Contact Information for Majors in Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering (MBBE)

Frequently Asked Questions, Biological Engineering

How can I get UH credit for Advanced Placement exams and courses taken at other institutions?

Transfer credits are evaluated and awarded by the Admissions and Records Office:

http://www.hawaii.edu/admrec/

(808) 956-8975 (phone); (808) 956-4148 (fax)

Courses at many institutions in the US, the Pacific, Europe have been evaluated for equivalency to UH courses. A list of these courses can be found at:

http://www.hawaii.edu/admrec/transfer

A list of equivalencies for AP courses can be found at:

http://www.hawaii.edu/admrec/apexam.html

How and when do I register for courses?

Course registration at UHM occurs on-line:

http://www.hawaii.edu/myuh/manoa/

Simply login with your UH login name (same as your e-mail without @hawaii.edu) and password, and follow the prompts.

Registration periods are open based on the number of credits you have completed at UHM- you can see the schedule at:

http://myuhinfo.hawaii.edu/object/uhmtimetable.html

There is a hold on my registration so I could not register.

Registration holds are placed for a number of reasons- probably the most common are failure to pay all fees and failure to meet for academic advising each semester. The BE academic advisor (contact information at the bottom of the page) can identify the source of the hold for you.

Why do I need a placement test to get into some courses? How can I get more information about the time and location of these tests?

Some courses require placement tests to make sure that you are sufficiently prepared for the material. These are mainly language and composition courses, as well as math and chemistry courses. You can find out more about the time and location of these exams at the following site:

http://www.hawaii.edu/myUH/manoa/fall2008/reg_procedures/placement_exams.htm

The Biological Engineering major requires several math and chemistry courses as well as an English composition course, so you will likely need to take a placement exam in one or all of these departments. More specific information about placement exams can be obtained directly from the relevant department (see department contacts below).

I tried to register for a course, but was told I need department approval. How can I get this?

Department approval is necessary for several classes required for Biological Engineering. For required courses in the department of Mechanical Engineering, the Biological Engineering advisor can obtain approval for you, or you can contact the instructor directly (you can find out the instructor’s name from the myuh registration page for the course). For biology courses, department approval can be obtained directly from the biology office (see department contacts below).

Department Contacts (for Placement Exams and Enrollment in Department Restricted Courses)

Math- (Pat Goldstein) Keller 401A

(808) 956-4680 (phone); (808) 956-9139 (fax)

http://www.math.hawaii.edu

E-mail: patg@math.hawaii.edu

Chemistry- (Connie Carnate) Bilger 239

(808) 956-7480 (phone); (808) 956-5908 (fax)

http://www.chem.hawaii.edu

E-mail: office@gold.chem.hawaii.edu

Biology- (Colleen Uyematsu) Dean 2

(808) 956-8303 (phone); (808) 956-4745 (fax)

http://www.hawaii.edu/biology

E-mail: biology@hawaii.edu

English (Writing Program)- Bilger 104

(808) 956-6660 (phone); (808) 956-9170 (fax)

http://www.mwp.hawaii.edu/

E-mail: mwp@hawaii.edu

Mechanical Engineering- Holmes 302

(808) 956-7167 (phone); (808) 956-2373 (fax)

http://www.me.hawaii.edu/undergraduateprogram.htm

E-mail: meoffice@eng.hawaii.edu

How do I apply for financial aid?

Federal financial aid is awarded through the University’s financial aid office, which should also be able to help you find other sources of scholarships:

Financial Aid Office- Queen Lili‘uokalani Center 112

(808) 956-7251 (phone); (808) 956-3985 (fax)

http://www.hawaii.edu/fas/

http://www.hawaii.edu/fas/information/scholarships.htm

E-mail: finaid@hawaii.edu

In addition, Biological Engineering students are eligible for competitive scholarships through the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. To apply for these scholarships, contact:

Allene Chun, Student Affairs Officer

Gilmore 210

(808) 956-6733 (phone); (808) 956-8183 (fax)

E-mail: chuna@ctahr.hawaii.edu

I am a transfer student- am I exempt from the University of Hawaii General Education Core requirements?

If you have an Associate in Arts (AA) degree from a UH community college, you have already completed the General Education Core for the University of Hawaii at Manoa. This includes courses in written communication, global and multicultural perspectives, symbolic reasoning, and diversification requirements, but does not necessarily include focus requirements.

For other students, in addition to the possibility of being granted transfer credit for general education core requirements, the number of required focus courses at UH is lowered based on the number of transfer credits that are awarded. For tables showing the focus requirements for transfer students, see the University catalog on page 75.

To familiarize yourself with all academic policies, requirements, and curricula, it is highly recommended that you obtain a copy of the University Catalog, which is available in the Campus Bookstore for $5. You may also find the catalog on-line:

http://www.catalog.hawaii.edu/

How can I check my progress towards graduation?

Each semester you will meet with your academic advisor to review your progress and chart out a personalized plan to complete your graduation. The University maintains an auditing database which you can also check independently to view which of the requirements you have completed, and which you still need to finish. Simply log on with your UH username and password to the following URL:

https://www.star.hawaii.edu:10012/studentinterface/login.jsp

Where can I get more information about the Biological Engineering program?

The Biological Engineering undergraduate advisor can answer questions about the academic program and can also direct BE students to resources to deal with other problems at the University: