FAQs

Academic Advising is a partnership between the student and their assigned advisor, through which students clarify, pursue, and reevaluate goals; navigate their academic journey, and engage with their campus community. Advisors serve as students’ first point of contact to guide them through college and beyond.

Academic Advisors are full-time professional staff members who help students make the most of their time at USC both in and out of the classroom. Advisors provide support through email, in-person or virtual appointments throughout the entire calendar year (including summer).

Your academic advisor is assigned by declared major.  To learn about or connect with your assigned First-Year advisor visit “Meet the FYA Team”.

To learn about or connect with your departmental advisor visit Departmental Advising.

Note:  To all FYA and Continuing students to view who your assigned advisor is, log into Advise USC and click on the team assignments tab.  Your advisor(s) will be listed.

Mandatory advisement is a required meeting when advisors and students discuss the current semester and prepare for next semester’s registration. Advisors will email reminders when it is time to schedule mandatory advising appointments. Although mandatory advisement is only required once per semester, students are welcome to consult with advisors throughout the year. 

Students can meet with advisors in-person or virtually. Choose your desired method when booking your appointment through our online appointment system, Advise USC.  

Advisors may offer a limited schedule of drop-in hours where students can meet with their advisor on a first-come, first-served basis without an appointment. However, if your advisor does offer this opportunity they will email you information regarding the schedule.

If you have an urgent question for your advisor and do not have an appointment, it is recommended that you contact your advisor by email. 

To cancel an appointment, access our online appointment system, Advise USC. You may also contact your advisor directly by email.

If your assigned advisor is out of the office or does not have any appointments that work with your schedule, you should reach out to your advisor by email. 

If your advisor is out of the office and you have an urgent issue, please email us at advising@dornsife.usc.edu or contact the Office of Undergraduate Academic Advising & Administration at (213) 740-2534

Note: You are only able to schedule appointments with the advisor(s) listed under your team assignments on Advise USC.

Prior to your orientation session, Dornsife Admissions will be your best resource for information about majors and minors, course requirements, and transfer coursework.

Please contact Dornsife Admissions at (213) 740-5930 or admission@dornsife.usc.edu. 

After completion of the first year, students are advised by an academic advisor in their major department who will support them beginning in the second year through graduation.

All transfer students will be assigned a departmental academic advisor during their Welcome Trojans Orientation experience based on their declared major. You will then continue working with that advisor for the duration of your time in that major. You may view your assigned advisor under your team assignments tab on Advise USC. Advising appointments are offered both in person and on Zoom. Your advisor will be able to assist you with course planning; developing and defining your academic, personal, and professional goals; and uncovering opportunities such as internships, study abroad, job opportunities, resources, and more.

A Major is a specific area of study that a student chooses to specialize in. You can click here for a list of majors offered by Dornsife.

A Minor is an academic program designed to complement an undergraduate student’s major. A minor can allow you to explore a personal interest, enhance your major area of focus, or emphasize a career field. You can click here for a list of minors offered by Dornsife. 

A Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree focuses on the humanities and liberal arts, providing a broader education with more flexibility in course selection, while a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree tends to be more specialized, with a heavier emphasis on science, math and technical skills within a specific field, often requiring more coursework and lab work.

You can find a list of majors by clicking here and looking to see which degree has BA or BS options.

To declare a major/minor within Dornsife, request a referral for your desired program from your current academic advisor. They will provide you the contact information regarding that program, including with whom you may meet to learn more.

A double major consists of two majors that allow the student to earn the same degree, either two B.A. degrees or two B.S. degrees. The student must complete the requirements for both majors and whatever other coursework is needed to complete 128 units.

A second Bachelor’s consists of two majors that culminate in two different degrees. For example, the first degree is a B.A., and the second degree is any of the following: B.S, B.M., B.F.A., B.Arch. or B.L.Arch. A second Bachelor’s degree requires a minimum of 32 additional units above the total required for the first degree. In most cases, this number is 160 total units (128 units + 32 units). In some cases, it may take more than the minimum units in order to complete all of the courses required for a specific program combination. Please see your academic advisor to verify your graduation plan.

Declaring a major or minor in another academic unit requires admission through an internal application process.

For admission information, request a referral from your current advisor who will share with you contact and/or website information regarding your desired program. Students are expected to meet all admission criteria before an admission decision is reached and the major/minor is added.

Your major advisor can talk with you about common careers related to your major.

Dornsife Career Pathways is also a great resource that offers individual career advising and hosts career-focused events throughout the semester. You can also find career exploration tools and resources available on the Dornsife Career Pathways website.

Handshake is another great resource for students to utilize and it is USC’s university-wide career services management platform and the largest career community for college students. Students will be able to explore careers, find amazing jobs and internships, and connect with other students who share your career interests.

Professors in your major can also discuss career prospects with you.

Per USC requirements, a minimum of 128 units is necessary to graduate with a single Dornsife Bachelor’s degree. However, some majors may require more than 128 units to complete all requirements.

For students pursuing a second Bachelor’s degree, an additional 32 units beyond the first degree is required. Within these units, a minimum number must be completed within Dornsife departments. 

Taking at least 16 units each semester will help facilitate the completion of your degree within four years. Keep in mind that full-time students are charged tuition on a flat-fee basis for 12-18 units. If you are enrolled in less than 12 units, you are considered a part-time student and are charged tuition per unit.

Please be sure to check with the USC Financial Aid Office and/or your scholarship coordinator to find out if being a part-time student will affect your financial aid package and/or scholarship. Being a part-time student may also affect you if you are covered under your parents’ health insurance. Be sure to check with your insurance company for verification.

