Transfer Advising Notes for Biological Sciences Majors

The MC Biological Sciences (formerly Life Sciences) Associate of Science Degree lines up with requirements of the Biological Science Majors at UM College Park, but please be aware that other schools may have different requirements.

This comparison between UMCP and UMBC illustrates differences:

MC Biological Science AS DEGREE	Biological Sciences at UM College Park	Biological Science BA or BS at UMBC Requirements Shown in ARTSYS, Verified with UMBC Catalog	Private or Out-of-State Institutions
BIOL 150 & 151 Principles of Biology I and II	= √ BSCI 160 & BSCI 170	√ BIOL 140 & 141	See each school’s website for required courses.
BIOL 222 Genetics	= √ BSCI 222 Genetics	X Genetics is not required; it is a 300-level course at UMBC.  Although it will transfer, students may need to take another 300-level BIOL Sci course in its place to fulfill minimum Upper Level requirements.	See each school’s website for required courses.
MATH 170 Calculus for Life Sciences Or MATH 181 Calculus I	√ MC MATH 170 = UM MATH 130 Calculus for Life Sciences or √ MC MATH 181 = UM MATH 140 Calculus I	√ MC MATH 181 Calculus I = UMBC MATH 151 Calculus I is required only; X Note that MC MATH 170 Calc for Life Sciences transfers to UMBC as equivalent to MATH 155 Applied Calculus, not as Calc I	MATH 181 may be more transferable – See each school’s website for required courses.
MATH 171 Calculus for Life Sciences II Or MATH 182 Calculus II	√ Both transfer to fulfill the Calc II requirement at UM	Calculus II is NOT REQUIRED by UMBC; students will take Linear Algebra at UMBC after transfer, MATH 181 Calc I is the Prerequisite for Linear Algebra X  MC MATH 171 Calc for Life Sciences II  transfers to UMBC as a Lower Level Elective only	MATH 182 may be more transferable – See each school’s website for required courses.
CHEM 131 & 132	√ MC CHEM 131 transfers as UM CHEM 131 MC CHEM 132 transfers but students must take an addition CHEM 272 Lab @ UM after transfer; MC is going to offer this in the future.	√ Both MC CHEM 131 & 132 transfer to UMBC, no additional courses required	See each school’s website for required courses.
CHEM 203 & 204 Organic Chem I & II	√ CHEM 203 & 204 Organic Chem I & II	√ CHEM 203 & 204 Organic Chem I & II	See each school’s website for required courses.
PHYS 203 & 204 or PHYS 233 & 234 Physics I & II	Students take PHYS 131 & 132 in the Junior Year as per UM’s Biological Sciences 4-Year Plans:  http://bsci.umd.edu/major-requirements	UMBC lists completion of one of these sequences prior to transfer, both will transfer: PHYS 203 & 204 General Physics or PHYS 233 & 234 Physics for Life Sciences, note that PHYS 233 has a MATH 171 or 182 Calc II corequisite.	See each school’s website for required courses.

Regarding CHEM 203 & 204 Organic Chem I and II – please have students who express an interest in pre-med or pre-dental read the Montgomery College Transfer Advising article:  www.montgomerycollege.edu/premed   Students who intend to transfer to UMCP as Biological Sciences majors and then apply to medical school need to be aware of UMCP’s requirement that students must complete 24 credits of Lab Sciences at UMCP before UMCP will write a Committee Letter of Recommendation for medical schools.  Read the MC Premed article for details.

Simplest advising solution:  Use ARTSYS Recommended Transfer Program (RTP) Pages for students who plan to transfer to either UMCP or UMBC, and recommend that students also seek advisement from each school.

·        UMCP’s ARTSYS RTP’s for All Concentrations of Biological Sciences are up-to-date.

·        UMBC’s ARTSYS RTP’s for BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, BA (recommended by UMBC for pre-med) or BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES B.S. are up-to-date.

·        For out-of-state or private institutions, search “Academics” on each school’s site to find requirements for a Biological Science major.

