The Fischell Department of Bioengineering is committed to student advising and aims to provide comprehensive curricular support to all of its students towards their academic success. Students will find that at various points during their academic careers, they may need a certain kind of guidance. Students may always begin by addressing their questions to bioe-undergrad@umd.edu, and we will point you in the right direction. Generally, advising is handled by one or a combination of the following: faculty advisor, departmental advisor, and/or college advisor.

All bioengineering majors are assigned to a faculty advisor. Students are required to meet with their faculty advisors at least once per semester. For currently enrolled majors, the mandatory advising period occurs in the weeks prior to registration for the next semester. The advising meeting with the faculty member generally covers the following: course selection for upcoming semester, four-year planning, and career goals. Students should prepare for every advising meeting by completing and updating the BIOE Advising Worksheet.
 
Freshmen will be assigned to faculty advisors and notified during their first semesters. All other students may contact bioe-undergrad@umd.edu if they are not sure who their advisor is. For faculty contact information, please see the faculty list.
Bioengineering majors and prospective transfer students may also need to meet with a departmental (staff) advisor. Some examples of departmental advising include: Benchmarks (academic progress), planning for study abroad, C.A.R.E (academic probation), double-major/double-degree planning, graduation audit (seniors), and additional help with four-year planning.
 
For departmental advising, please send an email including your name, UID, and general question to bioe-undergrad@umd.edu.
 
All students seeking advising should read and make sure that they understand the policies and requirements stated online.

The Clark School of Engineering’s Office of Undergraduate Advising and Academic Support (UA&AS) also provides a broad range of services and support for engineering students. Some policies are the oversight of the College, so your faculty or departmental advisor may at times refer you to a Clark School advisor. For example, transfer admission/transfer credit, 45-credit benchmark review, and permission to enroll at another institution are handled by the College.

The goal of the Student Academic Success Degree Completion Policy is to promote undergraduate student success. This is accomplished through a Benchmark review as described below. For the Benchmark, the student will be assigned a status of Pass, Fail, or Fail but Continue. Students who receive Fail status are required to change their major out of engineering. Students who receive Fail but Continue are required to meet with the departmental advisor and their faculty advisor to discuss their plan to make the necessary progress towards completion of the degree requirements. If a student fails to make progress based on the plan developed between the student and his/her advisor, the student may be required to choose a major outside of engineering.

45 Credit Review Benchmark

This gateway review is administered by the Clark School’s Office of Undergraduate Advising & Academic Support Students who are directly admitted to Engineering from high school are reviewed for successful completion of the 45 credit review in the semester in which they attain 45 credits at the University of Maryland. The primary requirements of the review are:

  • CHEM 135 with a minimum grade of 2.0
  • MATH 141 with a minimum grade of 2.0
  • PHYS 161 with a minimum grade of 2.0
  • ENES 100 with a minimum grade of 2.0 • Fundamental Studies in English
  • One Distributive Studies course from the Humanities or Social Sciences
  • No more than one repeat of any of the courses above (a ‘W’ counts as an attempt)
  • Minimum grade point average of 2.0

Access the 45 credit review contract online

Many bioengineering students plan to attend professional schools upon completion of their undergraduate degrees. Many of the courses required for medical school and dental school preparation are included in the Bioengineering Undergraduate Program. Students interested BIOE Handbook 12 in pre-health or pre-law professions are strongly encouraged to contact the appropriate advising office and take advantage of their services as early in their undergraduate career as possible. Information on pre-med, pre-dental and pre-law student organizations can also be found at the following websites:

Each semester students are given an appointment by the university for pre-registration based on their credit level. Students are notified of their appointment date and time by email. The appointment time is also available in students’ Testudo accounts. Students are not be able to register until they have met with their assigned faculty advisor and obtained the advisor’s signature on the BIOE Advising Worksheet. Students should submit the BIOE Advising Worksheet to the BIOE Undergraduate Office and will be cleared for registration within 24 hours of submitting the form. During the drop period, a student may drop a maximum of 4 credits. Drops performed during this period will be recorded on the student’s permanent record with a notation of ‘W’ for withdrawal.
Dr. Ian White

Dr. Ian White

Associate Chair and Director of Undergraduate Studies
3112 A. James Clark Hall
ianwhite@umd.edu
(301) 405-6230

Prange, Melanie
Program Director, Academic & Student Affairs
3102F A. James Clark Hall
mprange@umd.edu
(301) 405-3686


Shantzis, Abby
Program Manager, Academic and Student Affairs
3102E A. James Clark Hall
shantzis@umd.edu
(301) 405-1192
 


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