AP, IB, or A-level scores may be used to fulfill certain general education, prerequisite, or major requirements. Detailed information on which exams meet which requirements can be found here .

All students majoring in Dornsife are required to reach the proficiency equivalent to the 3rd semester of a foreign language. The foreign language requirement may be satisfied in one of the following ways:

1. Earning a passing grade in level III of a foreign language at USC or its equivalent elsewhere.
2. Taking the USC Language Placement exam or Competency exam and scoring appropriately to satisfy the level 3 language requirement
3. Scoring a 4 or 5 on an AP Foreign Language exam OR a 6 or 7 on an IB Higher Level Foreign language exam, with the exception of Latin.

International students whose native language is not English are exempt from the foreign language requirement.

Students who can supply proof of at least two years of full-time secondary schooling beyond the age of 14, taught in a foreign language, may request an exemption from the foreign language requirement.

For more information about the foreign language requirements and the schedule for placement and competency exams here.   

All undergraduates at USC must satisfy the General Education Program described below.

If you began college in Fall 2015 or later, you will complete the new General Education track which consists of Categories A-H with a General Education Seminar (GESM). Detailed information on GE requirements can be found here. 

If you began college before the Fall 2015 semester, you will satisfy the old GE track, which consists of categories I-VI with a Diversity Requirement. Information on the old GE requirements can be found here.

For undergraduate students earning a degree in the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, a minimum of 104 units applicable to the degree must be earned in Dornsife academic departments.

For students graduating with a minor in any school or a second Bachelor’s degree, this minimum is reduced to 96 units.

For students graduating with a double major, the total number of Dornsife units required varies depending on your specific programs and catalogue year; please consult your academic advisor to confirm your Dornsife unit requirement.

Yes, it is recommended that all freshman students  complete their GE Seminar (GESM) and lower division writing requirement (WRIT 150) during their first year.

Note: GESM and WRIT 150 should not be completed in the same semester.

Prior to your first semester, registration occurs as part of your Welcome Trojans Orientation experience. Before you register, your academic advisor will meet with you to review recommended courses based on information you provide as part of your pre-advisement worksheet on Brightspace. You may also be asked to complete placement exams, depending on your major. You may find additional information about steps to registering as part of the Welcome Trojans Orientation experience here.

Registration for the upcoming semester occurs between weeks 12-15 of the current semester. Registration permits are assigned based on the number of units completed. Some students may have priority registration status. Students must meet with their academic advisor to have their advising hold lifted prior to registering for classes.

Note: This is a busy time for academic advisors, so please book your appointment early to avoid delays in registration.

D-clearance means you need a department’s permission to register for the course. If the five-digit section number of the course ends in the letter “D,” that indicates clearance is needed before registering.

Each major department and school has its own process for requesting and granting D-clearance. Make sure you visit the website of or email the respective department for how you can obtain D-clearance.

Note: Students can check whether or not they have received D-clearance for a course in WebRegistration by clicking ‘My Info’ and then ‘Cleared Sections.’ If students have received D-clearance for a course, the ‘D’ will not be removed from the five-digit section number, but the student will be able to successfully register for the course.

Many GE Core Literacy (Categories A-C) courses can overlap with the GE Global Perspectives (Categories G and H), covering two categories. When viewing the list of courses offered in Categories A, B, or C, students can look for courses with ‘gw’ or ‘gp’ listed after the course number as indicators of overlapping GEs. If the course ends in ‘gw’ it will overlap with GE Category G. If the course ends in ‘gp’ it will overlap with GE Category H.

Discussions, labs, and quizzes are additional components for a course’s main lecture. When a course has these components listed with the lecture, students are required to register for them in order to register for the entire class successfully. You cannot register for one individual component- all are required for registration to go through. It is important to pay attention to any notes in the course description that may indicate how to register for a discussion, lab, or quiz. For example, a Math lecture may require a paired discussion section, or a Chemistry lecture may require enrollment in a particular quiz section.

In order to get your advising hold lifted, you must meet with your assigned academic advisor. You will receive an email from your advisor when it’s time to schedule your mandatory pre-registration advising appointment.

Note: The pre-registration advising period is a busy time for academic advisors. Schedule your appointment early to get your hold lifted in a timely manner. This will prevent any delay when it comes to registering for your courses.

Your academic advisor can provide alternative options if a course is closed when it’s your turn to register. These may include different major requirements, GE courses, or electives. You should consult your advisor if the closed course is a major requirement. 

Seats in certain GE and departmental courses are released throughout the registration period. A list of those courses may be found here. Please note that this list may not include all courses that add additional seats.

Students also continuously add and drop courses through the first three weeks of the semester. You should monitor WebRegistration for spaces to open, and you can utilize USC Schedule Helper Chrome extension, which has a feature that lets students ‘watch’ certain classes and receive an email when a spot opens up.

During your mandatory pre-registration advising appointment, you and your advisor will discuss which classes you should enroll in for the following semester. Your advisor is there to provide you guidance and support in selecting and registering for courses to ensure timely graduation and that are applicable to your interests and career goals.

You can find the deadline to add and drop classes, as well as other important registration dates, for a particular semester by checking the “Registration Calendar” tab in the Schedule of Classes. Click here for more information about important registration dates.

Prior to changing one of your classes, be sure to consult with your academic advisor to ensure your new courses keep you on the right path to graduation. Your advisor can assist you with choosing a new course and provide alternatives if needed. You may book an appointment with your advisor using the online appointment system, Advise USC. 

A pre-requisite is a course that must be completed before another one.

A co-requisite is a course that must be taken simultaneously with another.