·        Ask students how they plan to use a Biological Sciences degree – if they express a possible interest in Pre-Medicine, please suggest that they read MC’s Transfer Advising Article:  www.montgomerycollege.edu/premed

Academic Orientation FAQs

Banner SPACMNT – Academic Orientation Key

EMAP	Students placing into ENGL101A, ENGL101 or above
IMAP	Students placing into ELAP courses
D-EMAP	Students placing into IERW courses
CE-ESL	Students placing into CE-ESL classes
EMAP no  course placements found*	Students who have done the orientation prior to the scores appearing

* Note:  The system defaults to the EMAP track if it cannot find placements.

When a student attempts to do the orientation track prior to waiting the required number of days for course placements to go in the system or before taking the test, the student is allowed to see the orientation but on the screen where the placements show up midway through the orientation, it will show a message that says “no course placements found” and there is a link that the student is instructed to click that identifies the possible reasons why there are no course placements with instructions on what to do in those cases. The student can log in again, once course placements are in the system and get the correct track and get course placements if they have followed the proper steps the second time around.

The New Online Orientation - FAQs

When will it start?

1.        Accuplacer ESL test takers  will be directed to the academic online orientation starting October 30, 2017. Accuplacer test takers and new students submitting college ready level scores on SAT, ACT, TOEFL and IELTS have been directed to new academic orientation  since late July 2017.

How is the academic orientation accessed?

2.       It is accessible through the student’s MYMC account.  A link labeled Academic Orientation is located under the heading “New Students” on the homepage.

How does it work?

3.       When the student logs on the academic orientation it automatically accesses the student’s SOATEST data from Banner and the student will be presented with the appropriate orientation track based on their course placement. There are four orientation tracks: EMAP for students placing into ENGL 101 or higher, D-EMAP for students placing into developmental English, IMAP for students placing into ELAP courses, or CE-ESL for students testing into the CE-ESL program. While the EMAP, D-EMAP and IMAP share similar content, each of those tracks has several slides that are unique to those populations. The CE-ESL track has information specific to that population. The orientation presents material in a multimodal format, using audio, video and text content. Closed captioning for audio and video is available and the format  is ADA complaint.

What about course placement information?

4.       The academic orientation has five modules. The course placements are presented in the fourth module and include an explanation of the placement.

How can I see it?

5.       Counselors and staff that want to view the academic orientation can see the EMAP version by logging into their own MYMC account.

How many times can a student view it? Does it update test results?

6.       A student may view the content as many times as needed. The course placement information is refreshed in the system on a daily basis so therefore should a student retest or submit new scores for an SAT or ACT TOEFL, or IELTS they will be able to see that updated course placement by logging on again.  Please note, the orientation has NOT yet been programmed to show placements based on APPE and APPM notations in Banner at this time.

Is there a waiting time for course placements to show up in the orientation after testing?

7.       Yes, if the student takes the regular Accuplacer test at MC they must wait 48 hours for the course placements to be visible on the orientation. For students taking the Accuplacer ESL, it may take as long as 10 days before they can log in and see their scores. Because the ELAP committee has to score the tests and get that data into Banner and that turnaround time may vary depending on the time of year, Accuplacer ESL test takers will receive instructions from Assessment Center staff with the exact date their score will be viewable on the orientation.

What if the student logs on before  their course placement data is in Banner?

8.       If a student logs on before course placements are in Banner, the system will default to the EMAP track and no placement results will show up. The orientation includes several warnings to students to wait the prerequisite time before logging on. Students who complete the orientation without receiving placements will be able to log back in after the appropriate time and see their placements.

What will the student receive after they complete the orientation?

9.       After the student completes all the orientation modules,  he or she will be able to print a certificate of completion with course placements listed. The certificate is also sent to the student’s MC email address. If the student logs in and does not complete the entire orientation in one sitting, they can log back in again and start where they left off. A reminder email is sent to those students who have started but not completed the orientation.

How will a counselor or staff person know that they student has completed the online academic orientation?

After a student completes the orientation, a notation will show up on Banner’s General Comment Screen so that counselors and MC staff will be able to verify which specific track the student has completed. It should be noted that if the student has logged on BEFORE assessment results are available, the system defaults to the EMAP track and thus the notation in Banner cannot be relied upon to correctly identify the placement. The possible notations on the general comment screen are: EMAP, D-EMAP, IMAP, CE-ESL.

