Meet your advisor every semester
Every BME student must meet with their faculty advisor before their registration appointment each semester. This meeting is what removes your registration hold.
Why you have a faculty advisor
Advising is a required part of the BME program, not an optional service. Your advisor makes sure you have the prerequisites for the courses ahead of you, helps you choose technical electives that fit the work you want to do, and is the person who can point you toward research, internships and graduate or professional school. It is also how the department notices early when a student is struggling, while there is still time to help.
Who your advisor is
The undergraduate program director assigns each student a faculty advisor, matched where possible to the student’s interests. New students meet with the undergraduate program director during their first semester and receive their advisor’s name and office location by email.
If you do not know who your advisor is, contact the undergraduate program coordinator at bme_ug_program@stonybrook.edu.
Before your advising meeting
Come prepared. Bring:
- The courses you plan to take next semester, and the ones you expect to take after that
- Your progress toward the degree requirements, including which requirements remain
- Your focus area, or the kind of work you think you want to do after graduation
- Any questions about research, internships, the honors program or the accelerated BE/MS degree
Fifteen prepared minutes with your advisor is worth more than an hour of guessing at a schedule on your own.
Registration holds and permissions
Your registration hold is removed after you meet with your faculty advisor. Meet early — advisors see many students in the days before registration opens, and a hold removed late can cost you a seat in a course you need.
Some courses require permission before you can register. See Courses.
Planning your electives
Technical electives are chosen with your advisor and are the part of the degree you shape yourself. The four focus areas are there to guide that choice.
To count a course from another department as a technical elective, get approval before you register — see Courses.
Alternate course sequences
Students in WISE, the Honors College, and those preparing for medical or dental school follow modified sequences that accommodate additional requirements. Discuss this with your advisor early — ideally in your first year, since some adjustments are difficult to make later.
Advising for bioengineering minor students
If you are a BIO or BCH major minoring in bioengineering, your major advisor handles your major courses, and the BME undergraduate program director or coordinator handles the minor. Contact both.
Get in touch
Email: bme_ug_program@stonybrook.edu
Department phone: (631) 632-8371