Quick Resources
CS Plan to graduation: spreadsheet ( info )
Central Advising: NMSU CAASS
Registration opening dates: Registration schedule
Course listings: NMSU courses
CS help: Three year CS course rotation schedule
Catalog: Current NMSU CS degrees
Advisors: CS Advising Guide (mainly for advisors, but students can read, too)
Advising, mentoring, and account holds, oh my!
NMSU now has centralized advising, CAASS , for all “newish” NMSU students. This is a great resource and you should use CAASS to help you plan your education. You can visit them even if you are not required to!
Once you move beyond having required CAASS advising, as a CS student you will be required to have departmental mentoring, where you meet with a CS faculty member and discuss your educational progress, plan, and next steps.
Account holds are the mechanism that NMSU uses to require you to do certain things before registering for the next semester.
What holds require what actions?
When you log into MyNMSU and view your holds, you might have registrar, financial aid, or payment holds. You need to visit those offices to figure out how to remove them. If you have a CAASS “AV” hold then you need to visit CAASS and get advised by them before you can register. If you have a “DM” (Departmental Mentoring) hold, then you need to meet with your CS departmental mentor and get mentored before you can register. Inside the department, we can only help you with departmental mentoring holds, we have no authority to help with any other holds, including CAASS holds.
Who is my CS departmental mentor?
Each semester you will receive an email indicating your departmental mentor. We will try hard to keep the same mentors for students throughout their time at NMSU.
You may contact your mentor any time during the semester to ask for help and advice, but please note that the designated Advising Period is typically April 1–30 for Fall Registration and November 1–30 (excluding Thanksgiving break) for Spring Registration.
Your mentor will be available to meet during this period and will make every effort to meet students before their registration appointment time. Your mentor will contact you with available meeting times before registration opens.
How do I complete my departmental mentoring?
You must arrange a meeting with your mentor, and then meet with them. Prior to meeting with them you must: 1) create and bring your CS Plan to Graduation ( info ); 1) run an updated StarAudit and bring it with you; and 3) look at the next semester’s schedule and have a preliminary plan about what you want to take (and put in on your plan).
When can I register for my classes?
Registration dates are set by the Registrar’s Office: https://registrar.nmsu.edu/registration-schedule-by-classification/ . You should check this to see when you can register, and then make sure that you complete your advising or mentoring before then, so that you will have no holds and be able to proceed with registration.
What are the B.S. degree concentrations and how do I choose one?
The B.S. degree recently added seven areas of concentration. All of these are optional, but will show up on your transcript and diploma if you choose one and satisfy its requirements (specific CS elective course choices). Their requirements are hard to read in the catalog, but if you choose one of the concentrations in the catalog and scroll down to the bottom of the page, there is a table portion with a sentence above it currently reading “Students who plan to seek employment at the bachelor level are advised to use their elective credits to complete the concentration coursework below” — it is the requirements below this that determine the concentration’s requirements.
What if I am a double major?
Depending on how your student record is set up, you may get mentoring holds in either or both departments. If you are a double major, you will need to check your holds and meet with the appropriate mentors to remove them.
I’m graduating, do I need advised?
If you have a DM hold, yes. All holds on your account must be removed before you can receive your degree. Use the time to tell us where you are going and to reflect on your time here!
How do I apply for graduation?
You can apply through the NSMU Registrars office ; You should also work with the Arts&Sciences college records office to ensure that you are ready to graduate.
When should I take my CS 400-level electives?
Many CS 400-level electives only have 200-level prerequisites, but you should wait to take your 400-level electives until after you have taken your required CS 300-level courses. You will do better in the 400-level electives if you wait; the only reason they have 200-level prerequisites is to make it easier to manage students who are doing CS minors.