        After the student completes the orientation, what will they need to do?

10.   The orientation directs the student to make an appointment with a counselor for guidance with first semester course planning and confirmation of their course placement. The three counseling departments are in the process of implementing small group advising sessions that will be offered to incoming students during peak times.  At this time, we expect that small group sessions will be offered to students that take the Accuplacer ESL test from mid-December through late January. All others, students taking the regular Accuplacer or showing qualifying SAT, ACT, TOEFL or IELTS scores will be expected to make a regular Counseling appointment. 

Business Advising - Electives for UMCP and HLTH 113 NOTE!

Students who plan to transfer to UMCP’s Smith School of Business have room in the MC Business AA degree for 6 credits of open electives - you can see this at the bottom of the MC Degree Audit form where it says:

MGMT 201 or Elective  ††    3 credits

Elective  ††                              3 credits

†† Students should consult an adviser regarding the requirements of transfer institutions. For some institutions, MGMT 201 may be appropriate, for others (e.g. The Smith School at the University Maryland) another course will be more appropriate. If necessary use as needed to fill the 60 credit requirement.

Business Audit Form:  http://cms.montgomerycollege.edu/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=77002

Students need to choose the 6 credits of electives with care.  The attached document provides a list of transferable electives that are accepted by UM College Park (available on the Counseling share drive or by request from Anne Schleicher).  Students applying to other schools, especially more competitive private and out-of-state schools, should consider choosing Business Electives from the MC General Education Program only rather than from the Attached List.  When in doubt, an additional General Education Program course will always be the safest choice, but UM will also take the courses as noted on the attached document.

IMPORTANT!  Please be aware that the 2-credit HLTH 113 1^st Aid and CPR IS NO LONGER ACCEPTED BY UMCP IF TAKEN STARTING FALL 2017 OR AFTER.  This is because HLTH 113 is no longer a General Education Course on the 2017-18 List and thereafter.  If it was taken BEFORE Fall 2017, UM will accept it.  This change regarding HLTH 113 has been reported to ARTSYS but it has not been updated yet.  The best source of accurate course transferability information is UMCP’s Transfer Credit Center Database, https://app.transfercredit.umd.edu/

Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions to make this information clearer!

Anne Schleicher, Counselor

Math Program Advisors

These math proram advisors are equipped to address questions from:.

• A.S in Science: Mathematics for Students wishing to major in Mathematics.
• A.A.T. in Mathematics (Secondary A.A.T.) for students wishing to pursue a Secondary Education degree in Mathematics.
• Data Science Certificate for students who wish to pursue a certificate in Data Science.

See:  https://cms.montgomerycollege.edu/mathematics/programsandadvising/

DC-TAG

If a student is receiving DC-TAG, but unable to register for classes due to a cashier's hold, the Financial Aid Office have been given approval by Finance to lift the hold for a short period of time to allow the student to register.  Direct the student to meet with a Financial aid Counselor so that the hold can be lifted. 

* Financial Aid has requested funds for DCTAG for all of our students and waiting on them to send the funds to MC which we have been told it will be in a couple of weeks.

Alternate Placement Program (APP) - FAQ

The Alternate Placement Program (APP) is a partnership program between Montgomery College and Montgomery County Public Schools. These FAQs were developed to aid with dissemination of information about the APP.

1. How are students notified about their eligibility for APPE/APPM?
   Answer: Students are informed of the Alternate Placement Program (APP) while enrolled as students in MCPS. MCPS informs students of the criteria for placement into APPE/APPM during their junior and senior year in MCPS.
   
2. What English and Math course are APP students eligible to take?  
   Answer: Students with an APPE 80 score should register for ENGL 101A. Students with an APPM 80 score may register for either MATH 110 or MATH 117. Students should consult with a counselor about which MATH course to take for their major.
   
