Mandatory Advising FAQs

Check your MC e-mail for an e-mail with the subject line:  “Time to Meet with Me!”.   The e-mail was sent from your Assigned Counselor with instructions on your next steps.   Contact the online advisornew window if you need additional assistance.

Our goal is to support you in achieving your academic and personal goals. Research has proven that interacting with counselors/advisors early in your college career can enhance your success.   As a participant in the Mandatory Advising & Assigned Counselor (MA/AC) pilot, you are helping us determine the effectiveness of mandatory advising appointments and an assigned counselor case management approach to advising students in their first year at MC.

Contact your assigned counselor as soon as possible to schedule an academic planning appointment. You can schedule an appointment with your assigned counselor via Starfishnew window or by e-mailingnew window your counselor directly, contact information can be found in the e-mail sent to your MC e-mail account. Some appointments may be able to be completed online or on the phone, if meeting in person is a challenge.

Your assigned counselor will work with you to determine your advising needs and to create an educational plan based on your personal, academic, and transfer goals. Once your educational plan for your upcoming semester is complete, the ‘MA’ hold will be removed, allowing you to register for your courses. You and your counselor will work together to determine any additional next steps.

Your assigned counselor is one of your best all-around resources on campus with connections to – and knowledge about – many of the programs and people that can help you achieve academic and personal success. Mandatory advising is an opportunity for your assigned counselor to meet you, learn about your goals and help you chart a path to success.

Benefits of Participation:

• Opportunity for you to establish a strong relationship with a Counselor from the start.
• Get assistance developing an educational plan consistent with your goals.
• Check in periodically to revisit plan and evaluate academic progress toward your stated goals.
• Receive referrals to other institutional, campus or community resources/supports based on your individual needs.
• Work together to address common challenges experienced during the transition to college.

We selected you from a list of students new to MC in the fall 2019 semester, with the goal of completing a degree. In August, we sent out multiple notifications to your college e-mail account (montgomerycollege.edu), including an opportunity to opt-out of the pilot.

CONFIDENTIALITY
Individual student information will be kept confidential in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)new window. Only aggregate data will be used in the analysis of the efficacy of this pilot.

If you have any questions or concerns, you may contact the Chair of Counseling & Advising at your preferred campus:

Germantown Campus Counseling Department
Chair: Katie Mount
240-567-6966
katie.mount@montgomerycollege.edu

Rockville Campus Counseling Department
Chair: Marcella Karp
240-567-5066
marcella.karp@montgomerycollege.edu

Takoma Park/Silver Spring Counseling Center
Chair: Erica Hepworth
240-567-3920
erica.hepworth@montgomerycollege.edu