Summer Gateway Advising

The 1st Summer session of the Gateway to Success program is for students who have:

Completed high school graduation requirements before June 1, 2009;
An exemption from TSI requirements or have taken and passed all sections of the THEA or approved alternative.

In order for students to meet Fall 2009 admission requirements for Texas Tech University, the student must complete 6 hours of college-level coursework and achieve a GPA of 2.5 or higher.

SUMMER GATEWAY STUDENTS: Must be EXEMPT or have passed all THREE portions of the TSI assessment (THEA, Accuplacer or alternative test). If you are not in compliance by the beginning of the first summer term you are not eligible to take advantage of the Gateway Program during the 1st Summer Semester. More information on the TSI can be found here.

What classes should I take?

This is a question that every new student will ask so do not feel like you are the only one who does not know what they are doing! Being able to tell you exactly what YOU should take would require that you know EXACTLY what you will major in and EXACTLY what university you will attend. However, even without this information there are some very helpful criteria that can guide you through this first year and keep you in a safe transfer situation.

Where will I take my classes?

Students have the opportunity to attend classes at any of the South Plains College facilities. The Reese Center is located just a few minutes west of the Texas Tech University campus on Fourth Street. The Reese Center is home to the Gateway Program.

Do NOT take any courses that begin with a zero. A course number that begins with a 0 (zero) means that the course is "developmental" and will not meet transfer requirements.

Courses in science, college level math and foreign languages are not recommended summer session courses unless these are a strong subject area for you.

STEP ONE:

TSI STATUS: The first consideration when choosing your class schedule would be your TSI status. If you are not in TSI compliance you may not participate in the 1st Summer Session Gateway Program.

If you are EXEMPT or have passed all THREE parts of the TSI assessment you are cleared to choose any course. If you are in TSI Compliance DO NOT enroll in developmental coursework. A “developmental” course is designated by a course number of 0 (zero). For example, Math 0300 Beginning Algebra, the 0 indicates a below college level course. The second number in the course number, 3, indicates that this course is a 3 hour credit course. This means that this course is below college level coursework and will not meet transfer or graduation requirements, but it is considered in the number of hours for which you are enrolled for the semester.

South Plains College Testing Page

For more information about the TSI or the developmental course requirements contact:

Dr. Deborrah Caddell, (806) 885-3048 ext. 4631, dcaddell@southplainscollege.edu

Melissa Strickland, (806) 885-3048 ext. 4689, mstrickl@southplainscollege.edu

Barbara Webb, (806) 885-3048 ext. 4907, bwebb@southplainscollege.edu

THE NEXT STEP:

A FULL TIME STUDENT in one summer session must be enrolled in six hours of college-level coursework. Most courses are three hour credits each so you must enroll in two courses to be considered full time.

NEXT: If you have a career area or academic area of study that you are planning on pursuing, you may wish to go to the Transfer Pages to determine which courses in your area of study are offered at South Plains College. If you are unsure of your educational plan at this point, you will want to stay with the General Education Courses that are listed in the General Education Courses. Since you are just starting out in your college career, we would suggest that you stick to “the basics”. These are called General Education Course requirements. The General Education Course requirements give students a menu of classes that will be required in most majors at the university. We have tried to give you hints about those courses that might be needed for a specific major, but mainly these courses are general in nature. As you look at the list provided from either of these sites, you will want to balance your class load by choosing a course that is challenging for you, and one that would be easier.

FINALLY: Plan your schedule by piecing together the courses that you have chosen according to the times they are offered. Watch out for the printed Lab Times. If a course has a lab, you must plan on attending the entire published time frame. Select classes that are offered during YOUR best time of day. Students out of high school often make the mistake of taking early morning classes and fail to realize that they may be having more social activities in the evenings. To determine a student’s best time of day, we often ask, “If you did not have an alarm clock set, when would you routinely awaken?” This will give you some idea of YOUR best time of day.

Good luck and if you need further assistance, contact:

gateway@southplainscollege.edu

Please give us a phone number for a personal call-back.

Programs of Study

Summer Gateway Advising