Campus Resources
- How to Be a Successful Student
- GO TO CLASS. Go to EVERY class, ALL of the time. Don't arrive late and don't leave early.
- Sit near the front of the classroom.
- Pay attention and take notes in all of your classes.
- Participate in class discussions. Participation is usually calculated into your final grade.
- Make at least two friends in each class whom you can count on to take notes should you have to miss class. Get their phone numbers and call them before the next class to find out what you missed.
- Review the material each night after your classes.
- Study in advance for your quizzes, midterms, and finals. Don't wait until the last minute.
- Turn in all assignments on time. Give yourself enough time to do multiple drafts and to check your work.
- If you have free time between your classes, do not go back to your room. Find a place on campus to study.
- Don’t be afraid to use office hours. Professors take note of students who are trying to succeed.
- Establish regular study hours. Look at studying as your job. Build time each day into your schedule for studying.
- Keep a calendar or planner to keep you organized. At the beginning of each quarter, write down your assignment due dates and exam dates for each class. Also write down important registration deadlines. See the planner at the end of this handbook.
- Academic and Other Campus Resources
First Year Success Series
The First Year Success Series through Undergraduate Admissions & First Year Experience (FYE) is a series of programs designed to help you adjust to university life and to discover the academic, social, and personal balance essential for a successful college career. The various components of the First Year Experience are aimed to help you learn to navigate the university, manage your time, access resources, pursue academic opportunities, plan your degree, explore new ideas, appreciate diversity, and make new friendships.
Tutoring
There are many places on campus that offer tutoring. If you find you need extra help in a class, check first with your professor or teaching assistant to see if they can offer you some additional help. If they offer office hours, go to them. While private tutors are helpful, your instructors know best what you need to know and how you are doing. See if these people would be willing to provide you with some additional help outside of class. If not, it is possible they could recommend reliable tutors. The departments may also have their own organized system for free tutoring. If you wish to hire a private tutor (this usually means you will be paying for services), ask for recommendations from your instructors, the course departments, and other students. You will also see many ads for tutors around campus or in the Lantern. Check around with a few tutors to compare prices and services.
The Writing Center
The Writing Center provides help, by appointment, to any student desiring personal help with specific writing projects, such as reports, resumes, and term papers. The tutors also can help with general writing needs, such as taking essay examinations, improving style, or getting started with a paper. This is not an editing service, but will help a student with his or her writing, no matter where the student is in the writing process.
The Mathematics and Statistics Learning Center
The Mathematics and Statistics Learning Center (MSLC) provides free tutoring in over 20 math and statistics courses (including all of the math and statistics courses that most freshmen are likely to be taking). There is a designated tutor room for each course staffed by trained tutors. Students can get answers to their math questions, receive explanations of math concepts, and find a friendly place to work on math with other people in their course. Most MSLC tutors are undergraduate students from a variety of majors, but all are skilled in helping students with questions about math.
Academic Advising in the Residence Halls
The Exploration Program provides advising for students in the Smith Hall Learning Community on a weekly basis. In addition, during the time of registration for the next academic quarter, extra advising is available on a limited basis. Residence Hall staff coordinate programs to help undecided students explore majors and careers.
The Younkin Success Center
The Younkin Success Center offers many services to help you succeed at Ohio State. Among the offices housed in the center are Counseling and Consultation Services, Career Connection, and the Student Athlete Support Offices.
One of the most helpful centers is the Walter E. Dennis Learning Center. You can use this lab to brush up on your skills for studying, test taking, time management, note taking, and other success strategies. Beyond working on these items on your own time in the computer lab, you can also register for study skills courses.
Credit by Examination (EM Credit)
A student may earn course credit by Advanced Placement Program examinations approved for EM credit, and by examinations offered through the Office of Testing, and the departments that offer the courses. Students can also make arrangements with departments and faculty members to test for credit in courses that are not listed in the EM brochure.
The Student Advocacy Center
The Student Advocacy Center is designed to assist you at those times when, due to the size of the university, you are finding it difficult to "navigate" a particular situation.
Counseling and Consultation Services
The Office of Counseling and Consultation Services provides counseling and mental health services to assist students in dealing with personal concerns, interpersonal issues, and concerns about relationships, academic effectiveness, and career counseling. Services include individual counseling, therapy groups, support groups, skill-building workshops, crisis intervention, and psychiatric consultation. Walk-in appointments are available for emergencies. Other appointments should be scheduled.
The majority of their services are offered out of the Younkin Success Center (YSC) on Neil Avenue. Their psychiatric services are conducted out of the office on the 2nd floor of the Wilce Student Health Center. Both of these areas offer free services to all enrolled Ohio State students. CCS can be reached at (614) 292-5766.
Services through Counseling and Consultation are confidential, unless written authorization provides for the release of information. There are, however, situations in which confidential information could be shared. Your counselor, for example, may want to consult with other counselors or staff members in Counseling and Consultation about your case. Counselors are legally required to take action if clients pose a clear and imminent harm to themselves or others. They are also required to report knowledge or suspicion of abuse or neglect of persons under eighteen (18) years of age (21 if the individual is mentally retarded, developmentally disabled, or physically impaired) to the appropriate children services agency, and they are required to release information in response to a court-ordered subpoena.
Disability Services
The Office of Disability Services offers a variety of services for students with documented disabilities, including, but not limited to, students with learning disabilities, the deaf or hard of hearing, the visually or mobility impaired, those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and students with psychiatric or medical disabilities. They also offer services to students with temporary mobility impairments. For example, if you should break your leg, you could use their Handivan Service to help you get around campus.
