Advising
In Fall 2024, Santa Fe College will offer the following new programs:
Welcome
From application to graduation, your advisors in Business Programs will help support your success. Academic advisors provide students with information and guidance to plan and achieve their educational goals. This includes course selection and sequencing. Working together with good communication and routine collaboration, advisors can help students to set goals and stay on track with achieving them.
Contact an Advisor
Current students: Please include your SFID on all correspondence with your advisor.
Douglas Robertson, B.S. Occ.Ed.
Advising Specialist
Lisa Matthies-Barnes
Part-Time Advising Specialist
Frequently Asked Questions
Below you will find questions which fellow students frequently ask of the Advisement Office in Business Programs. Hopefully you will find answers to your questions and may be introduced to topics which you might not have even considered.
Degree and Course-related
Find more information about the Bachelor's Degrees on Business homepage or stop by our Advisement Office in DB-103.
Perhaps. All programs require the Postsecondary Education Readiness Test (PERT) in order to begin your college course work. Some programs even require a separate application process.
Before you go any further, you should make certain that the degree you are interested in is the best choice for you. Exactly what are your career plans? Why do you need this degree and what will it do for you? These are questions for which all students must have solid answers. To put it simply, you should choose a degree based on your career goals and not vice versa. Once you have decided upon this, the choice of your educational path will be much more obvious to you, and you will certainly have a higher level of commitment to your choice as well. If you are in need of general career counseling, please see one of the counselors in our Career Exploration Center or call 352-395-5582.
There is no easy answer to this question; every student's situation is different and must be treated individually.
Full-time enrollment is considered to be 12 or more credit hours (usually four courses). The term "full-time" derives from the estimated amount of time students are expected to spend each week on their course work: 12 hours in class with an additional 2.5 hours outside of class for each hour spent in, providing a total of 40 hours per week. The outside estimate of time is based on readings, homework, projects, studying, papers, etc. Be realistic in estimating how much time you have each week to spend on your studies, taking into account work, family, church, social commitments, etc. If you have roughly 20 hours per week available, you would probably be wise not to take more than two courses each term. Bear in mind, though, that summer A and B courses are taught in only six weeks, or twice the normal pace!
- Make sure that your fees are paid by the deadline! If you fail to pay by the deadline (which is printed on the bottom of your fee slip), you will be dropped from all of your classes and forced to re-register (if a seat is available). If you have any questions about financial aid coverage of your fees, do not hesitate to ask your Financial Aid Counselor.
- You will need to purchase your books. The college bookstore is located in Building S, or call 352-395-5240.
- You will need to obtain an SFID in the Student Activities office in S-147. This serves as both an I.D. and library card. This service is free (for the first card) and requires that you present a paid current fee slip.
- Be sure to arrive early your first few days in order to be able to find a parking spot (it can be tough in the first few weeks). You do not need a parking decal. You will also want to arrive early in order to find your classes – some of them are fairly well hidden!
Before this can be answered, you need to make sure that all of your transcripts from other colleges have been received and fully processed by our transcript evaluators in the Office of the Registrar. Your Programs Advisor can check your records and determine if this has been done. If you need to request transcripts from previously attended schools, stop by the Admissions Office for the appropriate form. Once your transcript has been fully evaluated, you will want to review your course work with a Business Programs Advisor to determine what additional courses will be required.
First, always consult with your instructors – they are your best bet for assistance. After all, they know their courses better than anyone! If, however, you need further help, you can receive help with basic computer and software questions in our computer lab in DB-206.
Tutoring for math, sciences, internet technology, writing, and languages at the SF Learning Commons. Find out more about in-person and online tutoring at any of our locations.
Additional Assistance
Everyone should submit an application for financial aid regardless of your financial situation. Many people are eligible for financial aid who believe that they do not qualify. At the minimum, you should stop by and talk with one of our Financial Aid counselors or call 352-395-5480. Additionally, you should speak to one of the advisors in the Scholarships Office; Santa Fe College offers a wide variety of scholarships, some of which apply only to students in career and technical education. Call 352-395-5470 for scholarship information.
For those of you who are veterans, don't forget to apply in the Veterans Services office or call 352-395-5505.
Santa Fe College operates an onsite day care center, the Little School. There is normally a waiting list for joining, but if you are interested in using their excellent services, please contact them at 352-395-5597. There is a charge for this, and limited financial aid scholarships are available to parents with low income (contact their office for further information).
As for bringing children to class, this is normally frowned on by most faculty. In spite of most parents' best efforts, children are normally very distracting in a classroom environment which is unfair to all of the other students. If you find yourself in an emergency, please make every effort to contact your instructor before going to class.
If you would like to speak to a counselor, we strongly encourage you to do so. You can find the Counseling and Wellness Center by calling 352-395-5508.
If you find that you need to drop a course early enough in the term (usually in the first week or so of the term), you can do so through eSantaFe and receive a full refund (and the course is removed from your transcript). However, up to a certain point each term (usually a little after mid-term), you may withdraw from a class and receive a "W" on your transcript with no refund of fees, and this counts as one attempt. Students are limited to three attempts at a class, and they will be charged extra fees on the third attempt. After this, withdrawal from a course requires a petition (available in eSantaFe).
Pre- and Post-Graduation
All students should consult with the Programs Advisor before registering for their course work in their final term in order to be assured that they are registered for the appropriate course work and that they have indeed met all program requirements.
You may qualify for one or more specialized certificates in Business Programs. Please stop by the Advisement Office in C-101 and visit one of the Program Advisors.
We strongly encourage students to use the resources and counselors available in the Career and Job Placement Services Office or call 352-395-5822.
Have questions not answered by any of the above? Reach out to a Business Programs advisor above.
A.S. to B.S. Degree in Business Management
The Associate in Science (A.S.) to Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Business Management is a fully articulated degree. Awarded by Santa Fe College, this degree allows students to apply for admission to colleges of business in the State University System, and transfer all course work. The A.S. degree is geared toward students who are very certain they will complete a bachelor's degree in business before entering the workforce.
An Associate in Arts (A.A.) degree is for those students pursuing a more general course of study who plan to complete a four-year degree before entering the workforce. A.A. students may select an advisement track in business administration or accounting.
The A.S. articulates only to the general business track. However, some courses you take may meet the general education and elective requirements for other degree tracks (see below).
That depends. For the Associate in Science (A.S.) to Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Business Management degree, see the Advisors in C-102 or call 352-395-5139. If you are interested in an A.A. degree, contact the Advisors in R-201A or call 352-395-5503.
Yes. For admission, you will be competing with all other A.S. and A.A. students wishing to transfer. You must meet the same GPA requirements, so do your best and keep your grades up!
Maybe, but not intentionally. Be very clear on your application that you have an articulated Associate in Science (A.S.) to Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Business Management degree. If problems do occur, you should ask to speak to the articulation officer at the university.
No, you do not. However, we strongly recommend that you take the test before graduating from Santa Fe College in order to improve your readiness for the test. Please see the Advisors in the Assessment Center for assistance and advice on this.