SOAR and First Year Advising

SOAR stands for Summer Orientation and Registration. The purpose of SOAR is to link students with their first-year advisor, to discuss academic expectations, and to register incoming students for classes. During SOAR, students will have the opportunity to:

Meet new classmates, current students, faculty, and staff
Learn about extracurricular, social, and leadership opportunities
Attend an orientation to the Centenary in Paris program
Complete administrative tasks such as completing financial arrangements (including financial aid), taking language placement exams, making arrangements for housing and health services, and receiving a Centenary ID and email address

Preparing Students for SOAR

Prior to SOAR, students are responsible for completing each task on the New Student Checklist.

IMPORTANT NOTE: By state law, students cannot register for classes without required immunizations.

Before arriving for SOAR, students should have sent the following to Centenary’s Office of Admission:

All official AP test score reports
Final high school transcript
Any official college transcripts, as they relate to transferable dual credit coursework

Placement Exams

At SOAR, language placement exams for French and Spanish will be offered on the first day. Each test includes a listening section and a written multiple-choice section. Non-native speaking students have the opportunity to earn 12 hours of foreign language credits and native speaking students have the opportunity to test out of the first two years of the language. Foreign language credits are required of all students pursuing a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) at Centenary.

Students entering Centenary without math placement scores (ACT or SAT) may need to submit scores or take the ALEKS Math Placement exam for academic advising. For more information about ALEKS, click here.

Students who need to sign up for placement exams should fill out the Placement exam request form here. A student may request to take the exam at any time prior to taking a foreign language class at Centenary. If you are advising a student who did not take the exam but would like to, have them complete the request form.

First-Year Advising Files and Course Registration at SOAR

First-Year Advising files are distributed to advisors electronically using OneDrive, a cloud service that all faculty and staff have access to using Centenary log-in credentials. You can click on the link to download and install it on your computer.

In each advisee file, you will find:

Application materials, including relevant test scores and Admissions Essay
Completed transfer credit evaluation with courses added to Banner
Completed Academic Questionnaire (AQ), which contains the advisee’s most recent statement of academic interest

Note: in the event that any of this information is missing from a student’s file, contact the Registrar’s Office.

Before your advising session, read through the file, and review the transfer credit evaluation.

Full-time status is a minimum of 12 hours, and credit hours in one term cannot exceed 18. Students can earn up to 22 hours in the fall semester, including August term.

Incoming students will be pre-registered for a 12-hour block to facilitate Financial Aid and Business Office billing. Students will be able to go to Financial Aid and the Business Office before or after they are advised and registered for classes. You will need to drop your advisee from the 12-hour block course before you can register them for specific courses.

Questions to ask first-year advisees

What are you considering as a possible major? If student says, “I don’t know,” assure them that they don’t have to know today. You may also ask them about their extra-curricular interests in order to inform them about appropriate student organizations or local opportunities for engagement.
Do you have course credit that you are intending to transfer in? This could be courses taken at another college, dual enrollment, or Advanced Placement (AP). If they say yes, consult with the Registrar on getting their transcripts. You want to avoid enrolling a student in a course for which they may already have academic credit.
Have you studied French or Spanish, and have you taken/do you want to take the Foreign Language Placement exam? If they have not taken the exam and would like to, ask them to fill out the Placement exam request form here.
Enroll your advisee in a section of TREK 115, keeping in mind that all First-Year students must take TREK 115 in their first year. Some tips on how to advise students on TREK 115:
- The Honors section of Trek 115 is only available in the fall semester. We will inform advisors of their eligible students (ACT composite score of 28 and a 3.5 or higher GPA) who have requested the honors section, and they will be enrolled automatically.
- Consider your student’s admissions materials (essay, test scores, GPA) in deciding whether to enroll them in fall or spring. If a student is concerned about their writing, it may be worth delaying until spring. Remind them that there is free support through peer learning consultant in the Learning Commons.
- Other considerations include their athletic schedule or whether their fall semester schedule is already challenging.
- If there’s still no clear reason to opt for one term or another, place them in a fall section.
- Dual enrollment does not count toward this requirement.
- TREK 115 cannot be dropped. Students may change sections, with the permission of their advisor and instructor (if the class is full or over-enrolled), during the add/drop period (which usually ends midway through the second week). Students may also opt to use an ABC/NC/XF grading system. For more information, see the Academic Catalogue.
- Trek 115 does count as equivalent to an English course for the purposes of Medical School Applications and similar post-graduate program applications.If there’s still no clear reason to opt for one term or another, place them in a fall section.
- Transfer students who have earned 27 hours of credit toward a degree at another institution after graduation from high school, including a college-level writing course, are exempt from TREK 115.
Are you an athlete? If so, what sport? Enroll the student in the sport based on the semester that credit is allowed (off-season). These courses are listed under WAC (“Wellness and Athletics”) in BannerWeb.
- Fall Semester - WAC 101:
  - Baseball (BSB) - Men Only 
  - Basketball (MBB) - Men Only
  - Basketball (WBB) - Women Only
  - Golf (GOL) - Women and Men
  - Gymnastics (GYM) - Women Only
  - Lacrosse (LAX) - Men Only 
  - Softball (SB) - Women Only
  - Tennis (TEN) - Women and Men
- Spring Semester - WAC 102 :
  - Football (FB) - Men Only
  - Soccer (MSO) - Men Only
  - Soccer (WSO) - Women Only
  -  Swimming (SWM) - Women and Men
  -  Volleyball (VB) - Women Only
Are you in the Choir? If so, enroll in Choir, MUS 153 and Choir Camp, MUS 152 (August term).
Are you in CLC (“Center for Christian Leadership”)? If so, enroll in CLC, found in the Religious Studies course list. The course is REL 200.
Are you doing work study? Are you working part-time? This question is useful for determining the maximum number of hours a student should take. Remember that for a student to be considered full-time, they must enroll in 12 hours or more per semester. Fall Semester includes August term. Spring semester includes May term.
Do you have any financial aid with specific requirements? For example, a student may have a music scholarship requiring enrollment in an ensemble or Camerata. If yes, enroll them in the appropriate course.
Did you take any dual enrollment or AP classes at your high school? Did you take any classes at another College/University or Community College? Check the student’s transcript or Transfer Credit Evaluation in their SOAR file so that you avoid enrolling a student in a course for which they may already have credit.
Do you need to start coursework in a foreign language? Have you taken your Foreign Language Placement exam? Students who intend to earn a BA require two semesters of a language or the equivalent. Some majors (such as English and Communication Arts) require four semesters of a foreign language or equivalent. Enroll the student in an appropriate language course.