3. When is the best time for students who meet APPE/APPM placement criteria to come into counseling and advising to register for classes? 
   Answer: MC receives the first round of data from MCPS by mid-June, after final grades have been submitted for MCPS graduating seniors. That year’s MCPS graduates are encouraged to register early for the classes they want to take once registration opens at MC. Ideally, they should register after MC receives APP data, around mid-June. 
   
4. Are APPE/APPM students eligible to repeat the class for which they initially registered  
   Answer: Yes. APP students follow the same course repeat options as any other student at MC.
   
5. Does the APPE 80 and APPM 80 score have an expiration date?
   Answer: Yes. Recent MCPS graduates who wish to participate in the APP must enroll in the appropriate college level English (ENGL 101A for APPE) or Math (MATH 110 or MATH 117 for APPM) within one year of graduation from MCPS. Students who do not enroll by the one-year deadline will follow their ACCUPLACER placement. The scores will default to APP (E/M) 70 automatically, after one year.
   
6. If an APP student fails the course enrolled, what impact does this have on taking other courses for which that course was the assessment level? 
   Answer: APP students have the same eligibility to take courses for which they meet the assessment level as any other student at MC.
   
7. If an APP student does not pass the course, how many times can the student repeat the course?
   
   
   Answer: APP students follow the same repeat options and appeal options as any other student at the college.
   
   
8. Who removes the CE/Bridge hold, if applicable, for APP students?
   
   Answer: Send the name and M-number of the APP student to Deborah Crutchfield, copying Rodney Redmond. Indicate that the student has an APP(E/M) 80 score. Deborah will remove the hold and place a comment in Banner—“hold removed for APP placement.”
   
9. What happens if an APP student gets a pre-requisite error message?
   
   Answer:  Students with an APP (E/M) 80 score should not get pre-requisite errors when registering for ENGL 101A or MATH 110 or MATH 117. They are coded in Banner as being ENGL 101A, MATH 110 and MATH 117 eligible. Counselors help students resolve pre-requisite errors.
   
   
   APP Registration Suggestion: APP students should register for their English and Math courses before attempting to register for any other courses. That means register for ENGL 101A and MATH 110 or MATH 117, push the Submit Changes button, then add additional courses.

 

Transfer Credit and Credit for Prior Learning Webiste is LIVE!

In case you didn’t see InsideMC this morning, the new Prior Learning website is live! This site includes information on transfer credit, AP/IB/CLEP/DSST exams, Military Credit, CBE exams, and CTE credit.

You can see the site at http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/academics/credit-for-prior-learning/index.html (and I’m still working on the direct URL: www.montgomerycollege.edu/priorlearning.) It’s also available on the pull down menu’s on the main website and in the search function under “prior learning”. This site replaces all current Prior Learning and Transfer Credit sites.

________________________________________________________________________________

Mr. Seth Marc Kamen, MBA

Director of Transfer And Prior Learning Design

Office of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

Montgomery College 

9221 Corporate Blvd.

Rockville, MD 20850

P: 240.567.4255

C: 240.687.2262

E: seth.kamen@montgomerycollege.edu

W: www.montgomerycollege.edu/transfer

F: https://www.facebook.com/montgomerycollege 

English Gen Ed Courses

Counselors!

I need your help. Please make students aware of the array of ways they can earn college credits and satisfy Gen Eds this winter and spring.

Students can earn credits (that count toward their spring full-time load) in 3 weeks this winter:
ENGL 110.50018: Grammar -- no prerequisites, no textbook  ELECTIVE CREDIT

ENGL 233.50104: Short Story -- Eligible if in ENGL 101/A, no textbook  GEN ED HUMANITIES CREDIT

ENGL 235.50019: Film & Lit -- Eligible if in ENGL 101/A, blended (2 weeks face to face, 1 week online)  GEN ED ARTS CREDIT


Students can satisfy a Gen Ed this spring:
ENGL 122.33474 -- Mythology -- eligible for ENGL 101/A prerequisite  GEN ED HUMANITIES CREDIT (once a week, Friday mornings)

ENGL 190.31509 -- Intro to Lit -- eligible for ENGL 101/A prerequisite  GEN ED HUMANITIES CREDIT (TR mornings)

