Check your FAQs
You’ve got questions and we’ve got answers! Take a moment to browse our most Frequently Asked Questions to help you address concerns and find solutions. Of course, we are happy to meet with you to address more in-depth questions specific to your pathway to graduation.
For your quick reference, please click on a topic that catches your immediate attention!
"I wish to learn more about…
- Scheduling and Cancelling an Advising Session
- Understanding the Registration Process
- Lifting an Advising, UNIV and TSI Hold
- Changing Your Major and/or Minor
- Learning Your Academic Advising Center’s Operation and Service Hours
- Increasing Your Maximum Credit Hours Per Term
- Dropping and Adding Courses
- Preparing for and Requesting a Course Substitution
Scheduling and Cancelling an Advising Session
Students can conveniently schedule their academic advising sessions utilizing the online CAMPUS resource or by calling the Academic Advising Center at 956-665-7120.
- Go to the My UTRGV homepage
- Log in with your UTRGV credentials
- Within the Applications section, click on “EAB Navigate360”.
- Click on the blue “Get Assistance” button on the right side of the screen
- Select advising from “Type of Appointment”
- Select your preferred "Date" (Optional)
- Click on "Find Available Time"
- Select the desired appointment date and time.
- Select "How you would like to meet" (In-Person/Online)
- Complete the “Comments” box with any questions or additional topics you’d like to discuss with your advisor.
- If you would like to receive an email appointment reminder, click the “Email Reminder” button.
- If you would like to receive a text message appointment reminder, please click the “Text Message Reminder” button and enter your cell phone number.
- Click the "Schedule" button. A notification will be sent to your UTRGV email as a final confirmation.
Contact the Academic Advising Center at 956-665-7120. Go to UTRGV.edu/advising for more information or come by International Trade & Technology (EITTB) on the Edinburg campus or Main 1.402 (BMAIN) on the Brownsville campus.
To cancel your upcoming advising session, simply log into EAB Navigate360 and follow the steps below.
- Locate your Upcoming Session.
- Click on your session and a window will come up with your scheduled advising session details.
- If you wish to cancel your session, click “Cancel”.
- Select your reason for cancelling
- Complete the Comments section with a brief explanation for your cancellation.
Once submitted, a confirmation of cancelation screen will be displayed. Of course, when you’re ready, you are welcome to reschedule your advising session by following the steps provided above.
That’s easy! Just follow the same process as you did when you first scheduled your appointment using EAB Navigate360 online. For assistance contact us at (956) 665-7120.
By arriving early, you will have time to park your car, find your advising session location, and check in at the front desk to let your advisor know you’ve arrived. Students who call ahead and inform the Academic Advising Center that they will be late may be able to be seen at the advisor’s discretion. Please note that if you arrive 5 minutes late with no advanced notice to the Academic Advising Center your advising session will be cancelled and you will be responsible for rescheduling.
Yes, as long as the new appointment is at least outside the 24-hour time frame, you can cancel your current session and re-schedule your appointment to an earlier or later date if available.
Understanding the Registration Process
You can register at myUTRGV. Log in with your UTRGV credentials and click on the ASSIST icon.
If you do not know which classes to register for, we strongly encourage you to schedule an advising session with an academic advisor. However, if you know which classes to register for but are having trouble with the registration system, please contact U Central at 956-882-4026.
Courses with perquisites require that you take a particular course before registering for it. For example, in order to take ENGL 1302 (Rhetoric and Composition II) you must have taken ENGL 1301 (Rhetoric and Composition I) in a previous semester. In this example, ENGL 1301 is the prerequisite to ENGL 1302. Additionally, please note some course prerequisites may require a specific course grade before registering for the following course. To learn more about course prerequisites, we encourage you to review the course descriptions found in your Undergraduate Catalog.
Please contact U Central if ASSIST does not let you register for a course for which you already met the prerequisite requirements.
Cohort-restricted courses are specific to certain programs who serve specific student populations. For example, courses specific to the MSA/BECHS/BMED program are reserved for MSA/BECHS/BMED students only.
When you see “Registration Add Errors”, the message is designed to alert you that there are pre-requisites, co-requisites, major-specific courses or time conflicts that are not allowing you to register.
When you see “Link Course Required (Laboratory)”, the message is intended to inform you that the course is linked with a laboratory; therefore, you must register for both the course and the corresponding lab section.
“Waitlisted” indicates that you are on a list to add a course that is closed or at maximum capacity. It does not guarantee that you will be enrolled in the course. If a student who is registered for the class drops it, then the next person on the waitlist is offered the open seat. If you are waitlisted for a course, you’ll want to keep an eye on your UTRGV email for a notification about a course opening as you’ll have 24 hours from the time the email was sent to register for the course.
If you find that you are towards the bottom of a waitlist, we encourage you to have a few back up and alternative course selections. Consult your DegreeWorks, previous advising notes, or schedule an advising session with an academic advisor in the Academic Advising Center to explore alternative course options.
Lifting an Advising Hold
Your UNIV “hold” serves as a reminder. It is a UNIV status indicator and it will not block you from registering, but it will remain there until you have completed your first year at UTRGV. If needing further assistance regarding your UNIV hold, you can contact the UNIV Office at univ@utrgv.edu or 956-665-7919.
Mandatory Advising holds are placed for select student group who require additional support and serve as a reminder to meet with an academic advisor. The hold will be lifted after completing an academic advising session where you will meet one-on-one with an academic advisor to go over many of the academic policies and procedures students must be aware of as part of their UTRGV experience.
