University of Pittsburgh

Student Services

Advising FAQ's

How does the CBA Advising system work?

What we do and why we do it:

Freshmen, sophomores, and juniors meet with their academic advisors twice per term. The first meeting, the advising appointment, lasts about 30 minutes. During this meeting, you and your advisor talk about how your current classes are progressing and whether you are dealing with any academic or personal concerns. If you have worries in either area, your advisor may refer you to one of the many tutoring/help services on campus or to the Counseling Center. You and your advisor also talk about your long-term goals (like studying abroad, for example), as well as which courses you’ll take next term. You will leave this appointment with a list of courses that meets your needs for the next term, plus your registration appointment.

For the registration appointment, you will return with the specific times you would like to take the classes (which you had decided upon with your advisor during the advising appointment). It is recommended that you also select some alternative times and course choices in case your first choice has closed. This is a second chance for you to address any problems that have come up during the term or any new developments that will affect your academic life (for example, perhaps you have been offered an internship since the last meeting).

Students who have not attended an advising appointment will be registered after those who did attend an advising appointment.

Students are registered in descending order of seniority (seniors first, freshmen last). We realize that freshmen do not like going last, but since freshmen have more course options than any other group of students, we think this is the most reasonable way to handle registration.

We expect students to keep track of how many credits they have earned, which requirements they have fulfilled, and so on. This information will be shared with all students during the advising appointment. Please be sure to bring up any other questions you’d like your advisor to answer.

All seniors must attend a “Senior Review” meeting the term before they are hoping to graduate. Only seniors attending Senior Reviews can be sure they have fulfilled all necessary graduation requirements. Senior records will be audited prior to the Senior Review meeting, and seniors attending the Senior Review will be given a detailed list of all remaining requirements to be fulfilled.

It is the responsibility of every student to fill out a Graduation Application the term before they are hoping to graduate. These applications are completed during the Senior Review meeting, but students who fail to attend a Senior Review must still complete this application (available in the CBA Advising Office).

Other times CBA students may meet with their advisor include: to add or drop a class, to withdraw from a class, to discuss a personal issue that is having an academic impact, to discuss a study-abroad opportunity, to review their résumé, and to ask for a letter of recommendation (note: letters must be requested at least one week before they are due). This list is not all inclusive—if you want to talk to us, we want to talk to you.

However, please remember that this is a professional office, and we want to maintain a pleasant, nonchaotic environment for all of our visitors. Students must schedule appointments by calling our receptionist (412-383-8811) or contacting their academic advisor directly. Walk-in appointments will be accommodated only during the add/drop period.

Students are encouraged to E-mail their advisors at any time with quick questions.

You and your CBA advisor will work together from your freshman year through your senior year. If you wish to work with another academic advisor, please E-mail Liz Adams, director, CBA academic advising, at ladams@katz.pitt.edu  to discuss an advisor reassignment.

Should you ever experience an emergency that requires you to see your advisor immediately, please contact your advisor directly and let us know about the nature of the emergency. We will be sure to find a way to see or talk to you promptly.

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Is advising mandatory in the CBA?

Yes, you must meet with an advisor and they must sign your registration and add/drop forms.

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How many credits are required to graduate?

A minimum of 120 credits is required to graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Of that 120, a minimum of 54 credits must be from Arts and Sciences (non-CBA) courses, and the maximum number of business credits is 66.

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How many credits are required in a business major?

Every student is required to take 42 credits of core business courses. On top of that, each student must take courses in a major. The finance major requires a minimum of 15 credits, general management and marketing require at least 18 credits, and the accounting major requires a minimum of 22 credits. Most accounting majors, though, want to prepare for the CPA exam, and there are two additional courses that help them to do this: one in accounting and one in business law. By taking the two additional courses, they graduate with 28 credits in accounting.

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What is the add/drop period, and how does it work?

During the add/drop period you can change your schedule without penalty. Add/drop for summer and fall terms begins in April, and it begins for spring term in November. For fall and spring terms, add/drop lasts through the second week of classes. Summer term add/drop deadlines depend upon the session in which the course is taken. Please consult the Academic Calendar for the exact dates. BSBA students are required to have their advisor's signature on the add/drop form, thus an appointment needs to be made with your advisor. Most advisors recommend that only drops be done after the first week of classes, since having to catch up with more than a week's worth of work is fairly daunting.

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What is the Satisfactory/No Credit (S/NC) grading option, and how does it work?

This is the grading option that many students mistakenly call "pass/fail."

