Advising at EFSC

Academic Support services are available throughout the College to meet the individual needs of all students. Check the links in the partial list below and visit EFSC's Academic Support Web Page for more resources. If you need help, reach out.

• Academic Success Centers/Tutoring: Located on each Campus to connect EFSC students with free tutoring and supplemental instruction in many subject areas, including math, science and communications. While writing support is provided at all Campus locations, the Cocoa and Melbourne ASC include specialized Writing Centers to help with all stage of the writing process.

• Accessibility/Disability Services through SAIL: The Student Access for Improved Learning team ensures that EFSC students with documented disabilities have equal access to programs and services and that reasonable accommodations are provided so that students may reach their individual potential

• Career Planning Services: Centers on each campus for free help choosing a career path plus internship and job search tools

• Counseling/EFSCares Service: Free, confidential student counseling service available to all part- and full-time enrolled students

• Service-Learning: Partnership among students, faculty and community partners that enables students to earn course credit while gaining hands-on volunteer experience

• Student Life & Clubs: Connecting with students who have similar interests through Campus activities and clubs enhances academic success at EFSC. You can also get involved with the Student Government Association, which plans activities on each Campus.

• Testing Services: Learn about placement testing, connect with proctored testing and find your Campus assessment center

• Titan Support Centers: Connect with tools to help you improve your achievements in life and the classroom, including customized assistance from Success Specialists.

• TRIO Student Support Services: A federal academic support program for first-generation in college students, students with low taxable income, and/or students with a disability, all of whom must have an academic need

• Veterans Resources: Active military personnel, veterans and their families who are attending EFSC can access services to meet their often unique educational and personal needs through the collegewide Military & Veterans Service Center

• Writing Centers: Located on all four campuses, these specialized centers offer help with all stages of the writing process

Advisors are committed to providing individualized academic planning and direction so that students stay focused on their correct academic path. Advisors are strong advocates for students and are on hand to help students navigate the College and connect with the network of college-wide resources, staff and faculty that are in place to help students succeed and graduate.

To find your assigned advisor, you can log into myEFSC and check the Student Services Appointments area. You can also log into your myGPS Degree Audit Tool and locate your advisor's name on the right hand side. You can send them an email message or give them a call.

Communicate with your advisor regularly. Don’t wait until registration begins: plan ahead so you can save time and get the classes you need. Once you are in classes, if you find that you need help either academically or with a specific process, contact your advisor right away. Your advisor is thoroughly committed to your success!

We love welcoming new students to the College and as we explained in the Case Management section above, your first two semesters at EFSC will include intensive advising to help with the transition to college. Remember to prepare for that first advising session on our "Getting Started" page.

The first time you meet with your advisor you'll receive a paper copy of the booklet below so you can write in information specific to you. You can also click the thumbnail image to refer back to an interactive digital version that makes it easy to click resource links.

View accessible PDF version

Advising Resources: Your One-Stop Shop

In addition to the "My First Year" booklet, your advisor may have given you other handouts and told you about other online resources, such as academic calendars, campus maps, and video tutorials to help you stay on track. Visit our advising resources page to access those helpful documents and links.

Choosing a major is an important decision that will affect your course of study for the next few years and determine the type of career fields you’ll be prepared to enter. At EFSC, you will choose a degree or certificate program for enrollment such as an A.A., A.S. or CCC, which we consider your EFSC major. However, associate degree students who intend to continue on to a Bachelor's level program, either at EFSC or through transfer to another college or University, also need to think about long-term planning for that next step. The transfer tips section below in this accordion can help with that "what's-next" planning.

Don't stress: it isn’t unusual for students to be undecided regarding their long term plans. Many resources are available to help you make an informed decision.

Visit a Campus Career Center

Career Centers on each EFSC campus have resources available for students to explore future careers. You can take free career interest inventories to help determine what sort of jobs you might excel in and enjoy. You also can research specific careers to learn more about them and determine if they’ll be in demand in the next few years.

