Description
This section describes balance sheets, how to prepare them, and what to cover during the balance sheet appointments.

Balance sheets are documents, which detail, in one page, a student’s progress toward graduation. They cover all requirement areas, including credits, major(s), minor(s) Liberal Education and CLA. Balance Sheets are used as part of a Balance Sheet appointment, during which the advisor reviews the details of the B.S., including progress toward degree, courses in progress and requirements left to fulfill.

When does this happen?
Typically, students should make their first balance sheet appointments during the second semester of their junior year, or during the semester they will be completing 75+ credits. However, any student with 60+ credits may request a balance sheet appointment.

Balance sheets are given to students by appointment only. The balance sheet is the only official document of a student’s record we give out and therefore must be extremely accurate. A balance sheet is never done on a walk-in basis as errors will be made. An appointment is necessary, as a thorough explanation must be also given to the student. You will need:

Current transcript information:

1. Transcript
2. Student Course Report for transfer work (formerly, a “TCE”, Transfer Credit Evaluation was used.)
3. APAS
4. Any Major and Minor Program Forms (and Program Amendment Forms)

Other reference materials you may need:

1. Class schedules
2. Bulletins (each college used to have its own version of the Undergraduate Catalog, called a bulletin), including an old one the student started under.
3. Transfer guides, including IT, Psych
4. Reevaluation lists (S:ShareGraduation AdvisingAdvising References)
5. For files for students entering CLA degree programs prior to fall 1992 (as freshmen) or fall 1994 (as transfers):

Transition requirements for Chambers (S:scallReferencesCHAMBERS semester course lists)

6. Route II classes—S:ScallReferencesRoute II list semesters/xls (only for students approved to follow pre-1986 language requirement)

You will follow these steps:

1. Mark transcript, TCE, Student Course Report
2. Verify LE requirements
3. Check for automatic second language credits that might apply
4. Note any missing HS preparation requirements
5. Check composition/writing and language requirements
6. Check-off completed classes on the major and minor program forms
7. Check for amendments and/or email hardcopies
8. READ THE FILE NOTES FIRST if questions arise
9. Calculate the credits
10. Prepare the balance sheet

Marking Transcripts for Balance Sheets

1. Review the transcript for repeated courses, including U of M courses that were repeats of transfer courses. If any are found, put brackets, [F], around the grade. These credits will not be included in the total for the term. This is called “internal bracketing.” To the right of the grade, write—“No cr, repeat.”

Degree audits will usually flag repeated courses, so they do not appear in credit totals on the audit; this is not the case with PeopleSoft transcripts, so it helps to review these documents carefully.

Compare the credit totals on the two documents. If they do not match, attempt to determine where the discrepancy is. If a student has transfer work, the TCE or TRAC report can be used in conjunction with the APAS student course report to find repeated courses.

2. Check for courses that can be or were bracketed. (The policy for bracketing courses has changed frequently. Quarter courses may not have been bracketed because CLA did not bracket grades during that time period. See the Manual for a complete history. Non-sequence quarter classes with D or F grades may be bracketed by semester courses that have exact equivalents. Check the Semester Transition Course Catalog.) The current policy is that the last grade counts, regardless of previous grade. Fill out and send in a Change of Record form to Colleen Brooks, OTR—St Paul, 130 Coffey. Draw a line through any bracket class.

3. Cross out Ws.

4. Draw a line through Fs and Ns.

5. Circle Incompletes, missing and K grades.

6. For TRANSITION students, put parentheses around D grades. These will not be counted initially in the quarter credit totals, in the event that the student has more than 12 quarter credits of D.

7. Circle S grades (not counted towards residency requirements).

8. Highlight all completed upper level classes.

9. Mark (to the right of the grade, or to the left of the course, whichever is easier for you to track) all non-CLA courses with “NC.”

10. Bracket the credits [ ] for any classes that should not receive credit. Write “NO CR” next to those credits.

11. Mark all upper division courses within the major and department with an “M.” (Some people mark “O/S” for outside the major credits next to the non-major classes.)

12. For Psychology majors, mark all upper division CAPY, EPSY (except for ASL), and all CPSY classes except for 3303, 5303, 3309, & 5301, (semester classes—CPSY 3301 & 4303) as “other.” These classes do not count outside of the major.

13. For Child Psychology majors (BA), only PSY 3801 (discontinued in semesters) counts toward the major. All other PSY, CAPY, and EPSY classes count as “other.”

