Division of General Studies
Welcome to the Division of General Studies, home to a dynamic and diverse student body. Future biochemists, future attorneys, future nurses, future elementary school teachers, future novelists, future entrepreneurs—they've all passed through our doors. But there are three things that bind our students together: a persistent curiosity, a sense of academic excitement, and a hankering for exploration. Sound like someone you know?
As the prospect of an empty (or, at least, emptier) nest approaches, you and your student will begin receiving messages from us—e-mails, letters, and information packets that'll give you a clear idea of the opportunities that await DGS students. For now, here's a quick list of the advantages DGS freshmen can look forward to—advantages that, we hope, will help you sleep sounder at night, knowing that your student is on the right track:
- Regular meetings with a personal academic adviser who will work with students to find the academic path that best suits their interests, their abilities, and their ambitions
- Walk-in sessions that provide access to DGS advisers during critical times of the semester (for instance, during registration or the first week of classes)
- Advice on courses, registration, pre-requisites, campus resources, study habits, short-term plans, long-term strategies, and more
- Access to pertinent, up-to-date information on every program, major, and college on campus
- Eligibility to participate in numerous events and organizations, including the DGSociety and the Majors and Minors Fair
And this is just the beginning. Through DGS, your student will be able to take courses in nearly every subject you can imagine. By meeting regularly with our award-winning, nationally recognized staff of advisers, your student will explore strategically and responsibly. Majors, minors, certificates, concentrations, extracurricular activities—you name it, our advisers are eager to talk about it.
Our goal is to help our students most effectively navigate the vast academic landscape at Illinois. We want our students to recognize their options. We want them to be aware of the various paths that can lead to a common destination. We want them to explore widely while staying on track for graduation. And most important, we want them to find the major the fits them best.
As you can probably tell, we take advising very seriously at DGS—a commitment that DGS parents frequently applaud. And we understand that you are a valuable partner in your student's education and you don't want to be left out of the loop. For this reason, we've created the DGS Parents' Page, a window into your student's academic world that's rife with updates, reminders, deadlines, and interesting details about undergraduate life at Illinois.
Again, welcome to DGS. We're looking forward to joining your student on an exciting and enriching academic journey. Where you start really does matter, and we're incredibly excited that your student is starting with us.