Skip navigation links

Jan. 31, 2024

University Advising update: January

by Ebony Green, assistant dean for University Advising

Portrait photo of Ebony Green

Greetings, Spartan community!

As we end the first month of this new year, University Advising is pressing forward preparing for both Exploratory Preference and our newly added Exploring Business Preference students joining us for NSO this summer 2024. Exploring Business Preference students have been transitioned to University Advising from Eli Broad College of Business beginning with the fall 2024 cohort. UA is primed to support potential business students’ exploration experience, ensuring those who want to purse secondary admission to Broad College are prepared and for those true explorers, we intend to showcase the variety of majors across our institution that are business related.

In addition to the preference major codes, students will also have a student group code based on our academic interest areas. These are the same interest areas that Admissions and Career Services refer to students. We have streamlined them from seven areas to four for organizational purposes. This team strives to expose students to a variety of majors that can meet their goals, and we begin that process by connecting students through the academic interest areas. 

Each interest area is led by an associate director: 

  • Debra Thornton – Business and Innovation
  • Justin Landis – Agriculture, Environment, & STEM
  • charlie liu – Health Sciences
  • Freddie DeRamus – Political Science, Arts & Culture, Communications, Education Social Science (PACES)

These associate directors have already been connecting and building relationships with departments across campus and leading their advising team in creating new experiences of exposure for our students. We are not doing this work in isolation—we encourage every college and department to share and connect with us so we have the best information to share with your future graduates. You can also learn more at advising.msu.edu.

Other Updates

Katie Peterson, Education Developer and Dr. Qiana Green, Director of Leadership and Professional Development Initiatives will be connecting with advising units to understand needs and challenges faced by advisors. These conversations aim to generate impactful professional development and training opportunities that support MSU academic advisors.    

Don’t forget the University Advising Awards event is next Monday, Feb. 5, 2024! This year’s award recipients will be honored during the awards ceremony in the MSU Union Ballroom from 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. Join us in celebrating them:

  • 2023 MSU Outstanding Established Academic Advisor Award
    • Lindsay Naylor, College of Engineering
  • 2023 MSU Outstanding New Academic Advisor Award
    • Yvonne Morris, College of Arts and Letters
  • 2023 MSU Outstanding Advising Administrator Award
    • Monaca Eaton, College of Social Science