Take Success Strategies for College and Life

Success Strategies for College and Life (SLS 1101) is a college-credit course that includes a career exploration component. In addition, this course helps students improve their study skills and provides an excellent introduction to college, plus it can connect you with a mentor relationship.

Take a Career Exploration Course

Discover Your Major and Career, course number SLS 2401, assists the student in examining career choices and related college majors to get there based on an assessment of a student's interests. Opportunities are provided for educational planning, networking, career decision making, interviewing and job searching. Check the Class Schedule for current offerings or ask your advisor.

Visit Florida's Free Higher Education Advising Website

floridashines.org is a useful website created by the State of Florida to provide college advising information to students and has a strong career component. You can take a career self-assessment and explore various careers using this website. Also, you can learn which colleges in Florida offer the majors you are considering.

Take Part in Service Learning

One excellent way to explore careers is to participate in service learning. If you’re considering several different career fields, volunteering in those fields can help you decide among them.  EFSC's Center for Service Learning can place you in community agencies that provide hands-on experience in a variety of career fields — and you can earn college credit for your volunteer service. 

Communication & Computational Skills

Florida State Board of Education Administrative Rule 6A-10.030 sets out college-level communication and computational skills standards, formerly known as Gordon Rule standards. Students must meet these requirements prior to receipt of an Associate in Arts degree from EFSC. Read information about the compliance standards established by EFSC through designated courses in mathematics, English composition, humanities, behavioral sciences and social sciences.

Foreign Language Requirement

First-time-in-college students initially entering Eastern Florida in fall 2014 and after must demonstrate competency in a foreign language pursuant to s.1007.262, Florida Statutes. Visit EFSC's Foreign Language Competency page for more details on meeting this requirement, including through proficiency testing offered at EFSC.

Civic Literacy Requirement

Under state law, first-time-in-college students initially entering Eastern Florida in fall 2018 and after must demonstrate competency in Civic Literacy. Lawmakers modified the existing Civic Literacy Graduation Requirement in fall 2021 impacting all Associate in Arts, and Bachelor students. Then in the 2022-2023 catalog and thereafter, all Associate in Science, Associate in Arts, and Bachelor students must satisfy the civic literacy competency requirement. Learn more about this requirement and the ways to comply by visiting the Civic Literacy page.

Registration is available online via your student account. In some cases, students may need to see their advisor for registration assistance. It's helpful to meet with your advisor at least several weeks before the start of open registration to confirm your course registration plan. Your advisor can help you identify and register for the courses that best keep you on track for your individualized academic plan.

Remember that making an appointment with your advisor is the best way to avoid waiting. You can walk-in to an advising office for help with course registration planning, but you may face a longer wait.

As you prepare to register, check out EFSC's centralized Registration Information page for deadlines, links to definitions of registration holds, how-to register online 24/7 (the fastest & most convenient way) — and much more.

Each college credit equals 16 hours of instruction during the term — so a typical three credit class will add up to about 48 hours of direct instruction spread out over the term. When deciding how many classes to take each semester, it’s important to understand that you should expect to spend at least 2 hours studying for every hour you spend in class. That means 12 hours spent in class equals 24 hours of study time or 36 hours a week of class and studying.  

Having to spend so much time studying will require careful planning with other obligations, like work and family. If you work:

• 40 hours a week, take 1 or 2 classes
• 30 hours a week, take 2 or 3 classes
• 20 hours a week, take 3 to 5 classes

You'll want to understand what's required to be considered a full-time versus part-time student as those determinations can impact things such as financial aid or qualifying for certain insurance rates. Visit the registrar's section for more on how your enrollment status is calculated and how you can verify it. Also review financial aid terms and conditions that relate to your enrollment and contact a financial aid office if you have any questions.

Also, students must find a balance between the types of classes they take each semester, particularly when it comes to courses that have requirements as part of the state's college-level communication and computational skills standards, formerly known as Gordon Rule standards.