What this means:

The student attends the course and does all work as required by the instructor. When final grades are computed, those students taking the course with the S/NC grade option and earning a C or better will be assigned the grade of S, or satisfactory. The student will receive credit for the course, and if that course fulfills any Arts and Science requirement (i.e. philosophy, natural science), it will do so. A grade of C- or less will result in an NC grade. An NC grade signifies that the student was enrolled in the course, but did not earn credit for it. Neither S nor NC grades affects a student's GPA.

How to do this:

During the first three or four weeks of each semester, students can declare this S/NC option by going to the dean's office of the academic center offering the course (most likely it will be Arts and Sciences—140 Thackeray Hall) and completing the proper paperwork. See the online academic calendar for the deadline for each semester.

Who should do this:

If you are confident you can earn at least a C in the course, but are concerned about adversely affecting your GPA, this may be a good option for you to explore. However, consider the following scenario: You take your philosophy requirement with the S/N grade option. After a semester of hard work, you earn a C- in the course. If you were taking the class for a grade, you could accept the C- and move on. No, it probably won't enhance your GPA, but the requirement is fulfilled. But, since you were taking the class for the S/NC option, you will receive an NC for the class and will have to repeat that course or take another course to fulfill your philosophy requirement. Conversely, if you take a class for an S or NC grade, and do really well in the class, you will still only receive an S. If you choose to take any courses this way, it is recommended that you only take a few courses for the S/NC option throughout your college career.

Which courses can I take with this option?

You can take many of the Arts and Sciences foundation requirement courses and almost any non-business elective courses this way. Courses that are not allowed to be taken with the S/NC option: Prep for Business Calculus, Business Calculus, Statistics, Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Introduction to Psychology, and any course offered through CBA.

As always, talk with your advisor if you're not sure what to do about a course.

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What is the monitored withdrawal period, and how does it work?

The withdrawal period begins when add/drop ends and runs through the ninth week of the term for fall and spring terms (withdrawal for summer term will vary with the session). During the withdrawal period you can leave a course by filling out the appropriate form. The course will be listed on your transcript, but instead of a letter grade there will be a W, and it won't affect your GPA.

Making the decision to withdraw from a course can be difficult, but doing the following things might help to make the issues more clear:

  • Do a thorough and honest assessment of your progress in the course to date. List the grades you have received on assignments, quizzes, and exams. Take stock of how much you have learned from the course so far, and think about the time it's taken to acquire that knowledge. Determine whether spending more time on the course would help, and, if so, think about whether you have the extra time to devote to the course. Most courses are cumulative, as one topic builds upon the last. Explore how much the things you didn't learn in the beginning of the course will affect your understanding of the topics that will be discussed later in the course.
  • If you decide you need to withdraw, you should first talk with your professor about your standing in the course. Many courses here at Pitt, especially the large ones, are graded on a curve. Thus, your performance is often measured relative to the performance of the other students in the course. So, if your raw score on an exam is poor, that doesn't necessarily mean that your letter grade will be poor also. It would be best to make sure.
  • Talk with your advisor. Advisors can ask the right questions and help you organize your thoughts. They can also explain the consequences withdrawal will have on your academic plan (e.g., will you need to take courses in a different sequence, will it affect when you graduate, etc.).
  • Once you have made the decision to withdraw, you will go about it in one of two ways:
  • Withdrawing from an A&S course requires that you go to the A&S dean's office in 140 Thackeray Hall, fill out the form, and submit it there. You don't have to talk with your advisor first, but we strongly recommend that you do.
  • To withdraw from a CBA course, you must see your advisor to obtain the form and their signature on the form. You will then take the form to the CBA dean's office in 2505 Sennott Square and turn it in.

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What happens when I repeat a class?

It is extremely important that students understand the implications of repeating a course.

First, if a student has already earned credit for the course (in other words, if the original grade in the course is a D- or greater), the student will not earn any additional credit for repeating the course.

Second, the new grade will always, regardless of whether it is higher or lower than the old grade, be the grade that is calculated into the student's GPA.

Third, the old grade does not disappear from the student's transcript. Instead, the old grade is no longer calculated into the GPA, and an indicator appears on the student's transcript noting that the course was repeated/redone.

Finally, the student must fill out paperwork with his or her advisor to ensure the new grade is calculated into the GPA and the old grade is taken out of the GPA calculation.

Please check with your advisor about the pros and cons of repeating a course.

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What is the difference between the BSBA program and the A&S/Business Dual Major?