ENGL 190.31510 -- Intro to Lit (once a week, Thursday evenings)

ENGL 208.35762 -- Women in Lit -- in ENGL 101/A prerequisite  GEN ED HUMANITIES CREDIT (once a week, Tuesday mid-day)

ENGL 227.33830 -- African American Lit II -- in ENGL 101/A prerequisite  GEN ED HUMANITIES CREDIT (once a week, Wednesday afternoon)

ENGL 264.31512 -- Creative Writing (short story) -- -- in ENGL 101/A prerequisite, no textbook  GEN ED HUMANITIES CREDIT (once a week, Tuesday afternoon)

ENGL 272.35890 -- Creative Writing (poetry) -- -- in ENGL 101/A prerequisite, no textbook  GEN ED HUMANITIES CREDIT (once a week, Tuesday afternoon)

AND, if students don't meet the prerequisites, some instructors will make exceptions and do a prerequisite override!

Professor Ellen Olmstead
Department Chair, English and Reading
Montgomery College
7600 Takoma Avenue
P3 122E
Takoma Park, MD  20912
240-567-1385 (office)
240-429-9573 (cell)
ellen.olmstead@montgomerycollege.edu

General Education Course List 2017-18 - Removed Courses

With Registration in full swing, this seems like a good time to remind everyone of the slight but important changes to the MC General Education Program List for 2017-18.   Below is an update to the Memo sent in August -  

MEMO REGARDING the NINETEEN COURSES THAT HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM THE 2017-18 GENERAL EDUCATION COURSE LIST:

Subject: Transfer Advising/MC Gen Ed List     Sent Fall 2017; updated for Spring 2018 on 11/6/17 - see below!

This message comes from the TRANSFER ADVISING perspective; it is not an official message from the MC General Education Committee.

For the first time in many years, some courses have been removed from the MC General Education Program.  You can see the list of removed courses for 2017-18 below in this message.

Counselors and advisers should be using the New Updated 2017-18 Gen Ed List with Transfer Advising Notes when working with ALL students during advising sessions; please do NOT use the older lists when helping students choose classes. 
Link:  General Education Course List  Please print out and use 2017-18 when working with ALL students regardless of year entered.

The “rule” on Gen Ed is different from the “Seven Year Rule” for Catalog DEGREE requirements.  Students may follow the Degree (Major/Program) Requirements of any MC major for 7 years from the year that they enter MC, but this “7 Year Rule” does NOT apply to General Education courses.  General Education Courses can only count if the course is labeled as a Gen Ed course during the semester that it is taken.  This means that for yellow highlighted courses listed below, if they are taken in Fall 2017 or thereafter, they will not count as a General Education Requirement because they have been removed from the list.

Why aren’t Gen Ed courses based on the year a student started?   It’s partly a technicality:  a course can’t be labeled or carry the Gen Ed “attribute” for some students and not for others depending on the year that a student enrolled.  A course either has a Gen Ed attribute or it doesn’t, and Banner can’t sense a student’s starting date to make the distinction.  The other reason is that the Gen Ed Committee reviewed each course carefully and based decisions on a combination of content, assignments, transferability, etc.  Many disciplines (not the GE Committee) voluntarily decided not to offer courses again as Gen Ed so the decision may also have been discipline-based (MATH 182, some ENGL & HIST, upper-level languages, etc.).

What happens if a student keeps following their earlier Gen Ed list and takes a course in error?  Students may file a Gen Ed Appeal to use the course – but we should be vigilant about cautioning students also. 