14. Economics BA majors may count Stat 3021, 3011, and 3022 outside the major.

15. It may be helpful to indicate which classes taken during Fall ‘99 through Summer 2000 fulfill the Writing Intensive requirement as the “W”, (ENGL 3001W), was not used during that time.

16. See list of 2000-level Chem, CSCI, Geo, Math, and PHYS classes that we will count for upper level credit. If a student has taken any of the courses, highlight them and count the credits as upper level. You will also need to make an exception on APAS for the courses to be included as upper level.

For students who have had previous balance sheet appointments, copy all of the notations from previous transcripts onto the new transcript and carefully compare the two documents.

Note for old transcripts (anything prior to Spring 2000) during the semester transition: Some classes from the old transcripts disappeared on PeopleSoft transcripts. There were also problems with TRAC reports for students as OTR has changed the articulation for some classes, which resulted in an incorrect loss of credits for students.

Figuring the Credit Totals for the Balance Sheet
Credits need to be accounted for each term that the student was enrolled. For Transition Students, only classes with grades of A, B, C, or S should initially be included in the total. Repeated courses and/or excessive non-CLA credits must be excluded from the credit totals. Credits by Special Exam, i.e. retroactive language credits, (they’re not supposed to have grades, but.…) should also be included in the Total Credits. However, if the Special Exam Credits have not been posted to the transcript, put these credits in the Pending credits box and note on the balance sheet what these credits are. Also note:
Special Exam credits may be posted in a given semester, but the credits are not added to the semester totals. Be sure to count these when totaling credits. (Also be aware they are usually in the CUM(ulative) total at the end of the transcript. This may cause a confusing discrepancy between your math and the computer’s, until you find the cause.)

On the Transcript

1. Circle the credit total for the term (Term Totals-Earned) if all of the classes count for credit.
2. If there are repeated classes, other classes that do not count for credit, or special exam credits, cross out the printed total and write in the actual number of credits counted.

Students with Transfer Work

1. Figure out the number of credits transferred in from each institution and circle it on the U of M transcript or cross out the incorrect total and write in the correct one. (Make sure to check that the credits are all either quarter or semester totals as some old students will have both semester and quarter credits on their records.)
2. Remember to note if there are any upper level credits.

For Transition Students with D grades
Prior to Fall ‘99, only 12 quarter credits of D grades were allowed toward the credit requirements. As of Fall ‘99, all D credits may be counted, unless they are used for major requirements. Previously, some majors, most commonly psychology, allowed D quarter grades in the major as long as that D grade was balanced by any upper level major class of equivalent credits—a 5xxx D can be balanced by a 3/4/5xxx class.

1. If D grades are being used in the major and were taken in quarters, then students may only use the equivalent of 12 quarter credits of D, or 8 total semester credits.

2. If the student has D grades in major courses but does not need to use those courses for the major, then their GPA in the major and cumulative GPA, must be at least 2.0.

3. Students with balance sheets prior to this policy change may now be able to count all of their D credits. Again note: the student’s GPA in the major must be at least 2.0.

4. D grades are considered as a group; the sequence is not important. Take upper level D credits first.

Special Things to Watch For

• More than 18 non-CLA credits (formerly 28 quarter credits). Although APAS states that only 18 credits of non-CLA coursework may be used, we are not enforcing this requirement even though APAS has not been changed to allow more than 18 credits. If a student has more than 18 non-CLA credits, include all of the credits on the balance sheet. Information about these students are to be added in the following file: S:SCALLProjectsStudents—non-CLA Credits.xls

• Two exceptions will need to be entered for the APAS to count more than 18 non-CLA credits.

• PE courses are not included as non-CLA credits.

• Classes taken out of sequence—prior to Fall ‘99, out of sequence courses were not counted for credit. As of Fall ‘99, these courses now count for credit.

• U of M classes that are repeats of previously taken transfer classes and/or coordinate campus classes.

• Old transcripts, usually prior to Fall 1986, may have classes bracketed that we now count for credit.

• More than 12 quarter credits of D grades, more than 6 quarter credits of PE classes for students who started under quarters. However, with semesters, 6 semester credits combined of PE/study skills/applied music may be counted.

• GC courses inconsistently counted for CLA credit prior to the ‘90s. If courses have been internally bracketed, meaning by an adviser, assume that it is correct.

