The advising system is designed with the student in mind; therefore, every attempt is made to give the student the best information and recommendations to ensure success at the University. In each department or school, students are matched with a faculty advisor or "key advisor" to help them choose courses, answer questions about the University, and understand the many programs offered.
Each of the main undergraduate academic divisions has a special advisor, known as the key advisor, whose responsibility is to monitor student progress, help with registration issues, conduct degree audits for graduation, and assist the faculty advisors. A student's faculty advisor and key advisor are among the most important sources for advice when it comes to academic issues.
Full-time freshmen at the University participate in a course designed to help them learn about the University and its majors. Many departments offer freshman seminar courses as a part of their major requirements. For students whose majors do not include a specific orientation, the New Student Experience provides an overall introduction to the University. In this class, students, faculty, and administrators meet each week and engage in discussion and developmental activities. The aim of this program is for new students to become more acquainted with University support services, to consider issues and concerns of importance to students, and to foster relationships from student to student and from student to faculty and administrators. All this is done in small groups of 15 or 20 students.
The goals of the advising program include fostering student success and relationships as well as a sense of responsibility and community.
The Office of Career Services offers students a range of career planning and job search assistance, including individual assessments and counseling on career and academic program options. Assistance is further provided through online interactive software, a career and employment library, presentations and workshops on various career topics, office-produced newsletters and guidance materials, and a well-maintained Web site. Career Services manages the campus student employment and employee development program in addition to coordinating regular visits by firms in search of students for part-time, temporary, and summer jobs.
In addition, students desiring off-campus paid work experience related to their career goals or academic major may take advantage of the many internship opportunities administered through the office. Numerous Central Indiana-area businesses, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations serve as sites for University of Indianapolis interns, allowing them to test career interests, improve basic and/or technical workplace skills, and acquire the experience needed to compete for professional and management-directed employment. Career Services also helps students hone job interviewing skills through videotaped mock interviews and support of a course on career and employment strategies.
The office sponsors or cosponsors several job fairs each year and coordinates a mid-winter campus recruitment program affording one-on-one or small-group interviewing and networking sessions with employer-representatives. It continuously lists employment opportunities and registers students and alumni for résumé referral to organizations seeking qualified candidates for career positions and internships. Career Services is also a place to go for information and guidance on graduate and professional school. The office maintains membership in and contributes significantly to the goals of several important state, regional, and national career development and human resource-related professional associations.
Campus Life offers the members of the campus community an opportunity to become involved outside of the classroom setting. Leadership development programs are the primary focus of the office, including advising and oversight of all campus organizations. The office assists in the planning of annual programs such as Welcome Week and Homecoming and continually strives to offer students new and exciting ways to become involved in campus life. Student government, campus programming, honor societies, social clubs, and all other campus organizations receive funding and support from the office. More than 40 campus organizations exist at the University, and each one is distinct in its purpose and goals. Each student may find an organization that meets his or her own specific educational and experiential needs.
Students looking for opportunities to develop their leadership skills further may attend one of the many leadership workshops offered throughout the year by Campus Life. In addition, the office continually updates its leadership resource center, helps student leaders and advisors run organized meetings, and takes student groups through the process of creating new campus organizations.
Both the Indianapolis Student Government and Campus Program Board operate directly along with the Campus Life office. With assistance from the Student Activities coordinator, these two groups provide guidance to other campus organizations with respect to program coordination, campus governance, student needs and interests, program evaluation, and leadership development. Anyone may become involved with any campus organization, and each student is encouraged to approach individual organization leaders, attend meetings, or contact the Student Activities coordinator.
Personal counseling is available to students through a number of campus sources. Counselors welcome the opportunity to assist students concerned with their personal growth and development in such areas as academic achievement, interpersonal communications and relationships, occupational choice and career planning, dating and marriage relationships, and religious and philosophical issues.
The Student Affairs staff, the University chaplains, and the Counseling Center staff provide counseling services to students with personal growth and development concerns. In addition, residence hall directors and student resident assistants aid and support campus residents. Students are encouraged to share their concerns, in confidence, with any of these persons or to request information from the Office for Student Affairs regarding the services available to University students. (See Student Health Services section.)
