Academic advising

Is this your first year at ASU?

First-year students (not including new transfer students or online students) receive advising support in Armstrong Hall.

First-year advising

Advising

Our advising mission is to further the teaching mission of the university by providing quality, accessible advising to all students. Academic advisors help students successfully transition to the university and make progress towards their educational goals and graduation. Advisors are part of the educational process providing academic information and guidance to help students understand curricula, policies, and procedures.

Academic advising is a collaborative teaching relationship among academic advisors, students, faculty, and the university community. Working with advisors, students identify educational and career goals, create and implement plans, and assume responsibility for their education. Your School of International Letters and Cultures advisors are dedicated to your success at ASU and beyond.

Located in the newly renovated Durham Hall, suite 131 (DH 131)

Our office is open Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Emails can expect a return response within two business days.

Make an appointment 

Phone: 480-965-6281 | email: silcadvising@asu.edu

Walk-in advising hours: Mondays and Tuesdays from 2–4 p.m. 

For any general questions, please contact silcadvising@asu.edu

Meet your advisors

FAQ

Q. Where is the advising office in the School of International Letters and Cultures?

A. Advising office is located on the 1st floor of the Durham Hall Languages and Literatures Building, Suite 131 (DH131)

Q. How do I make an advising appointment?

A. You can go to my.asu.edu to make an advising appointment, or click on this to make an appointment. You may also call the front office at 480-965-6281

Q. Do you offer walk-in advising?

A. Yes. Typically Monday and Tuesday afternoons from 2–4 p.m. are dedicated walk-in advising hours, however, at times we are required to adjust the schedule so please be sure to confirm walk-in hours each week. Please note, students on Academic Probation are required to schedule an appointment by calling 480-965-6281because it needs a 1-hour appointment instead of 30 minutes.

Q. How should I prepare for my advising appointment?

A. New and transfer students should have thoroughly reviewed their DARS report. All students should bring their ASU SunCard, and any other applicable forms. If you are a prospective, new, or transfer student, it is helpful to have copies of your unofficial test scores, transcripts, etc.

Q. May I meet with an advisor over the phone instead of in person?

A. ASU Online students meet via phone when scheduling an advising appointment. Students are responsible for calling at the designated appointment time. You may schedule an appointment through EZ Appointments online or call the front office at 480-965-6281.  For on-campus students in-person advising is preferred.

Q. What is the late policy for advising appointments?

A. In order to be fair to all students, anyone arriving or calling 10 or more minutes late to their appointment may need to reschedule.

Q. How do I cancel or reschedule an advising appointment?

A. Please call SILC front office at 480-965-6281. 

Q. May I email an advisor my question(s)?

A. If you have a very simple (one sentence) question, you may email silcadvising@asu.edu and an advisor will respond to your inquiry. However, if you have multiple or complex questions, you must make an appointment to meet with a school advisor or come in during walk-in hoursPlease note that probationary advising requires an in-person appointment.

Q. If I have concerns, comments, or feedback about advising who do I contact?

A. Please email silcadvising@asu.edu with the subject line “comments”.

Q. How do I obtain permission for a course overload?

A. SILC majors must petition the school's Overload Petition committee for permission to take up to 21 credit hours. Contact your SILC advisor once you have read the overload petition requirements.  Students who wish to take more than 21 credit hours must petition the college.

Q. Do you offer testing to high-school students trying to meet deficiencies in foreign languages?

A: No 

Q. Who is the School of International Letters and Cultures contact for language testing questions?

A. Louis Wigley is the Language Placement Testing Coordinator and is the contact for all things related to language testing. Contact her via email at Louis.Wigley@asu.edu

Q. What is the difference between a Language Placement test and a Proficiency test?

A. Placement tests are diagnostic tests which, upon completion, will provide a recommended course level for an ASU language course (101, 102, 201, 202, etc.). A proficiency examination can be used in place of coursework to satisfy a student’s college foreign language graduation requirement.

Q. Why can’t I add FRE 101, GER 101 or SPA 101? I try to add the course and I receive a message indicating I need a placement score prerequisite.

A. Students who wish to add FRE 101, GER 101 or SPA 101 are required to take an online language placement test: https://international.clas.asu.edu/student-life/academic-advising/placement-testing/placement-testing-undergraduates.

Student scores are posted in People Soft and a milestone is created that will enable you to register for the course you placed into. Please note that students may take a placement test 2 times per calendar year per language test.

Q. What if I don’t like where I was placed? What can I do?

A. Students who would like to be placed into courses higher than 101* in ARB, BCS, CHI, GRK, HEB, IDN, ITA, JPN, KOR, LAT, PLC, POR,  ROM, RUS, VTN must submit a placement test request online at https://international.clas.asu.edu/student-life/academic-advising/placement-testing/placement-testing-undergraduates. A faculty tester will contact you to coordinate a time for your placement test.  

*Students do not need a placement test score prerequisite to register for 101 or first semester courses for these languages.   

Q. How do I obtain an override for a language course (I.e. SPA101 SPA202)?

A. Submit your request for an override through the online override request form.

Q. I notice that I have a "Junior Check-In" notification on MyASU. What does this mean?

A. Your advisors are interested in making sure that everything is going as planned and that you are on your way to being a Sun Devil graduate! In order to accomplish this, when you see this notification, schedule an appointment with an advisor. During this check-in appointment, we will verify that everything is correct in your student account and that all other indicators show that you are making progress towards graduation. This is not an urgent hold, and it will not impact your ability to register. However, please do make an appointment to see your advisor so we can remove the hold from your account.

Q. How do I add a language minor?

A. Check the catalog to review minor requirements.  After reviewing, you can email silcadvising@asu.edu to request the minor to be added.  Please include your ASU ID number in the body of the email. We encourage you to schedule an appointment with a SILC advisor to find out more about study abroad options, internships, scholarship opportunities, and student involvement.

Q. If I am on academic probation what should I do?

A. Schedule an in-person appointment with a SILC academic advisor by calling 480-965-6281. Please note that probation appointments are not taken during our Walk-in advising hours. 

Q. I want to refresh my language skills. Can I take a lower level course if I already passed a higher level course?

A. Students are expected to follow the progressive sequence of 100, 200, 300, or 400 levels.  Once a grade of “C” (2.0) or higher is earned in a 300-level class in a language, students may not earn lower-division credit in that language.  Moreover, once a grade of “C” (2.0) or higher is earned in a 200-level language course, students may not earn credit in any 100-level course in that language. Students may be allowed to audit a lower-level course to refresh their skills and are encouraged to meet with a SILC advisor to discuss this option.

Q. Can I take intensive language courses to accelerate my language proficiency progress?

A. Yes, students can enroll in intensive language courses in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish. Elementary intensive language 110 courses are offered in the fall semester. Intermediate intensive language 210 courses are offered in the spring semester. 

Q. I need to withdraw from my course(s).  What do I do?

A. Contact your advisor.  They can guide you through the withdrawal process. The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences students can review information on the withdrawal process online. and/or the complete session withdrawal.