Orientation

On the first day of orientation, there will be a presentation that contains information about advising, core and flag degree requirements, registration and readiness assessments. Orientation attendees will be assigned a timeslot for a one-on-one advising meeting with a CNS advisor. The role of advisors is to help you navigate your degree requirements and the university. The timeslot may be on any day of orientation, but the meeting will occur prior to registration on the last day. During this meeting, you will discuss your fall courses and any prior credit that you may have. 

Incoming CNS students will have an advising hold that prevents them from registering until they meet with an advisor. If you attend the one-on-one advising meeting, complete the UT Math Assessment, and complete the Chemistry Assessment (if necessary) you will have your advising hold cleared. You should receive an email with the date, time, and location of this advising meeting the Thursday before your orientation session begins. 

Your advisor will want to know what AP or IB credit you may have. They will want to know what tests you have taken and the scores you achieved. If you are still waiting on a test score, that is okay – your advisor will ask you what you think you earned on the exam.

Please have ready a list or transcript of any college credit you have from outside of UT (most often this will be from a community college. This can include UT Extension classes too). Your advisor will want to know the institution you attended and the exact college course numbers you took. By having the college course numbers, your advisor will most accurately be able to help you plan your fall schedule.

If there are certain areas of your degree requirements or the university that you find confusing or unclear, please ask your advisor during orientation! If your advisor does not know the answer, they will point you to the resource that will have the answer. We do not expect our students to be experts in all things related to college or UT Austin, so please ask for help when you need it. It may be helpful to create a list of questions you may have so you do not forget when you enter the meeting. Advising meetings may only be about 30 minutes, so we may not cover everything, however, your advisor will be available by email for any additional questions.

To be able to register at orientation, you will need to have a score on file for the UT Math Assessment (UTMA). If you are planning on taking pre-calculus or calculus in the fall, you would need a UTMA score of at least 55 or 70 respectively. Even if you have pre-calculus/calculus credit or do not need them for your degree, all new CNS students must take the UTMA with few exceptions.

Please review the math assessment page.

If you are planning to register for CH 301 in the fall, you will need to complete the Chemistry Readiness Assessment. Depending on your score on this assessment, you may need to complete additional learning modules to remain in the CH 301 course. 

If your major requires chemistry, you will need to complete this assessment to register at orientation.

Majors that require chemistry:

• Biology
• Biochemistry
• Chemistry
• Human Development and Family Science
• Neuroscience
• Nutrition
• Physics
• Public Health

Please review the Chemistry Readiness Assessment here. 

Please review the Orientation Checklist from New Student Services to see their recommendations on tasks to complete prior to orientation. 

Review these required vaccines and how to submit documentation to be able to register for courses. 

View the New Student Services (NSS) Orientation Website, which includes orientation schedule.