The Office of Residence Life offers assistance to students in the area of on-campus housing and residential life programs. The office is located in Schwitzer Student Center, suite 209. Normal office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
The Student Health Services suite houses the University Counseling Center and the Student Health Center. It is located on the second floor of the Schwitzer Student Center, suite 210.
The Counseling Center, located in Schwitzer Student Center, provides counseling services to currently enrolled full-time students. Part-time students may be seen for assessment and referral on a one-time basis. The Counseling Center is a place where a student may work on enhancing personal development as well as addressing issues that may be causing emotional difficulty. The Counseling Center offers individual and group counseling, workshops, consultation, and referral to local agencies. Issues that may be addressed include adjusting to change, relationship concerns, anxiety and depression, sexual abuse, rape trauma, and communication skills. The Counseling Center also conducts academic support presentations, such as reducing test anxiety, instruction in study skills, and time/stress management. All services are confidential and free of charge. Office hours are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 4:30 p.m. The Counseling Center phone number is (317) 788-3437.
The Student Health Center provides limited medical services to full-time students and to those in health career majors. The Student Health Record must be complete and on file by the start of school by all students taking 12 or more hours, by anyone living in the residence halls or University apartments, and by all students in a health career clinical field. This record gives the nurse practitioners permission to assess the student for illnesses, injuries, emergencies, and medical consultations. Please note that if the Student Health Record is not turned in or completed by the end of September, a hold will be placed on the student's registration for the following semester/session.
Two nurse practitioners are on duty Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. on a walk-in basis. The nurse practitioners can be reached after hours and weekends for emergencies through the residence hall directors or the resident assistants. The nurse practitioners will see all students but may need to refer a few students to our physician (who will see a few students one morning a week). If students must be referred to a physician's or specialist's office, or to laboratory or radiology services, the student will need to arrange transportation and take his or her health insurance information. Students are encouraged to call home to make sure of insurance coverage and to have a choice of seeing their own physician before testing is arranged through the Student Health Center. In case of serious illness or accident, students may be referred for treatment to the closest emergency room or a promptcare facility; again, the student will need to take insurance information. Students should follow up with the Student Health Center after these visits. Any extraordinary treatments, medicines, or therapies that a resident student (including athletes) may need must be approved through the Student Health Center.
The Student Health Center is a fee-for-service office. This means that nominal fees are charged for routine immunizations, medications, testing, and treatments. Payment is expected at the time of service, so students need to come in prepared to pay. The Student Health Center does not file insurance forms but gives a receipt that can be used for this purpose. Most charges are listed in the waiting room.
Allergy shots will be given in the student health center as long as the student has sent or brought in their allergy serum vial (and instructions from their allergist) to be kept in the center. There will be a charge for each injection.
Sick or injured students are encouraged to visit the Student Health Center right away for assistance. Although the Health Center does not provide absence notes, representatives from the center will contact professors when an extended period of classes will be missed (one week or more). Students are expected to be in contact with their professors about absences and medical appointments and may need to show office receipts to verify absences. If a student implies a visit was made to the Student Health Center, professors may call and verify if the student has been seen and the date; no other information can be given without the student's permission. All visits and records in the Student Health Center are protected by professional standards of confidentiality, including HIPPA regulations.
Student health insurance is available for purchase at a nominal cost for persons not covered by their own or their family's insurance policies. Information regarding the student health insurance program is available online at http://www.studentresources.com.
The record for personal safety on the campus of the University of Indianapolis is excellent and has been for many years. However, no University campus offers a risk-free environment, and nothing that an institution may do can make it so. Therefore, each person on the campus of the University of Indianapolis must assume primary responsibility for personal safety. The University is committed to assisting in this regard through the development of safety programs and procedures that support an environment of well-being for the working, living, and learning activities of its students, employees, and guests.
The University of Indianapolis Police Department provides assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for faculty, staff, students, and visitors. Further information regarding the University Police Department and a summary of reported crimes is displayed at http://police.uindy.edu/index.php. The crime statistics and safety and reporting procedures also are available in the booklet Campus Safety. Requests for copies of the booklet or questions or suggestions about safety programs may be directed to the office of the University of Indianapolis Police Department at (317) 788-3386, or (317) 788-3333 after 4:30 p.m. and on weekends.
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