Students in the BSBA program receive their degree from the College of Business Administration. They complete CBA-mandated general-education courses, take 42 credits of core business courses, and then complete a major in a functional-business area. Students in the A&S/Business Dual Major receive their degree from the School of Arts and Sciences. They complete A&S-mandated general-education courses, 36 credits of business core courses, and then complete a major in one of the Arts and Sciences departments.

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Are students in the BSBA program permitted to do a double major?

Yes, double majors are permitted. Keep in mind that a double major involves completing two majors from the same college, so students who complete a BSBA double major are completing two business majors. Completing two majors from two different colleges requires that a student be enrolled in a double-degree program.

Students who decided early on to do a double major are usually in a good position to complete their degree in four years if they closely follow their plan of study. If accounting is one of the majors, though—especially if the student wants to complete the 28 credits recommended for CPA Exam preparation—it becomes tougher to fit in the second major in four years. In those cases, a few summer courses can help to make things work out. Please be sure to talk to your advisor about your particular situation.

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Can students complete the BSBA program and an A&S major at the same time?

Yes, highly motivated students can enter the CBA/A&S Double Degree Program. It is a five-year program that requires 150 credits for graduation. Students graduate from the program with two separate degrees: a BSBA from the CBA and a BS or BA from A&S. During the five years all of the BSBA degree requirements and all of the A&S degree requirements are completed. The BSBA general-education requirements are a subset of the A&S requirements, which is why it's possible to do this in 150 credits. For more information please speak with your CBA advisor.

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How can I get the most out my interactions with my CBA advisor?

Students generally spend about one face-to-face hour with their academic advisor each term. Additional appointment time may be scheduled if you are experiencing some particular academic problem, or if a personal problem is hurting your academic performance.

There are some basic rules—applicable to any type of meeting—that will help you to get the most out of your meetings with your advisor.

First, always be sure to arrive on time for any appointments with your advisor. Advisors typically schedule several back-to-back appointments throughout the day. If you are more than 15 minutes late for a scheduled appointment, you will be asked to reschedule your appointment. If you cannot attend a scheduled appointment, please be sure to call 412-383-8811 to cancel the appointment.

Second, it is very wise to prepare for advising/registration meetings in the same way you would prepare for any business meeting. Consider writing out an agenda for the meeting. Be sure to include on your agenda any questions or topics you wish to discuss with your advisor.

Third, be well-prepared for each meeting. If you were given an assignment during your previous meeting (perhaps to plan your schedule for the next term, to visit a particular Web site, or to meet with a representative from another University office), be sure to complete the assignment.

Fourth, you should consider every professional meeting during your college career as an opportunity to polish and strengthen your communication and interpersonal skills. When meeting with your advisor, you can work on this skill set in many ways:

  • Are you able to articulate clearly what you like or dislike about your classes? When you share this information with your advisor, you are improving a very valuable professional skill, often referred to as giving feedback. In your professional career, you will often need to provide feedback on, for example, a presentation, a colleague's performance, a new product, or a new system. So, rather than telling your advisor that a class is "good" or "boring," instead teach yourself how to give detailed, thoughtful feedback on your classes.
  • What type of interpersonal skills do you suppose your future employers want to find in you? Employers tell us that they seek students who demonstrate maturity, trustworthiness, attention to detail, ability to successfully resolve conflicts, and a willingness to work as a member of a team. You will likely have the opportunity to further develop all of these qualities in your interactions with your advisor. For example, learning to react with maturity when faced with a less-than-favorable outcome (for example, a closed class, a low grade, or some other academic disappointment) is a critical skill for your future success.

Finally, it is best to remember that advisors are not mind readers, nor can they predict the future. Tell your advisor about your concerns, goals, and problems. Your advisor knows a great deal about life at the University of Pittsburgh, but you need to communicate actively with your advisor to turn this knowledge into information that will be of benefit to you. Your advisor cannot tell you which major to select, or which career will lead to the achievement of your ambitions. Those choices belong to you. What your advisor can do is help you to find resources (Web sites, books, professors, career specialists) that will help you to answer these and other questions.

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What if my advisor never told me about a specific policy or procedure?

Many earnest students are shocked to discover that they have unknowingly violated a University of Pittsburgh or CBA policy. We urge you to never let this happen to you. Your academic advisor will not read the CBA Student Guide or the University Code of Conduct to you. You are responsible for reading these documents on your own and being familiar with the policies and procedures discussed in each. If you have questions about a policy or procedure, your advisor will gladly help you to resolve the confusion.

You are responsible for following all University of Pittsburgh and CBA policies and procedures. While it is unfortunate if you are unaware of a policy or procedure, all policies and procedures apply to all students.