Registration and Enrollment Incoming students will be directed to the online registration system. As of fall 2014, registration is conducted electronically using ATHENA: athena.uga.edu. Online registration platforms are likely to change, and students can find information on current registration policies from the Registrar’s office (http://www.reg.uga.edu/registration) or the Graduate Program Associate (mibcoord@uga.edu). The most important things to know regarding registration are: 1. Graduate students in the Microbiology program should register for a minimum of 18 credit hours in Fall and Spring semesters and for 15 credit hours during the Summer Thru Session. 2. Graduate students are responsible for checking registration dates each semester and for registering on time. Registration dates are provided by the Registrar’s office in the UGA academic calendar. Failure to register during the assigned registration period will result in an inability to register for that semester and a loss of assistantship. 3. Your major professor (or Graduate Coordinator for first-year students) can advise you regarding coursework and will need to clear you to register. You may need to remind him/her to do so. If your advisor cannot (or chooses not) to clear you, they may ask the Graduate Program Associate to do so. 4. Please note that you must sign up for the Graduate Assistant Payment Plan. You can find instructions here. 5. Students may need to register for more than 9 credit hours of MIBO9000 but may be unable to do so in the online system. In this case, they should register for MIBO9000 twice, totaling the desired number of credit hours. 6. Do not forget to register for MIBO9300 (PhD) or MIBO7300 (MS) in the semester that you plan to graduate. If you are not entirely certain that you will graduate, discuss this decision with your advisor, but also know that you can register for these courses up to 3 times if your graduation semester lags. 7. Some classes require permission by appropriate professors or staff (POD = permission of department). Discuss your registration plans each semester with your advisor, who will enter the POD when appropriate or direct you elsewhere if needed. If you have trouble registering for any course, notify your advisor and/or the current graduate program associate or departmental office manager. 8. The University recognizes e-mail as an official means of communication. Important notices regarding registration, enrollment, student accounts, etc. may be sent to your UGA email account, and it is your responsibility to monitor messages from UGA, the Grad School, the department, etc., sent to that account. Other information: Special Cases All enrolled students off campus (i.e. at SREL or elsewhere) follow the same deadlines and registration instructions as students on campus. HOWEVER, a student who is off campus and not on ANY financial assistantship needs to register for a minimum of 3 credit hours. This mainly occurs when the student is finishing up but has already moved to accept a job. A student who does not have any type of assistantship (such as a TA, RA, GSA, Presidential fellowship, etc.) can register for less than 9 hours. A student who doesn't have any financial support for the summer can have tuition waved if he/she was supported for at least two semesters prior to summer. NOTE: these rules should be irrelevant, because students in our department are typically supported by an assistantship of one type or another. Graduate School Registration and Enrollment information: More information from the Graduate School regarding registration and enrollment issues can be found at the link above. However, please be sure to read and know departmental policies which may supersede graduate school minimal requirements (e.g. with respect to minimal credit hours each semester) Helpful links: Student Accounts Registrar's Office Academic Calendars
