Academic Resources
Advising Services
The Office of Advising Services provides the support necessary for enrollment in and completion of College of Graduate and Professional Studies academic programs. Services include:
- Academic advising;
- Review and approval of course selections and registration;
- Review of previous higher education experience in relation to transfer credit;
- Specialized advising for students in academic jeopardy;
- Referrals for employment/career advising through the
Professional Experiences and Networking (PEN) Program in
preparation for continued or new employment after program completion; - Prematriculation advising in preparation for enrollment in specific courses and programs; and
- Specialized advising for degree completion.
The Office of Advising Services also serves as a clearinghouse for all student services.
Professional staff members are available to provide advising services to students on a scheduled or a walk-in basis. Additional services include financial aid referrals, disability service referrals, and academic skills workshops.
Career Services
The Office of Career Services supports students at the College of Graduate and Professional Studies by offering personalized guidance designed to advance their overall career development while they complete their academic studies. Personnel in this office also offer several job-related resources such as career fairs and a job-posting database called eRecruiting for students seeking full-time positions. Career counselors aid students in developing career goals by exploring their interests and identifying their skills, values, and personality preferences with the use of career inventory assessments. Some of the other services that the Office of Career Services provides include interviewing programs, workshops, résumé and cover letter critique services, and a resource center located in the Stafford library. Many of the resources and services can be accessed through the Office of Career Services’ web site at www.umw.edu/careerservices.
Computer Labs
The College of Graduate and Professional Studies has computer labs
that are available for student use during regular College hours. The labs are
managed by the University’s Department of Information Technologies support
staff. All lab computers provide access to the Internet and document printing,
as well as instructional programs and the latest business and academic
software.
Users of information technology resources at the University of Mary
Washington must operate these resources responsibly and within limitations.
Users who fail to meet their responsibilities or who fail to operate within
the limitations may have their network privileges suspended or revoked
and may be subject to other disciplinary actions. Using University-owned
computers, networks, or other information technology resources constitutes
acknowledgment that the user understands and commits to compliance with
the user policy and related policies and procedures available at www.umw.edu/policies/network/use.
Externship
The externship requires a student to locate and study a prospective employer or employment opportunity based on the student’s selected concentration. Students research, observe, and participate in the organization’s processes related to their area of study to gain short, practical experiences and knowledge. An extensive final analytical report is required at the conclusion of the study.
Internship (Professional Experiences and Networking Program)
The College of Graduate and Professional Studies offers students
professional internships within a project-based program designed to blend
educational and experiential endeavors. The program combines student skills
and knowledge with faculty expertise and corporate plans to produce quality
products. Participants are graded based on site supervisor evaluation, hours
worked on the project, faculty advisor evaluation, and quality of the required
oral presentation and final project.
Internship credit awards range from one to six credits. No more than six
internship credits may count toward the minimum number of credits required
in a major or concentration. Undergraduate degree-seeking students who have
earned at least 45 credits toward the degree with at least 12 credits completed at
the College with a minimum overall 2.5 grade-point average (GPA) are eligible
to participate in the Professional Experiences and Networking (PEN) Program.
Graduate students must have completed a minimum of six credits of course
work at the College and have earned a 3.0 GPA or higher as a degree-seeking
student to be eligible for an internship project. Students who are interested and
eligible to participate in the internship program should contact the internship
director.
Students who wish to complete an internship at an agency where they
already have completed an internship, or at an agency where they have been
employed or volunteered, or in a University administrative office, must seek
approval from the appropriate academic program director and the internship
director. Instructions for these specially approved internships are available in
the Office of Advising Services.
Library
The College of Graduate and Professional Studies Library is a branch of
the UMW Libraries and offers access to both physical and online resources in
support of the courses offered at the College. The library’s physical collections
consist of books, videos, and periodicals focusing on business, education, and
information technology, as well as student project archives, course reserves,
and children’s literature. Faculty and students also have full access to the
collections maintained at Simpson Library on the University’s Fredericksburg
campus.
The UMW Libraries’ shared catalog is available online from the UMW
Libraries home page, www.umw.edu/library. UMW Libraries also provide
online access to more than 56,000 e-books, over 100 research databases, and
thousands of journal, magazine, and newspaper subscriptions via the Libraries’
web site. Students may access these online resources while on campus or from
off campus with a login and password.
Library services include document delivery, which allows for the delivery
of materials between campuses, and an interlibrary loan service, which
provides access to books, articles, dissertations, and other materials that are
not owned by the UMW Libraries. Library staff is available to provide research
assistance through individual and group appointments and for course-related
in-class and online instruction. Online tutorials and research guides are
available on the Libraries’ web site.
The Stafford campus library, with comfortable seating and conversation
areas, provides a welcoming environment for individual and group study. The
library is equipped with computers that include the MS Office Suite and that
are linked to the Internet and the University’s network. Printing and copying
are also available in the library.
Office of Disability Services
Through the University’s Office of Disability Services, the College of
Graduate and Professional Studies provides reasonable and appropriate
accommodations to qualified students with disabilities. These accommodations
may include—but are not limited to—extended time on tests, note taking
assistance, sign language interpreters, assistive technology, permission to tape
record lectures, and distraction-reduced testing sites.
In order to receive services, students must provide appropriate professional
documentation of a substantially limiting condition and discuss appropriate
accommodations with the director of disability services. Documentation
guidelines for specific disabilities may be requested from the office at (540)
654-1266 or viewed on the web site at www.umw.edu/disability. The director
verifies the disability, assists in arranging reasonable accommodations, and
acts as a liaison among students, faculty, and administration on issues relating
to services or accommodations.
Testing
College Level Examination Program (CLEP) tests are available in
computer-based formats and may be scheduled individually through the
testing coordinator at the College of Graduate and Professional Studies at (540)
286-8000. Each exam consists of two sections of 45 minutes each. Exam and
site fees apply. A complete listing of CLEP exams accepted by the College is
available in the Office of Advising Services.
The University’s National Testing program provides a quality testing
environment for the hundreds of teachers, high school students, and graduate
school applicants who live in the Fredericksburg area. On scheduled Saturdays
throughout the year, the PRAXIS Series, the Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
Subject Tests, the ACT, and the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) are given
on the University’s Fredericksburg campus.
To register for a national exam, candidates must contact the national
office of the exam they plan to take, as registration is not handled through the
College. For more information about these tests and to register, visit these web
sites: www.ets.org/praxis for PRAXIS, www.gre.org for GRE, www.act.org for
ACT, or www.lsac.org for LSAT. Contact the University’s testing coordinator at
(540) 286-8000 for more information. Testing announcements, as needed, are
posted on the UMW web site at www.umw.edu/nationaltesting.
The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is scheduled
individually and is only offered at various computer-based testing
(CBT) centers throughout the country. Students interested in taking the
GMAT should consult the GMAT Bulletin or go to www.mba.com/mba/TaketheGMAT.
Writing Center
The Writing Center offers writing help free of charge to students. Students can obtain assistance with all types of writing projects, from research projects to résumés, and with all aspects of writing, from brainstorming a research topic to proofreading a paper. The Writing Center’s trained tutors work with students one-on-one to improve writing performance during in-person or online sessions. While the Writing Center accepts walk-ins, appointments are strongly recommended. For best results, students should submit an electronic copy of their writing in advance and bring a copy of the professor’s assignment sheet to their Writing Center tutorial session. For more information, students are encouraged to visit the Writing Center online at www.umw.edu/cgps/writing.