Here are the affected courses- removed from General Education for Fall 2017 and thereafter:

The Syllabus for each Removed Course should state that the course NO LONGER FULFILLS a General Education Requirement -

	REMOVED FROM GEN ED LIST 2017-18 CATALOG		STILL OFFERED FALL 2017 & COMMENTS		Is it OFFERED in Spring 2018?
1)      MATH 113 INTRODUCTION TO PROBABILITY		No sections offered Fall 2017		No sections offered Spring 2018
2)      MATH 131 & 132 ELEMENTS OF MATHEMATICS II, III		Offered, but these course have a MATH 130 prereq so Gen Ed has been satisfied		Offered, but these course have a MATH 130 prereq so Gen Ed has been satisfied
3)      MATH 182 CALCULUS II		Offered, but this course has MATH 181 prereq so Gen Ed has been satisfied		Offered, but this course has MATH 181 prereq so Gen Ed has been satisfied
4)      ENGL 223 INTRO TO ASIAN AMERICAN LITERATURE		Not offered		Not offered
5)      ENGL 245 THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE		1 section offered, Rockville		Yes, 1 section offered, Rockville CRN 33272
6)      ENGL 248 LITERATURE OF THE HOLOCAUST		Not offered		Not offered
7 & 8) GERM 201 & 202 INTERMEDIATE GERMAN I, II		Courses have a GERM 102 Gen Ed prereq so Gen Ed has been satisfied		One section, GERM 202 Intermediate II, Rockville
9)      HIST 190 HISTORY OF SPORT		Three sections offered, 2 R & 1 TP.  This course is a major requirement for Kinesiology students transferring to UMCP and also Salisbury Exercise Sci. Major USG (HIST 190 is recommended, not required)		Yes, Four sections offered, 1 @ Seneca Valley HS,  2 R & 1 TP.  This course is a major requirement for Kinesiology students transferring to UMCP and also Salisbury Exercise Sci. Major USG (HIST 190 is recommended, not required)
10)   HIST 209 HISTORY OF ASIAN AMERICANS		Not offered
11)   HIST 233 ALTERNATIVE LIFESTYLES: 19TH CENT. UTOPIAS		Not offered		Yes, One section, Rockville
12)   HIST 236 HISTORY OF AFRICAN AMERICANS SINCE 1865 – Syllabus should note that this course NO LONGER fulfills a GLOBAL & CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE Requirement		Two sections offered, Distance Learning and R		Yes, Five sections, one Distance, 1 R, 3 TP-SS
13)   HIST 255 CONFLICT IN THE MODERN MIDDLE EAST		One section offered, R		Not offered
14)   HIST 257 & 258 MODERN MILITARY HIST. I & II		One section offered, HIST 257 @ R		Yes, One section offered, HIST 258 @ R
15)   HIST 260 THE US SINCE 1945		Two sections offered, R & T		Yes, Two sections offered, R & T
16 & 17) RUSS 201 & 202 INTERMEDIATE RUSSIAN I & II		Not offered; courses have a RUSS 102 Gen Ed prereq. so Gen Ed has been satisfied		Not offered
18)   BIOL 114 UNDERSTANDING VIRUSES		Two sections offered, R & T		One section offered, Rockville
19)   BIOL 151 PRINCIPLES OF BIOLOGY II		Many sections offered; courses have a BIOL 150 Gen Ed prerequisite so Gen Ed has been satisfied for most students; this COULD be an issue for only for Computer Science students transferring to UMBC who need three Science for Science Majors courses if they choose BIOL 150 & 151 and wait to take the third Science course after transfer; otherwise, most other majors that require BIOL 151 also have a several other Gen Ed Lab courses required (Biological Science @ MC, transfer students who are Biology, Chem, pre-med majors)		Same as Fall notes; students who take BIOL 151 Principles of Biology II and need this course to count as a second Science (Computer Science majors transferring to UMBC) can submit a Gen Ed Appeal to ask to use the course as a Science

I am sending this out now simply because we are seeing students daily now that Registration is open.  This is an ADVISING message and not intended as an official communication from the General Education Committee.

In summary, please use the 2017-18 Gen Ed List Transfer Advising List only when advising ALL students who are choosing Gen Ed classes for Fall and After. 

General Education Course List  Print out and use 2017-18 when working with ALL students regardless of year entered.

Find it always on the MC Transfer Page, under Information for MC Faculty and Staff.  At Germantown, it is available in SA 250 printed on BLUE paper to distinguish it from previous years.

