General Advising FAQs

Students can declare their major after finishing ELN 1010. Students also have until the beginning of junior year to declare if they are exploring options first. More information is available via the major declaration website.

To graduate, you must earn 132 semester hours. Of those, 60 must be earned as letter graded semester hours through Elon. To track this, go to My Progress in student planning and track the progress bars.

When filling out the major declaration form, you may request an advisor. Advisor requests are not guaranteed. The Office of Academic Advising collaborates with the departments, who make the decision on advisor pairings. Once the pairings are decided, we make this change in Student Planning. You will be notified via email of your new advisor. You can also view this on My Progress in Student Planning.

If you are still working with your ELN 1010 advisor, declaring your major will provide you a new advisor in your academic department. See more information on the major declaration process.

Requests to change your major advisor must go through the department chair. Not sure who the department chair is? Check the Faculty & Staff Directory.

Study by completing the online survey from the Department of World Languages and Cultures. Through this form, you may request that English counts as your second language.

If you plan to take a course at Elon taught in your native language, e.g., to fulfill Elon Core Curriculum requirements, please complete the language assessment for your native language.

ELR is short for Experiential Learning Requirement. This is part of the Elon Core Curriculum. Students are required to complete two units of ELR. Choices are completing two smaller experiences or a larger, comprehensive experience. Students can track this in Student Planning under My Progress.

The five options for students are:

• Internships
• Leadership
• Service Learning
• Study Abroad
• Undergraduate Research

For more information, visit the Elon Core Curriculum website.

No. Advanced studies must come from the liberal studies courses explicitly listed in the online catalog. If in doubt, use Course Type from the Course Catalog section of Student Planning and search by Advanced Studies

Yes. Just make sure that the classes are upper level classes in the Arts & Sciences.

No. Courses do not double count within the Elon core any more than they double count within the major. Just as a required course in the major will not double count as a major elective, neither will required courses within the Elon core double count.  (The only exception is ELR. For example, a study abroad course may satisfy a requirement in the core curriculum and satisfy ELR.) Students wishing to change where a class fits in My Progress (the degree audit) should complete the Registrar’s Office Degree Audit Adjustment Form.

Yes. Students double-majoring in Love School of Business and School of Communications should consult with the Dean’s Office of each school. You may be able to request approval to take just 1 of BUS 4970 or COM 4970.

The answer to this question is “it depends.” If one major is in the Elon College of Arts & Sciences, the answer is likely yes. If neither major is, you may be able to take course that could double-count with Advanced Studies and your major. For example, upper level ECO classes in most Love School of Business majors can be Advanced Studies. We recommend scheduling an academic advising meeting with your advisor or a graduation planning meeting with an advisor in the Office of Academic Advising. Students enrolled in ELN 1010 should discuss this in class as it is a great question for other students to learn about.

Year Two: IDS 2250 course counts in the Elon Core Curriculum: Civilization or Society
Years Three & Four: PER (Periclean) courses count as elective hours towards graduation

Only one language course will count in civilization. The second course carries elective credit towards the total graduation hours.

No. Literature courses must come from the English department, the Department of World Languages and Cultures, or specially designated IDS or GBL courses occasionally offered in winter term. History courses for civilization credit must come from the History department.

All students must complete a physical or biological lab science. Students must complete a total of 8 semester hours in Science/Analysis. You can choose to take multiple labs if you choose. You can choose to take 1 lab and then a computer science or math class to finish the category. Just make sure that you have a lab science as part of your Science/Analysis courses.

No. Transfer students have joined Elon after having completed at least 12 semester hours at a college or university after the completion of high school.

Maybe. You will likely not be able to register on-line via Student Planning for a course above or below your placement level. Contact the Department of World Languages and Cultures via languages@elon.edu and ask about your options.

Contact the Global Education Center to attend a workshop about such planning or to schedule an individual meeting with a coordinator in this office.

For students planning to study away in a fall semester, the early deadline to apply is typically before Thanksgiving Break and the rolling deadline continues through early to mid-February.

For study away in a spring semester, the early deadline is typically mid-April with the rolling deadline continuing until early September.

Please visit the GEC website on short-term programs in winter as that process follows a different application cycle.

Students who are currently on a Study Abroad or Study USA semester program will be granted access in Student Planning by the Office of the University Registrar. Academic Advisors need not approve advisees who are abroad or on Study USA programs for the semester.

If you are taking a prerequisite while abroad for a course you will enroll in next semester, be sure to contact the Global Education Center early on for assistance with such course registration.

No and No. If students have followed all the proper directions from the Isabella Cannon Global Education Center, they will be registered by the center into a place holder for their particular program or into Elon catalog courses. This is true for Elon Centers, affiliates, and exchange programs. The registration process for the actual courses abroad varies by programs. The GEC and host programs will guide students through that process. Students who have chosen non-Elon programs must depend on that host institution for information regarding course registration.