ODS can also help if you require your classroom materials in an alternate format, for instance, if you need your books read on tape. They can also help you if you need special testing arrangements, if, for example, you concentrate better by taking your tests in an empty room. In order to use these services, you must provide appropriate documentation of your disability. Please refer to the ODS web site for information on particular disabilities and accommodations.
Campus Safety Services
As a member of the university community, you have available to you many opportunities and experiences that can be found only in a vibrant urban center like Columbus. As with all communities, however, opportunities for criminal activity exist.
The Ohio State University campus is a relatively safe place, but like any other place, crime can occur. The university offers a multitude of safety services, including a university police force, a student escort service, and a wide selection of security-awareness and crime-prevention programs. You must do your part, however, to help minimize the chance of becoming a crime victim. Take advantage of the many safety programs that are offered, and exercise good judgments. Always be aware of your environment, and be sure to follow simple safety tips such as locking your doors, securing your belongings and property, walking in groups at night, and avoiding areas with which you are not familiar. Together, we can continue to make our campus safe and more secure.
Medical Services
Some of the medical services offered on campus include:
- An advice nurse on the first floor of the Wilce Student Health Center can answer health-related questions.
- An Urgent Care Center on the first floor of the Wilce Student Health Center for conditions requiring immediate attention.
- A Medical Services department offers diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions by scheduled appointment. If necessary they will refer you to a Specialty Service.
- Women's Services, located on the second floor of the Wilce Student Health Center, offers annual gynecologic exams, pregnancy testing, and birth control. Urgent problems may be treated on a walk-in basis.
- Men's Services are offered by appointment only, dealing with concerns of health promotion, sexually transmitted diseases, disease prevention and diagnosis, and treatment of men's health concerns.
- Dental Services are located on the second floor of the Wilce Student Health Center.
The Student Wellness Center
The center provides a wide range of health promotion resources, programs, and services aimed at helping students understand the relationship between lifestyle choices and state of health. The center offers programs on issues including sexual health (HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases [STDs], unplanned pregnancy, contraception, relationship building) and alcohol and other drug issues. They provide anonymous HIV-test counseling, safer-sex education, Health Risk appraisals, and other workshops/presentations.
The student health center offers two types of HIV testing: Anonymous testing ($10 charge) and confidential testing ($30 charge.) They also offer a Condom Club that allows students to purchase condoms at a discounted rate. Members are also entitled to free safer-sex products on a limited basis. In order to join the Condom Club, you must watch a demonstration of the correct usage of condoms and other latex products.
Study Abroad
The Office of International Affairs (OIA) offers many study-abroad programs. There are more than 100 programs in 40 different countries for students of all majors. Some programs are only a few weeks long and others may last for the academic year. Some require that you have some background in another language, but many do not. If Ohio State does not have a program that interests you, OIE can work with you to find study-abroad opportunities through other colleges. In addition to study abroad, OIE can also help you arrange work and volunteer opportunities abroad.
If you currently receive financial aid, you will be able to receive it for your study-abroad experience if you are paying at least half-time enrollment fees for an Ohio State study-abroad program. You may also be eligible for additional aid. If you do not already receive financial aid, you will need to file a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) by February 1st. Applications for some programs may be due a few quarters before you wish to participate, especially if you are hoping to obtain additional financial aid.
- Handy Phone Numbers
(All phones number use the Area Code prefix 614.)
Exploration Resources
Exploration Program - 292-0646
General Resources
Admissions Office - 292-3980
Athletic Ticket Office - 292-2624
Consolidated Student Services Center (Bursar, Financial Aid, and Registrar) - 292-0300Medical Resources
Advice Nurse - 292-3301
Appointments (Wilce Student Health Center) - 292-4321
Student Pharmacy - 292-0125
Student Wellness Center - 292-4527Safety Resources
Emergency - 911
Non-Emergency Ohio State Police - 292-2121
Student Escort Service - 292-3322
Community Crime Patrol (CCP) - 292-2279Tutoring Resources
Writing Center - 688-4291
Other Campus Resources
Office of Disability Services - 292-3307
Ethnic Student Services - 688-4988
Student Advocacy Center - 292-3337 - Useful Web Sites for Students
Buckeye Link - Things you can do on this site:
- Register on-line for courses
- See your course schedule
- View your wait list information
- Check for available courses
- View your grades
- Change your address
- Check your financial aid status
- Look at your fee statement
- View/print a degree audit to see what GEC requirements you have left
- View/print a transfer credit report to see how credits from another institution have transferred to OSU
- View/print an advising report (an unofficial transcript)
Student GPA Tools
Faculty, Staff, and Student Directory
This site is helpful when you want to locate the phone number, e-mail address, or address of an Ohio State student or faculty member.
Find the office hours for FREE math tutoring and other important information from the Dept. of Mathematics.
This site can help you with the grammar and mechanics of writing. It also has links that are specific to writing in your field of study. You can also find out the hours of the writing center to get help with your papers before turning them in.
This site helps you learn how to use the Ohio State library system. Very helpful and easy to use.
Find out the hours and locations of all university libraries. Look up books and articles on line. Put books on hold for pick-up or have them sent to you via campus mail!
Office of the University Registrar
This site offers access to many of the sites that are on Buckeye Link