The master reference point is the MC Online Catalog 2017-18:  http://catalog.montgomerycollege.edu/content.php?catoid=8&navoid=1411

Anne Schleicher, Transfer Counselor

Germantown Campus

Pre-Health Science Codes Now Using General Studies-STEM

Jennifer Gottwald, Student Information Systems Specialist has confirmed the curriculum for all the pre-health science majors (201720 and forward) are now coded (behind the scenes) as General Studies STEM (2017-2018 catalog). Therefore, you should no longer have to advise students to change their major to General Studies STEM (unless they are following a catalog prior to Fall 2016).

Additionally, she coded the “pre” major for the School of Art + Design to follow 611Z (General Studies – Undecided), effective 201720.

Here is the list of Health Science programs that are now coded to run as General Studies STEM for the degree evaluation:

• Diagnostic Medical Sonography AAS: 530
• Health Information Management AAS: 550
• Mental Health Associate AAS: 560
• Nursing AS: 570
• Physical Therapist Assistant AAS: 580
• Radiologic (X-Ray) Technology AAS: 520
• Surgical Technology AAS: 590

Developmental Math Restructure

The Math and Statistics Department is working on a new co-requisite model of developmental math education. In the new approach, eligible students will spend at most one semester in a developmental math class. Two of our college level classes-MATH 110 and MATH 117-would have sections requiring students to do extra class time where they are remediated in a "just in time" fashion. This is similar to what we already do in MATH 115A and 117A; the primary difference is that the developmental content is integrated throughout the semester and carefully aligned with the specific skills required to be successful in the course. 

These changes will affect all programs at the College. Please join us at the information session to learn more about the impacts on both course sequence and advising before this goes to the College-wide Curriculum Committee. 

Milton H. Nash, Ph.D.

          Chairman and Professor
          Mathematics & Statistics Department, MP 245
          Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus

          Montgomery College

Change in Nursing Program Requirements - BIOL150

Catalog Year 17-18  - BIOL150 is now required to satisfy requirements for graduation from the Nursing program

See:  http://catalog.montgomerycollege.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=8&poid=1722&returnto=1322 

* in prior years, the catalog listing included a footnote for BIOL150  - "‡ BIOL 150, if needed for BIOL 210, BIOL 212, and BIOL 213."

See:  http://catalog.montgomerycollege.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=6&poid=1013&returnto=606

MTAP Enrollment Open & Other UM Updates

Hello, Counselors and Advisors,

It’s Open Season for MC students to enroll in MTAP!   MTAP – the Maryland Transfer Advantage Program at the University of Maryland, College Park is accepting new students now (late September) until Nov. 15^th of this Fall 2017 semester. 

Please read over the flyer which goes into detailed information about requirements and frequently asked questions.  If you want to earn your Master’s in MTAP, study the full website:  www.admissions.umd.edu/apply/mtap.php?rv=1

Important Advising Notes:

1)     A BIG CHANGE to MTAP this Fall 2017:  MTAP will no longer will count a student’s AP Advanced Placement or IB International Baccalaureate credits toward the 30-credit minimum needed to meet MTAP transfer requirements.  A student can still use an AP English Language & Comp test (score of 4 or 5) to show that they’ve completed Fundamental English (= MC’s ENGL 102) or use AP Calc or AP Statistics scores of 4 or higher or IB Math (check the chart) to show that they’ve fulfilled College Math, but even those AP/IB credits still do not count in the total of 30 credits.  They may continue to use credits earned at other colleges to reach the 30 credits, but they must take at least 15 credits at MC, and of those 15 credits, 12 must be earned after graduation from high school.

2)     The Guarantee of Admission only applies to MTAP students who have all 30 credits SHOWING AS COMPLETED at the time of transfer application by a Priority Deadline of March 1 or August 1.  In the past, students who applied by March 1 who were in the process of finishing up 30 credits that semester were almost always admitted after submitting a final transcript in late May, and they may still continue be admitted that way, but because it is on a SPACE-AVAILABLE basis, students cannot count on that admission.   This is addressed on the back of the Half Page Flyer – but we also want you to be able to tell students not to assume that they will be admitted and sign a lease on an apartment or invest in that deluxe Fear the Turtle sweatshirt, etc. if they are still in the process of finishing the 30 credits when they apply to transfer.  Students who have all 30 credits completed by March 1 when they submit a transfer admission application will hear a decision in mid-April; those with the 30 credits in progress usually get a decision in very late June or early July.

