Declared Advising
Academic Exploration Advising (AEA) is the advising office for students declared in the Exploratory, Undecided and Undeclared majors.
New Student Advising
Your AEA advisor looks forward to meeting you soon and to supporting your transition to USC!
You can find information for Welcome Trojans Orientation, which includes individualized academic advising, course registration, and on-campus or online events, on the Office of Orientation Programs website.
After certifying your intent to enroll, you should:
- Activate your USC Net ID to gain access to your USC email address and various USC platforms.
- Check your USC email regularly for updates from the Office of Orientation Programs, including invitations to Advise USC, the Trojan Engagement Center (TEC) and Brightspace.
- For advising and course registration, once prompted:
- Complete the Brightspace Pre-Registration Guide including the Pre-Advisement Worksheet.
- Review the Brightspace “Exploratory – Academic Exploration Advising” folder and other folders for majors of interest.
- Review the Advise USC Home Page > Recent Announcements section for AEA mandatory Orientation advising appointment, course registration, and related information.
You must meet with your assigned advisor for Orientation advising prior to meeting with your advisor for course registration. After course registration, be sure to check your Advise USC Home page for “Recent Announcements” and check your USC email for University-wide updates to prepare for the upcoming semester.
Continuing Student Advising
Exploratory and Planning Appointments
We encourage our declared Exploratory, Undecided and Undeclared students to schedule Exploratory or “planning” advising appointments via Advise USC at any point in the year to discuss academic, career or personal goals, review prior advising discussions, and to continue the academic exploration process.
Mandatory Advising Appointments
As a declared Exploratory, Undecided and Undeclared student, you must meet with your assigned AEA advisor each semester for mandatory advisement. The AEA advising office will announce the mandatory advisement period in advance, and you and your advisor will meet to:
- Discuss goals, interests and support needs
- Review the STARS report and other degree progress benchmarks
- Check academic progress in current semester (midterm grades) and reflect on prior semester goals and outcomes
- Identify potential majors and review related admission and/or major declaration processes
- Discuss any changes in interests and adjust action and academic plans accordingly
- Make a course plan for the current or upcoming semester
- Lift mandatory advising hold for registration in next semester, if applicable
Important: Exploratory, Undecided and Undeclared students should declare a major before they reach Junior standing (64 total units) to promote timely graduation.
Tools and Resources
USC and AEA offers numerous resources to support your academic, personal and overall wellbeing, including our AEA calendar of events, Major Discovery Activity, and Navigation Guides.
Please access these and other guides on our Tools and Resources.
Declared Student Common Questions
Will being declared in the Exploratory, Undecided or Undeclared major impact my admission to my intended major?
No. Being Exploratory does NOT negatively impact your competitiveness to your intended major.
Can my AEA advisor create a course plan through graduation?
AEA advisors can share course recommendations for the current and upcoming term. However, students must contact the designated major advisor for their program of interest to request a multi-semester course plan through graduation; course plan creation is at the discretion of the major department.
Please note that Exploratory, Undecided and Undeclared students should declare a major before they reach Junior standing (64 total units) to promote timely graduation.
Should I focus on applying to only one selective major?
We encourage students to consider and plan for parallel majors and minors, which may confirm your primary interest or lead to new and exciting opportunities! Connect with an AEA advisor to review our Major Exploration activities posted on our AEA Tools & Resources page for support with the exploration process.
As a continuing student, when will I receive the internal transfer (admission) decision or know the status of my request to change my major?
Students should check the current USC student admission, internal transfer or major application webpage for details. If a time is not published, students can contact the major’s advising or admission office to inquire.
I have a mandatory advising hold for the Exploratory, Undecided, or Undeclared, BA. What should I do to resolve this hold?
Exploratory students are required to meet with their advisor for orientation advising and meet again each semester for mandatory advising until they declare a major. Students should log in to Advise USC to check the “Recent Announcements” section for advising information, and to schedule an advising appointment.
I do not see an AEA advising appointment time that works with my availability. What should I do?
Please log-in to Advise USC, select the “Advisor Connect” tab on the menu bar and then select “Create a New Case” to request an advising appointment with their AEA advisor. We recommend providing availability to meet Monday-Friday, 9am-4pm (excluding holidays) in the message.
To check for advisor responses, please log back in to Advise USC and navigate to the “Advisor Connect” page to access the case and respond using “Chatter.”
For additional Advise USC tips, visit our AEA Tools & Resources.
I submitted a question to my AEA advisor via an Advise USC support case. When will I receive a response?
Please allow one to three (1-3) business days for a response, as your AEA advisor may need to conduct additional research or outreach to best address your question. For time-sensitive questions, we recommend attending AEA drop-in advising, if scheduled. To view our drop-in advising and general advising schedule, visit our AEA Tools & Resources webpage and navigate to the Calendar of Events.