• Semester or quarter credits—some records will have a mixture of both. A Student Course Report for a student may show quarter credits for transfer work while the transcript will show semester credits for the transfer work.

• PeopleSoft transcript credit totals as of 4/7/00 are unreliable for students with Special Exam credits or CEE courses. This was corrected by Fall 2000.

• If working on a Student Course Report, make sure that you determine if those credits are semester or quarter credits.

Adding Up the Credits—use a calculator

1. For students without any transfer work, add up all of the numbers that were circled or written on the transcript. For students with transfer work, include those credits. For transition students and Chambers students, list the D credits separately.

2. Next, add up the major credits. These credits include all classes with the same departmental designator, regardless of whether or not the class is used in the major itself. Upper level classes listed on the major program as PREREQUISITES for major classes, but not in the major department, are considered OUTSIDE of the major.

3. Add up the outside the major credits for BA students or “other” upper level credits for students going for different CLA degrees. Please remember that “other” credits for PSY and CPSY students are included with the major credits.

Incompletes
What do you do when a student has incompletes on their record? The safest thing to do is to not include any of the credits in the credit totals. If you choose to include credits for incomplete classes, you must list the classes on the balance sheet. Failure to do so may lead to confusion and problems later.

Residency Credits
Minimally, 30 UMNTC credits are required.

75% of the residency credits must have grades of A-D. If a transfer student enters with 30 credits, then s/he will likely need 90 UMNTC credits to graduate. 68 credits must have A-D grade. (90 X 75% = 67.5= 68)

24 credits must be CLA credits completed after acceptance into the college. A minimum of 22 of these credits must have A-D grades.

Apocrypha: staff who have questions about credit outside of CLA should contact their community coordinator.

Preparing Major/Minor, Liberal Education and CLA requirements

Liberal Education and CLA requirements
The degree audit should reflect (in the vast majority of cases) the status of LE and CLA (second language) requirements through the current term. It is helpful to go through the audit and highlight the requirements in progress or unfulfilled.

Note: often the audit will mark as IP (in progress) requirements which are actually fulfilled, but which have a class that meets that requirement underway during the current semester. (Ex.: a student has 3 Historical Perspective requirement courses complete, but is taking a fourth course this semester. Although the Core LE is complete, the audit may flag it as “IP”.) In these cases, simply ignore the “IP” and mark it as OK.

Major and minor requirements

The student’s file should include major (and minor, if the student has chosen one) program form(s) from the department(s) in which she or he is pursuing work. If the student’s file does not contain these, this should be noted on the balance sheet and discussed during the appointment. If these forms list specific required courses (as, for example, Architecture, English, Journalism and Philosophy do), review the program form with the transcript information and check the classes off. It is helpful to mark next to the course which term the course was taken. Also, if a student’s GPA in major courses looks close to 2.0, it is helpful to make note of course grades as well. For many majors the program is much more flexible, and students must meet with an advisor in the major department to complete a “final program” or “final clearance” form before they graduate. Students return this form to their student community so CLASS staff can verify that they have completed satisfactory requirements for their major.

The file may also contain amendments to the major or minor program form. Be sure to watch for these, and note the changes on the original program form.

Entering Information on the Balance Sheet
There are three versions of balance sheets for each of the five degrees: BA, BFA, BIS, BM, and BS. The Chambers version is used for students under collegiate requirements and for those who entered CLA prior to 1986. The Transition versions are for transition students. The Semester only versions are for students who started Fall 1999 or later without any prior UMNTC work.

The most current versions of the Graduation Balance Sheets are found in: S:ShareGraduation AdvisingBalance Sheets

1. Open the balance sheets that you will need and do a “Save As” to either your C: or H: drive.

2. Put your name at the bottom of the balance sheet and do a “Save”.

3. Change the office name from CLA Upper Division Advising to your community’s name. Click on the cell and type away.

General Guidelines for Entering Text and Numbers

• Text that is in BLUE is something that should be changed.
• Text that is in RED is not to be changed, unless you understand why it’s being changed. RED text contains formulas that shouldn’t be tampered with, especially on the transition balance sheets.
• Excel treats each cell independently. Generally, just type the text in one cell. It does not wrap but flows into the next cell. Your notations should fit into the space provided. Further explanation should come during the appointment.

The terms must be updated on the balance sheet –the current term under semesters, or last semester term and current semester term, etc. “Credits completed through (insert term here.)

