at 11 am EST. Registration is required.

• First-generation and/or low-income students: If you are a first-generation and/or low-income student, please look at our resource page for First Generation/Low-Income Students and sign up for our Fearless First Academy once the application becomes available. (More information coming soon by email on how to apply!)

An overview of new student academic onboarding can be found in our Academic Guide for New Students. 
 

Registering for Classes

Fall course registration is from June 17 to June 29. You will receive an email from the Registrar with instructions for registration. The sooner you register, the more likely you’ll enroll in your first-choice classes.

We recommend making a list of alternative classes before you register, in case one or more of your choices has a waitlist. You will have the opportunity to make changes during the add/drop period at the start of the semester.

If you have any difficulty with registration, please contact the Office of the Registrar at registrar@mtholyoke.edu or 413-538-2025. Kim Parent is also happy to answer any questions you have during the registration process through email at advising-firstyear@mtholyoke.edu.

Academic Advising

You will be assigned an academic advisor in August.

Students must complete the New Student’s Initial Information for Advisors questionnaire by June 30 to aid the advisor assignment process. See Step 1 of the Academic Guide for New Students for instructions on how to access the form. You will have opportunities to meet with your assigned academic advisor by Zoom the week before you arrive on campus and in person on the first day of orientation. 

The most important thing to know about being a Mount Holyoke student is that your ideas matter! One of the things we absolutely love about Mount Holyoke academics is that, regardless of the path you take to Mount Holyoke or through Mount Holyoke, there is a spirit of mutual respect and collaboration among students and faculty. Mount Holyoke classrooms are places to try out ideas, to practice speaking up, to consider new frameworks — and to find support from your faculty and peers as you grow as a student.

Once again, we’re delighted that you’ll be joining the MHC community in the fall. We look forward to meeting you and working with you. Please let us know if you have any questions. Associate Dean of Studies and Academic Dean for New Students Kim Parent, can be reached by email throughout the summer at advising-firstyear@mtholyoke.edu.

Sincerely,

Sarah Adelman,

Dean of Studies

Professor of Economics

Kimberly Parent

Associate Dean of Studies and Academic Dean for New Students