Advising

Our goal is to offer the individualized advising that ILS students need to take full advantage of academic, internship, and service opportunities available on the UM campus and in the local Washington, DC area. During the advising process, ILS students are encouraged to reflect on how their current experiences are shaping their future academic and professional goals.

During the fall semester of a student's first year, advising begins with ILS Colloquium presentations on academic programs, undergraduate research, internship opportunities, and professional schools from Ms. Wendy Loughlin, Director of the Health Professions Advising Office  and from Dr. Kaci Thompson, Director of Undergraduate Research and Internship Programs 

Each semester, the ILS staff offers advising sessions to small groups of ILS students having the same major and/or similar academic interests. The focus of these sessions is to prepare students for meeting with academic advisors in their chosen major and to hold general discussions about the extracurricular experiences that are appropriate for each stage in the ILS program.

Subsequently, each student has the opportunity to meet individually with an ILS staff member to discuss his/her academic and experiential goals for the upcoming semester and for the future. These individualized advising sessions ensure that each student has the opportunity to tailor his/her ILS experiences toward achieving both personal and professional successes. 

Advising Schedule for First-Year Students

Time	Advisors	Objectives
Mid-September	Wendy Loughlin (Health Professions Advising Office)	Pre-medical advising, including academic, research, clinical, and service programs
Late September	Kaci Thompson (College of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences)	Undergraduate research and internship programs
Mid-October	ILS staff	Small group advising - general aspects of academic and extracurricular planning
Early November	ILS staff	Individualized advising for next semester and professional development
Early February	ILS staff	Small group advising - general aspects of academic and extracurricular planning
Mid-February	ILS staff	Individualized advising for summer, next semester, and professional development