A = Name—if the name doesn’t fit, change the font size.
B = Major—if the name doesn’t fit, change the font size or abbreviate
C = Minor, if student has one—some minors have different tracks that must be noted at degree clearance time
D = Total completed credits
E = Major credits, credits in the department, including “other” credits for PSY, CPSY
F = Outside the major credits, or “Other” for BFA, BIS, BM, BS
G = Residency credits
H = Incompletes—classes must also be noted on balance sheet
I = credits for the current term—do not include more than one term in this total

In the boxes for Remaining Credits, there are formulas that should not be tampered with.

1. If the student is done with the credit requirements without the current registration, type in OK.
2. If the credit requirements will be done with the courses in progress, type in in progress.
3. If the credit totals show fractional credits, change the decimal to zero. Under Format/Cells/Number, change the decimal to zero.
4. For BA students with double majors, type in N/A in the upper level credits outside of the major.

However, for Transition students with 0.6 semester credits or fewer left for total, total 3-5xxx, and 3-5xxx non-major credits, type in OK or in progress as these students are allowed to complete those requirements with 0.9 quarter credits remaining.

Sr Year Rule = Leave this reminder in, unless the student has completed all requirements except credits, and then type in OK.

LE Requirements
It is better to explicitly state what requirement is needed than to say, “OK with Geo 1001”. Needs Physical Science with lab—OK with Geo 1001.

J = Liberal Education requirements—suitable entries include:

• Needs Physical Sci w/lab
• Needs Hist Persp—Hist 1301 in progress
• Needs Hist Persp & 2 Soc Sci
• OK
• Needs one course (for themes)

K = Current classes—suitable entries include:

• Hist 1302W—4 cr, Writing Intensive (the LEs will be noted under J)
• Phil 3001—4 cr, “I”

L = PE, Applied Music, Study Skills credits. Put in the number of credits used, including 0.

2nd Language
This should either be the fourth semester of a second language graded C-, S, or higher, or pass the LPE, except for some students under the old language requirement (students enrolled prior to 1986). If those students do not have any language done, put in Route I or Route II or remaining semester coursework and then explain during the appointment what the distinction is.

Major Requirements (M)
List all remaining requirements as organized on the major program form. At your discretion, you may want to include—“All courses must have grades of C- or better.”

For majors that require final clearances, put—“Final clearance from the major must be turned into this office prior to graduation.”

If the student’s file does not contain a major program form, put—“Need major program form”. If the student is nearing graduation, put—“File major program form with college advisor ASAP.”

Minor (N)—list remaining minor classes or “Final clearance from the minor must be ….”
If the file is missing any minor program forms, note this as well.

The Finished Balance Sheet
After the balance sheet has been completed, do a “SAVE AS” using the following format: Last First Middle ID#. The most current balance sheet is to be saved on the CLASS network to s:balance sheets and save in the appropriate folder by last name.

The balance sheet is only given out during an appointment. If a student is a no show, some communities prefer you do not keep a copy of the balance sheet in the student’s file. (Some communities prefer you keep a copy in the student file, but write “Not given to student” in large letters on the sheet.) If you write all over the balance sheet, make a copy for the student’s file. Otherwise, the student should have one copy and a second copy should be in the student’s file.

Explain all aspects of the balance sheet to the student. Do not assume that they know anything that is on it. Thorough notes should be kept about the balance sheet. Instead of, “Reviewed balance sheet,” the entry should read like the following:

Reviewed balance sheet. After the current registration, the student needs 19 credits, 5 upper level, 4 upper level outside of the major, one 3/4xxx Writing Intensive class, and final clearance from the major.

If classes are suggested, make note of that. If you plan out the student’s final year, make sure you take good notes on that as well. You will catch errors this way.

Odds and Other Things

Missing High School Preparation Requirements
For students who have Missing HS preps, type over cell with “Minor Requirements” and replace the text with Missing High School Preparation Requirements.

Other open spaces on the balance sheet may be used to include text like, “Geo 1001 is a repeat of Geo 101 from Montana State. No credit.”

The Balance Sheet Appointment
The goal of the senior balance sheet appointment is two-fold: to review the student’s academic progress in preparation for graduation, and to discuss the student’s plans for after graduation.

Details mean a lot
Because of the individualized and specialized nature of balance sheet appointments, it is important to pay attention to details. This appointment is meant to catch any problems with the student’s progress toward his or her degree and to correct any mistakes on the transcript or degree audit.