Centenary in Paris

Centenary in Paris (CiP) counts as part of the fall semester. Most students are pre-registered for the 4-hour class. Some athletes and all choir members will be placed in a 2-hour CiP class. Individual sections will be assigned by Student Life based on student preference, and the Registrar’s Office will place them into individual classes.

“Explorations,” and Trek

At this point in your advising session, it is helpful to review the college’s Core Curriculum, “Explorations” and Trek Requirements. Start by going over the “Core Checklist” (PDF) with your advisee.

Explorations” Core includes the following distribution of courses:

Natural Science (8 hours, with two labs)
Social Science required courses (8 hours)
Humanities required courses (12 hours)
Symbolic Reasoning (4 hours). See “What math class should you take?”

Trek Experiential Learning Requirements include:

TREK 115 (First Year)
Community (TREK 151 or 153; Recommended completion in Second Year, but may also be earned through a Community-designated course)
Career (TREK 250, 251, or 253; Recommended completion in Junior Year, but may also be earned through Career Designated course)
Culture (TREK 300 or 351; Recommended completion in Junior or Senior Year; may be earned through study abroad, an Intercultural Experience course, an independent culture project, or completion of six hours of modern language study at or above the 300 level.)

As there is room in the student’s schedule, enroll them in a “freshman friendly” course. An updated list of such courses will be provided with your SOAR materials. Advisors are discouraged from enrolling first-year students in courses at the 300-level or higher.

If you are advising a first-year student who is interested in a major or minor program other than your own, be sure to reach out to a faculty member in that program for recommendations on which classes are most suitable for your advisee.

First-Year Advising for Spring Semester

Throughout the fall semester, advisors should be checking in with first-year advisees regularly, inquiring about academic progress, preparedness, time-management, and social needs. At the very minimum, first-year advisors should meet with their first-year advisees before or at midterm. Pay close attention to any midterm deficiencies, and advise students on whether to drop a course in which they have received a D or an F.

Spring Semester enrollment for first-year students begins in November. Arrange an appointment with each advisee, asking them to

Resolve any holds on their account
Make sure they know their Banner PIN
Review Spring course offerings and arrive to their appointment with a list of preferred classes. You may have to show students how to do this in Banner.

Prior to the meeting, review the student’s transcript, which can be found in the Advisor Menu on Banner.

Begin the session by inquiring about how they are handling their current coursework and if they have given any thought to declaring a major and/or selecting a major advisor. Whether they wish to remain in your program or change their major/advisor, invite them to complete the Change of Advisor/Major Form. This information will allow the college to track students who have decided on a major and major advisor.
If the student is an athlete, enroll them in the appropriate WAC course.
- Fall Semester - WAC 101:
  - Baseball (BSB) - Men Only 
  - Basketball (MBB) - Men Only
  - Basketball (WBB) - Women Only
  - Football (FB) - Men Only
  - Golf (GOL) - Women and Men
  - Gymnastics (GYM) - Women Only
  - Lacrosse (LAX) - Men Only 
  - Softball (SB) - Women Only
  - Tennis (TEN) - Women and Men
- Spring Semester - WAC 102 :
  - Football (FB) - Men Only
  - Soccer (MSO) - Men Only
  - Soccer (WSO) - Women Only
  - Swimming (SWM) - Women and Men
  - Volleyball (VB) - Women Only
If the student is in choir, Ensemble, or Camerata, enroll them in the appropriate MUS course(s).
If the student is in CLC, enroll them in REL 200.
If the student has already started a foreign language and is doing well, enroll them in the next course in the sequence (ie 102, 202). Note: Spanish/French 101 and 201 are only offered in the Fall. 102 and 202 are only offered in the Spring. If the student is struggling in their foreign language course, it may be advisable to drop the fall course and try again in the fall of their sophomore year.
If the student has expressed interest in a major field of study, consult the catalogue and enroll them in an appropriate course in the major. Make sure that they fill out the form to declare their major and change to a major advisor.
Review the Core Checklist, and enroll the student in a course that will fulfill an “Explorations” requirement.

Make sure that the student is enrolled in at least 12 hours to remain at full-time status and no more than 18 hours. You and your advisee can determine an appropriate course-load based on their schedule, outside commitments, number of credits needed to progress toward their degree, and so on.