Meet Your Assigned Advisor
All Terps in the Biological Sciences major are assigned to an Academic Advisor around mid-October or after Spring Break during their first (Fall or Spring) semester at the University.
Current BSCI Terps may forward all inquiries to their Assigned Advisor, who they can review on TerpEngage—the University’s central advising platform.
If you are a first-semester freshman or a current student who has yet to be assigned to an Academic Advisor, please email any questions or challenges to the Undergraduate Program’s Central Office at bscique@umd.edu until you are matched to an academic advisor.
Response time is up to 2-3 business days, please be mindful that this does not include weekends.
TerpEngage is where students can:
Review notes from their Assigned Advisor.
Submit a request to ADD or SWITCH their Major
Schedule meetings with their Assigned Advisor (varies) CLICK HERE for directions.
If TerpEngage shows your Advisor as Not Available this means that they either…
Have yet to set up their availability on TerpEngage
OR
They may book meetings using another platform. Please review the Advisor Directory below or email your assigned advisor to confirm their preferred method for appointment scheduling.
BSCI Advisor directory
Please read carefully to find the person/services you are looking for.
admissions counseling, prospective students
—for first-time applicants to the University and the Biological Sciences, Limited Enrollment Program (LEP)
biological sciences Undergraduate Program, central office
—Academic Advising for first-years, sophomores, and Terps completing the major’s Basic Program; 1200B Biology-Psychology Building
Please schedule appointments via TerpEngage. For all other questions or challenges, please email your Assigned Advisor.
Mr. Earl Johnson, Academic Advisor - ejohns25@umd.edu
Mr. Shiloh Ortiz, Academic Advisor - shiloh@umd.edu
Ms. Elaine Shaw-Taylor, Program Manager - estaylor@umd.edu or call 301-405-6892
Dr. Sara Lombardi, Director - saral@umd.edu
Ms. Jennie Gouker, Assistant Director - jgouker@umd.edu
Dr. Danielle Adams, Assistant Director - dadams37@umd.edu
Terp may also seek assistance by sending an email to bscique@umd.edu.
Department of Biology
—Academic Advising by faculty for the ECEV and PHNB specializations; 1204 Biology-Psychology Building
Dr. Kimberly Paczolt, Director of Undergraduate Programs & Coordinating Advisor - kpaczolt@umd.edu
Students may also seek assistance from the Biology Department at bioundergrad@umd.edu
Neuroscience Major: Dr. Hilary Bierman - hilaryb@umd.edu
Advisors will notify students about how to schedule advising meetings via email. For all other questions or challenges, please email your Assigned Advisor.
Dr. Nick Fletcher - nkfletch@umd.edu
Dr. Caitlin Fox - cmfox@umd.edu
Dr. Maira Goytia - mgoytia@umd.edu
Ms. Jennie Gouker - jgouker@umd.edu
Dr. Sarah Lee - scrislee@umd.edu
Dr. Chan Lin - linc@umd.edu
Dr. Sara Lombardi - saral@umd.edu
Dr. Justicia Opoku - jopoku@umd.edu
Department of Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics
—Academic Advising by faculty for the CEBG, MICB, and GENB specializations (last names N-Z); 1109 Microbiology Building
Dr. David Straney, Associate Chair of Undergraduate Programs & Coordinating Advisor - straney@umd.edu or call 301-405-1622
Megan Leung, Undergraduate Office Coordinator - mleung3@umd.edu or call 301-405-2766
Advisors will notify students about how to schedule advising meetings via email. For all other questions or challenges, please email your Assigned Advisor.
Dr. John Buchner, jbuchner@umd.edu
Dr. Kenneth Frauwirth, kfrauwir@umd.edu
Dr. Michael Keller, kellermi@umd.edu
Dr. Edgar Moctezuma, emoctezu@umd.edu
Dr. Swarna Mohan, smohan12@umd.edu
Dr. David Straney, straney@umd.edu
Dr. Erin Tran, eehtran@umd.edu
Terps may also visit the CBMG website for additional details regarding advising
Department of Entomology
—Academic Advising by faculty for the GENB specialization (last names A-M); 4112 Plant Sciences
Dr. David Hawthorne, Undergraduate Director & Coordinating Advisor - djh@umd.edu
Entomology Main Office: Ms. Amy Yaich - ayaich@umd.edu
Entomology Honors Program: Dr. Karin Twardosz Burghardt - kburghar@umd.edu
Paleobiology Minor: Dr. David Hawthorne - djh@umd.edu
Terps can schedule advising meetings using their Assigned Advisor’s preferred booking method on the ENTM Website. For all other questions or challenges, please email your Assigned Advisor.
Dr. David Hawthorne - djh@umd.edu
Dr. Magdalena Ngeve - mngeve@umd.edu
Dr. Leo Shapiro - lshapiro@umd.edu
Dr. Marcia Shofner - mshofner@umd.edu
BioFIRE Living-Learning Community
—Academic Advising for Terps enrolled in the BioFIRE program; 2328 Symons Hall
Ms. Jennifer Carrion, Academic Advisor - jcarrion@umd.edu
Please schedule appointments via TerpEngage. For all other questions or challenges, please email your Assigned Advisor.