Undergraduate Advising
The WGS Program uses a combination of professional advising and faculty mentorship to best meet the needs of our majors and minors. The most appropriate person for each appointment is a function of the nature of the assistance required.
Primary Advising
(Registration clearance and degree planning)
- Starting in Fall 2020, all WGS students (who have not previously been advised by a WGS Faculty Advisor) are assigned Samantha Keyser at skeyser1@utk.edu as their Primary Advisor.
- WGS students who have already been seeing a Faculty Advisor will continue to be advised by their Faculty Advisor.
- WGS minors will also be assigned a Faculty Mentor for primary advising (or continue seeing their same WGS minor advisor).
Faculty Mentorship
(Guidance on career planning, graduate school, experiential opportunities, research, study abroad, etc.)
- Students can email their Faculty Mentor for help with any of the above categories.
- Students can view their Faculty Mentor assignment on their Navigate page (on the right side of the screen)
- If students do not know who their Faculty Mentor is, they can reach out to Samantha Keyser.
- If students are wanting to do courses for their major or minor while doing study abroad, they can discuss with their Faculty Mentor which courses they should take.
- For general education courses to take abroad, students should talk with their Primary Advisor.
Supplemental Advising
(Transfers, Petitions, Study Abroad, SAP Appeals, Academic Probation, etc)
- All WGS students, regardless of their primary advising assignment, can meet with Samantha Keyser for supplemental assistance with transfer work, petitions, study abroad paperwork (especially for general education), ROTC plans, financial aid documentation, academic crisis advising, etc.
- Request for Curricular Exception (email Samantha Keyser with questions)
WGS students with quick questions that do not require a full appointment can direct these Samantha Keyser. Emails are typically returned within 2 business days.
Please read the university’s advising policy to determine when you must be advised. For general information about advising and ways to prepare for your appointment, please visit the Arts & Sciences Advising website.
Graduate Advising
Graduate students interested in the WGS Graduate Certificate or who need advising related to their certificate completion should contact Nora Berenstain, WGS Program Chair.
Dr. Nora Berenstain
Chair, Interdisciplinary Program in Women, Gender, and Sexuality
nberenst@utk.edu