Sophomore Advising
With the first year of college successfully is behind them, the time has come for second year students to think about the future —specifically the rest of their time at UT Austin and whatever is next. The Sophomore Advising process is designed to help students to plan out the rest of their academic career, ensure they don’t miss out on important opportunities, and make certain that they are well prepared for the next step after UT.
Sophomore Advising is a yearlong process that starts with Sophomore Summit. Sophomore Summit is an event (typically held in September) where we welcome students back for their second year at UT Austin and gather them together as members of the Plan II Community. The purpose of the Sophomore Summit is to briefly introduce students to several offices/resources on campus, provide guidance on tailoring a degree plan for the required Plan II thesis, and explain the Sophomore Advising process. It is our hope that students leave the Summit with the information and tools they need to investigate the many opportunities that lay before them and start thinking about their future
The next step of the Sophomore Advising process is to for students to take some time to research and reflect as they complete the Sophomore Advising Questions. Students are also required to compile a Résumé. Both the answers to the Sophomore Advising questions and résumé are then submitted to the Plan II Office by mid-November.
The Plan II Office will then use the answers students submit to the Sophomore Advising Questions to match them with a UT Austin faculty member who they will meet with for an advising session during the spring semester. All students are notified who their assigned faculty sophomore advisor is by the end of January at the start of the spring semester. Students must meet with their Sophomore Advisor before by mid-April and submit an advising report to the Plan II Office documenting the meeting with the faculty member.
Lastly, all second year Plan II students must participate in several Plan II Career Week events as part of the Sophomore Advising Process. Career Week is comprised of a series of workshops intended to introduce students to the many career options that they have and the resources available to help them achieve their goals. Participants include Plan II alumni, career offices from across the UT campus, and representatives from post-graduate programs. Plan II Career Week is typically held in February each year.
Note: Career Week is co-coordinated with the Liberal Arts Honors Program.
All four components of the Sophomore Advising process are required for Plan II second year students; failure to participate will result in an Advising Bar. It is our sincere hope students will take advantage of the Sophomore Advising process to learn more about themselves, the resources available to them, and how to best use the time they have left at UT to prepare for the future.
Sophomore Advising Timeline 2009-2010
- September 16, 2009 – Sophomore Summit 6:00pm-7:15pm (MEZ 1.306)
- November 13, 2009 – Deadline to submit answers to Sophomore Advising Questions (Sophomore Advising Questionnaire PDF link to right) and Résumé to the Plan II Office
- January 2010 – students notified by the Plan II Office who their assigned faculty member is for sophomore advising session
- Plan II Career Week (specific dates and detailed information TBA)
- April 16, 2010 – Deadline to meet with your assigned faculty member for sophomore advising session and submit advising report to the Plan II Office
