MSC-ST Online Advisor User Documentation

Overview:

MSC-ST's Online Advisor is a web-based application that helps students and advisors with most of the routine tasks involved in planning the student's schedule for the upcoming semester. Based on the student's DARS (Degree Audio Reporting System) report, the program:

checks the schedule to determine which classes are offered that semester
checks current enrollment to determine whether each class is available
checks each course's prerequisites and corequisites to determine whether the student has met the requirements
lists prerequisite general educuation courses (such as Fundamental and Basic Math) that are required based on the student's placement scores.
gives easy access to complete course descriptions
if configured by the advisor, equivalent courses offered by other MnSCU schools can be displayed

Combining these sources of information (DARS report, course catalog, and class schedule), the Online Advisor presents the student with a list of class options and creates a report that can be sent to the advisor for approval. It should be noted that while the Online Advisor is an efficient planning tool for both students and advisors, it is not a replacement for common sense and a knowlegeable advisor. The student may be presented with inappropriate class choices for a variety of reasons (complex prerequisite requirements, program and/or course changes, inaccurate DARS configuration, etc.), so it's still important for the advisor to check the student's class selections carefully.

Using the Online Advisor:

The starting point for the Online Advisor is the student's DARS report. The Online Advisor has no direct access to the DARS database, so the student's first step is to log into the web registration system (which can be accessed from the MSC-ST home page) and access his or her DARS report. With the DARS report displayed in the web browser, click at the beginning of the line below the student's name (the line reading "Program Code...") and drag the cursor to the end of the report (the line reading "End of Analysis"). Press Ctrl-C on the keyboard (or click "Edit | Copy" on the browser's menu) to copy the DARS text. (Note: the Online Advisor does not need the student's name or ID. For security reasons, it is best to omit this information as described above.)
Open a new browser window and navigate to Online Advisor from the MSC-ST home page. Paste the DARS text into the large text area by pressing Ctrl-V on the keyboard.
Select the appropriate semester and campus(es). To display only online classes, leave the campuses unchecked. (Online Advisor will display all online classes and classes offered at the selected campuses.)
Click the 'Next' button.
Online Advisor reads the DARS text and looks up schedule information for the required courses and electives. It also looks up any prerequisite general education courses the student is required to take based on his or her placement test scores (AccuPlacer or ASAP).

Sample course listings:
- Course with multiple sections offered. Closed sections are disabled:
- Course requirement found, but no sections of that course are offered this semester:
- Neither the course description nor course schedule information was found:
- Prerequisites may not be met (course displayed in red). Click link (course title) to check course description for prerequisites:
- Equivalent classes offered by other MnSCU schools. Displayed only if configured by advisor and if the class is not offered this semester at MSC-ST:
Make class selections and click 'Next'.
Summary report is displayed. Copy the report text (click at the top of the report, drag to the bottom, and press Ctrl-C on the keyboard). Note: this page "times-out" after approximately 20 minutes. If the summary report is not displayed correctly, start over at step 2.
Open your e-mail program. (If you use a browser-based system like WebMail or HotMail, open it in a new browser window). Create an e-mail message addressed to your advisor and add an appropriate subject line. Paste the report text into the body of the message by pressing Ctrl-V on the keyboard or selecting 'Edit | Paste' on the e-mail program's menu. E-mail it to your advisor for approval.

Selecting classes:

Online Advisor is an efficient tool, but there are a number of limitations:

It will not prevent you from selecting courses for which you haven't completed prerequisites. The missing prerequisites are generally indicated (the course is displayed in red), but the course can still be selected.
It will not prevent you from selecting multiple courses that meet at the same time of day.
It will not enforce priorities. In many program majors, for example, general education prerequisites (such as Fundamental or Basic Math) are a high priority because they enable the student to perform better in other classes even if they are not specifically listed as a prerequisite. Generally, these classes should be taken as soon as possible.

A second example of a high priority class is one that is a prerequisite to another class. Computer programming students, for example, take a series of programming classes, each of which is a prerequisite for the next (COMC2730, COMC2740, COMC2742, COMC2747). If the student does not take one of these classes, graduation will be delayed. Check the course descriptions and/or the advising information provided by your advisor to help identify these situations.

A third example of a priority not enforced by the Online Advisor is in the proportion of general education courses vs. technical courses. Many students avoid taking general education classes because they are more interested in the technical classes. In most programs, this is a bad idea because the student will end up taking all the general education courses at the end - material that could have been helpful in their technical courses. Students seeking an AAS degree should take at least one general education class each semester.
Since the DARS report often lists the same class multiple times due to overlapping requirements (MNTC goals vs. General Education requirements, for example), the Online Advisor lists the classes redundantly as well. There is no need to select the same class each time it is listed.