3)     ALL students who plan to transfer to UM should enroll in MTAP, regardless of major.  (Yes, even Business & Engineering majors, among others!)  UM gives transfer admission priority to applicants in MTAP, and even those in competitive majors (LEP’s) like Business, Engineering, etc. should apply as they often will not be admitted to their LEP major until after they have first been admitted to the University.   In the past, in the Fall semester, the Smith School has not made admissions decisions until very late October/early November, after general admissions offers have been sent out in mid October.  [See more notes about Smith below].  Engineering students applying in both Fall and Spring may be in the process of finishing up a Gateway Requirement in the semester they are applying so they should also apply to MTAP to get that first General Admission decision to the University.

Other General UM Transfer Advising Notes:

1)     Regarding LEP’s www.lep.umd.edu – this are MC advising observations – the one LEP that consistently seems to require a GPA higher than a 3.0 continues to be the Smith Business School at the Main Campus.  Smith students admitted to the Main Campus typically have a 3.5 overall GPA or higher; and of their courses, grades of A’s and B’s in Business classes seem to be preferred (both ACCT’s, ECON’s, MATH 150 and MATH 117).   This means that the student who has a 3.5 but who has a few C’s in business classes may not be admitted to BMGT– an overall 3.5 is not an automatic admit to Smith.  LEP Programs at the Main Campus continue to be stringent on meeting Gateway requirements and repeat policies; UMCP programs at Shady Grove (including the Smith School) seem somewhat more flexible.

2)     Changes to AP Advanced Placement Scores accepted – please use caution when advising students who have AP scores.  www.transfercredit.umd.edu/plc.html#ap  The notable change is that the AP Government & Politics test minimum score is now a 4. 

Here’s a quick summary:  UM now requires an AP score of 4 or higher for all AP tests except in these three subjects:

a.      AP Art History – 3, 4, 5 accepted

b.     AP English Language and Composition – a score of 3 continues to transfer as a Lower Level Elective (= MC’s ENGL 101);  a 4 or 5 satisfies the English Fundamental Studies/ENGL requirement

c.      AP English Literature and Composition – a score of 3 continues to transfer as a Lower Level Elective only; a 4 or 5 grants 6 credits for ENGL 240 Literature + a Lower Level Elective.

3)     English Language Proficiency Change - good news for non-native speakers of English – UM now exempts transfer students from taking the TOEFL if they have “55+ credits from a U.S. institution with coursework equivalent to English Compositions 1 and 2”.  No longer will transfer students meeting this requirement have to complete an Associate’s Degree OR take the TOEFL test to demonstrate English proficiency.  While finishing an Associate’s is beneficial for most students, it may not always be possible, so this new policy provides some flexibility.  www.admissions.umd.edu/apply/englishproficiency.php

4)    This is not a change, but worth repeating – students who have finished MC’s General Education Program and then transfer will have fulfilled UM’s lower level Gen Ed requirements and they will need to take only two more Gen Ed courses after transfer – an upper-level English and one other Gen Ed course.  Students who do not complete MC’s Gen Ed Program may need to fulfill additional UM Gen Ed courses in areas like Scholarship in Practice, I-Series, Diversity, etc.   If a student has not finished an Associate’s degree but they have finished MC Gen Ed requirements, they can  request that MC stamp their transcript with a “General Education Program Completed” notation by submitting a form to MC’s Admissions Office – find it always by searching for “Forms” in the MC Search Box – General Education Evaluation Request form  

Fortunately for all of us, we can provide all Hopeful Terp’s with a Starfish Referral to meet with UM Pre-Transfer Advisor Tyler McClenithan who can interpret MTAP rules and reg’s and answer other questions for students aspiring to transfer to UM.  Thank you, Tyler!

Anne Schleicher, Counselor
Montgomery College
20200 Observation Drive, SA 249
Germantown, MD  20876
240-567-1991; Fax 240-567-1985