If you have a TSI Advising hold, please schedule an appointment with an academic advisor.
You can call the Academic Advising Center at 956-665-7120 or email us at academicadvising@utrgv.edu. You are also welcome to visit us at the Edinburg or Brownsville campuses for further assistance.
Changing Your Major and Minor
To explore your academic options, you’ll want to schedule a meeting with an academic advisor to teach you the information about your potential new major/minor, review your credits towards your new major/minor, discuss catalog and minor options as applicable and offer helpful guidance as you make your decision.
Per institutional policy, if you have more than 60 hours be sure to set up a session with an academic advisor to review the new major/minor requirements. When you are ready to declare your major/minor, you’ll want to complete the Change of Major/Minor/Catalog Form with an academic advisor and submit it for processing.
There is no deadline to change your major. However, please be aware of any admission or graduation requirements for specific programs.
Learning Your Academic Advising Center's Operation and Service Hours
The Academic Advising Center is open Monday-Friday from 8 AM to 5 PM. There are certain days we will be closed (meetings, holidays, etc.). Give us a call at (956) 665-7120 if you are unsure of our availability.
During the fall and spring semesters, the Academic Advising Center takes appointments with at least 24 hours’ notice. During the summer, the we take appointments on a first come, first serve basis.
Throughout the year, academic advising hours are between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Advising sessions are by appointment and may be scheduled via EAB Navigate360.
UTRGV is closed during nationally recognized holidays. Refer to the academic calendar for dates UTRGV will be closed.
The Academic Advising Center is located at the International Trade and Technology Building (EITTB) on the Edinburg campus and at Main 1.402 (BMAIN) on the Brownsville campus.
Increasing Your Maximum Credit Hours Per Term
The maximum amount of hours students can register for in the fall/spring is 18 credit hours.
The maximum amount of hours students can register for during summer I & II is 7 hours each.
To request special permission to take more than the standard hours of course work, you’ll want to briefly discuss with an academic advisor your academic plans. A Request for Increase in Maximum Course Load Form may be required to be submitted or you can get information regarding the respective department you need to reach out to for approval.
Dropping and Adding Courses
Texas law (*Texas Education Code 51.907) mandates that undergraduate student may drop a total of 6 courses over the duration of their entire undergraduate career. Therefore, before you drop a course, you will want to learn how many course drops you have available in your “drop bank.” Keep in mind that courses dropped at other Texas public higher education institutions will count towards the six course drop limit as well.
Yes! However, the deadline can vary from semester to semester. We recommend a review of the current Academic Calendar to confirm the deadline for adding a course.
You can drop a course up until the census date, also known as the 12th class day of a regular semester or the 4th class day of a summer session. We recommend a review of the current Academic Calendar to confirm deadlines for dropping a course.
Before you drop a course, you will want to consult with an academic advisor in the Academic Advising Center to develop strategies to successfully complete the course and determine how a course drop impacts your road to graduation. If you and your academic advisor agree that dropping a course is in your best interest, you may officially drop a course after the university’s official census date to drop a course(s) before the official drop deadline. You may find these important dates on the academic calendar for your immediate reference.
If you are successful in dropping a course after the university’s official census date and before the official drop deadline, you will see a grade of “DR” on your transcript. A “DR” does not calculate into your GPA but is counted towards your attempted hours.
Dropping a course can have consequences. For example, if you receive financial aid or requested an emergency loan, your awards or balances may be adjusted and this could result in a balance. We highly recommend visiting with the financial aid office in addition to consulting an academic advisor prior to dropping a course. Additionally, a course drop will be subtracted from your allotted 6 drops.
You can contact U Central for assistance with the drop.
You can drop a class up until the Census Date without it counting towards the 6 drops you are allowed.
Planning for and Requesting Course Substitution
Naturally, your degree plan provides you a comprehensive list of the courses required for you to graduate with a particular undergraduate degree in a specific field or concentration. However, as you review the course descriptions on your degree plan, you might discover that you’ve met a particular or specific degree requirement in your past or future course work that is not listed on your program of study. When instances such as this come up, a course substitution is an option to consider. A course substitution allows you to apply past or future earned course credit towards a degree plan requirement.
When considering a course substitution request, you will have the opportunity to request a Core substitution or a Major/Minor substitution. A Core substitution allows you to request a course substitution for a Core requirement and category. A Major/Minor substitution allows you to request a course substitution for a program of study requirement.
To request special permission for a course to substitute for a program of study requirement, you’ll want to schedule a meeting with an academic advisor. Together you will explore the possibility of a course substitution, discuss your justification for your request, consider official documentation options, review the course substitution timeline, address your questions and, if appropriate, complete/submit the Course Substitution Form.
While an academic advisor can assist you in preparing your request for a course substitution, the review and decision are made at the professional discretion of the department chair and college dean (or dean’s designee). In extremely rare cases, the provost (or provost designee) may provide a final review and determine if a request is approved or denied.
Several factors can affect the length of the process. For example, all course substitutions must maintain the academic integrity of your program. Additionally, the course you wish to substitute for the degree requirement should be in the same subject area as the required course or in a closely related field. Finally, a course substitution requires strong justification and official documentation (ex. course descriptions and course syllabi). With much to take into consideration and review, the course substitution process can take up to three weeks (or more depending on the complexity of your degree plan). If you have not received a notice within three weeks of submission, you can contact the Academic Advising Center to inquire about the status of your course substitution.