As you plan your goals and work with your advisor, it helps to have a basic understanding of EFSC's programs based on the degree or certificate you'll receive at completion. The credential you'll receive plays a role in how long the program will take and whether you can work toward it part-time over a longer interval. Below are the most common EFSC credentials earned at graduation.

Associate in Arts Degree (A.A.): A two-year degree in general education designed for transfer to a university. This degree requires a minimum of 60 credit hours and a cumulative GPA of 2.0 so to finish in two years, you need to average 30 credits a year, and decide whether you'll go just fall and spring terms, or attend a summer term.

Associate in Science Degree (AS): A two-year technical degree designed to gain skills to prepare to enter the workforce. Some A.S. degrees are offered in a cohort style of learning, which could impact the ability to pursue the degree part time. A.S. degrees contain some general education coursework that is transferable into a bachelor program, including those offered at EFSC.

Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS): A four-year degree designed to accommodate the unique demands for entry into and advancement within specific workforce sectors. The BAS normally translates into about 60 credit hours on top of the 60 credits earned as part of an associate degree.

Bachelor of Science (B.S.): EFSC currently has two B.S. degrees in Science Teacher Education, which included specializations in Biology Teacher, Chemistry Teacher and Middle School Science Teacher and a fully online RN to BSN program for Florida Registered Nurses. The B.S. normally translates into about 60 credit hours on top of the 60 credits earned as part of an associate degree.

College Credit Certificate (CCC): These short-term career education programs can often be earned alone or as part of an A.S. degree. They range from as few as 12 credit hours (so just three or four courses) to longer certificates that approach 30 credit hours.

Career and Technical Certificate (CTC): These vocational programs prepare students for entry level employment in specific career fields. Your time in class is calculated in clock hours and some CTC programs may be a cohort style, which impacts planning for part-time versus full time.

Is your program considered Limited Access?

You'll also want to know whether the program you're interested in is a Limited Access program, with student enrollment limited due to space, equipment, faculty limitations or other reasons. At EFSC these include many healthcare, public safety and career programs. Limited Access programs require a separate application process in addition to EFSC's main application so you want to allow time for those extra steps and review whether your program can be taken part time.

You can find your GPA listed inside the myGPS Online Audit tool, plus myGPS includes a convenient "GPA Calc" tab that allows you to enter actual grades or "what-if" scenarios to calculate a GPA.

EFSC uses a 4.0 grading scale and transfer credits do not count toward your EFSC GPA. Each letter grade has a point value: A = 4 points, B = 3 points, C = 2 points, D = 1 point, F = 0 points. 

Below are the basics and a GPA calculation example, plus you can visit the Registrar's grading policies section for more information.

• To determine your grade point average (GPA), multiply the number of points for each grade earned times the number of the course’s credits. A “B” (three points) in a three-credit course is worth nine points. An “A” (four points) in the same three-credit course is worth 12 points.
• Add the total grade-point value for all courses and divide by the total number of attempted credit hours.

GPA Example

Whether planning a transfer to another Eastern Florida State College program or a transfer to another college or university after graduating from EFSC, our advising team is here to help.

Also explore the transfer resources and links below.

• floridashines.org, a website created by the State of Florida to provide college advising information to students

• Explore the EFSC Registrar's Office official credit evaluation information for details about how credit is evaluated for transfer from other institutions or through acceleration mechanisms such as exams or certifications; or through prior work, life or military experience

• Review transfer resources on our Guaranteed Transfer web page.

• Check out UCF Direct Connect for information about guaranteed admission to the University of Central Florida for EFSC A.A. transfer students.

• Through agreements with Florida Tech, there are transfer opportunities for A.A. students and an FIT-MBA Smart Track for EFSC Organizational Management bachelor's students.

Visit the College's student services tutorials web page for video and PDF-based instructional tools for everything from how to use myEFSC and student email to registering for courses online and applying to graduate.

Explore common questions about operating inside the myEFSC Student Services Portal in the Student Services Online Reference Guide