Reviewing the balance sheet
Go over all the information on the balance sheet with students and encourage them to ask questions as you go. If a student indicates that he or she may have completed a requirement (or have more credits, or whatever) other than you indicate, try to determine where the discrepancy is. Sometimes we miss a completed LE; occasionally credits earned have not yet appeared on a student’s record (this could be the case with transfer credits, foreign study credits, or second language credits). In the latter case, be sure that the student has done all that’s necessary to process the request for credit. If the student needs an updated major program form or a final clearance form from a department, be sure to note that both on the balance sheet and in your conversation. When you’ve finished, ask if the student has any questions.

Next, review the student’s plans for completing the degree: how many semesters remain, what are her/his tentative enrollment plans, etc. If the student is missing any major or minor program forms, this is the time to discuss how soon they need to turn them in to your office, where to get them, etc. It’s also a good idea to talk briefly about the senior project, and to encourage students to discuss this in more detail with their departmental adviser. In some majors, students register for a particular course number to complete the senior project; in others, they may do the project through a directed study registration, or they may not need to register for it at all if they don’t need the credits for the degree.

Point out the degree application deadlines, and give them a copy of the “graduation checklist.” A copy of this should be on the internal CLASS network share drive; ask your community coordinator for the file location.

What are you doing with the rest of your life?
Discuss any co-curricular activities the student may have completed or planned: internships, foreign study, paid employment, student organizations, volunteering, etc. Ask what the student sees as a next step: are they planning to enter the job market? Will they pursue an advanced degree? Make referrals as appropriate. The Career and Community Learning Center offers workshops and courses on many topics, internship possibilities, etc. Remind them that the services of this office are available to them for a full year after graduation. Students who are considering professional school should be alerted to the necessary procedures (admissions tests: GRE, LSAT, GMAT, MCAT; applications; letters of recommendation; timelines; etc.). Refer them to appropriate information sessions, departmental advisors, etc.

As a general rule, an initial senior balance sheet meeting should take 30-45 minutes; follow-up meetings may be shorter (or sometimes longer). When you are completing the appointment, ask again if the student has any questions. Always encourage students to contact you if questions arise later on, and suggest a follow-up appointment closer to graduation if they want to be sure that everything is on track.

File Maintenance
ORDER OF CONTENTS

Front: Recently filed materials

Application(s) for graduation

Current probation contracts

File the following inside the College Office Interview Record:

§ Major/minor program forms, Dept. Equivalency forms, final clearances, or amendments (beneath the major program form) stapled to inside left-hand side

§ Balance sheet—stapled on top of balance sheets or major/minor forms

§ Lack Notice(s)—stapled on top of balance sheets or major/minor forms

• ONE and ONLY ONE Transcript* used for an appointment

• One TCE, TRAC, or Student Course Report for NAS students

§ Record of Progress for old students

§ APAS*

*For those extremely rare cases where an APAS, old transcript, or whatever needs to be saved, write SAVE in red at the top.

Back: Email

SAP

Freshman Registration strategies sheet

Petitions

Special Exams

Reevaluation of credits transferred

Reevaluation of credits not transferred

Probation materials (suspend appeals, contract, marked copies of transcript, etc.)

Tell Us About Yourself (recycle after a major is declared)

RECYCLE: old transcripts after copying all markings onto the most recent one*

Old TCE’s

APAS

Get ready to register! Form

Change of probation status

Transfer of Office forms

Grade slips

Strong Campbell Inventories

Personal Inventories

Premajor Planning Sheets (after Balance Sheet is given)

(Old Premajor probation letters)

Balance sheets for no shows

2xxx-level courses that count as upper division for all CLA students
Chem 2301 3 cr.
Chem 2302 3 cr.
Chem 2311 4 cr.
Chem 2101 3 cr.
Chem 2111 2 cr.
Chem 2094 2 cr.
CSci 2011 4 cr.
CSci 2021 4 cr.
CSci 2031 4 cr.
Geo 2201 3 cr.
Geo 2301 3 cr.
Geo 2302 3 cr.
Geo 2303 3 cr.
Math 2243 4 cr.
Math 2263 4 cr.
Phys 2503 4 cr.
Phys 2601 4 cr.
Phys 2605 3 cr.

Any additional 2xxx-level courses in these departments that previously were 3xxx-level courses also count as upper division.