Academic Services

Mission Statement and Objectives

Academic Advising is a student-driven, collaborative partnership. It is a teaching and learning process that focuses on multiple aspects of your growth and development. Your advisor guides, supports, and empowers you to independently learn, self-advocate, and consistently pursue your unique academic, career, and personal goals. The advising relationship fosters an environment in which the dignity and characteristics of each individual are recognized and respected.

Through connection with an academic advisor, you will be better able to:

• Identify clear academic, life, and career goals
• Understand the nature and purpose of your higher education
• Effectively gain information about educational options, requirements, policies and procedures
• Access appropriate university resources
• Select a program of study consistent with your interests and abilities
• Schedule appropriate courses

The Access and Success (Act 101) Program, partially funded by the Pennsylvania ACT 101 Program state grant, assists students whose educational and economic backgrounds impair their initial ability to pursue higher education successfully. The faculty and staff of the ACT 101 Program provide ongoing professional and peer counseling, study skills instruction, and tutorial services.

If you are part of the ACT 101 Program, you meet ACT 101 Program guidelines established by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA), which include residency requirements, income guidelines, and academic criteria. The academic guidelines are met through high school rank, high school grade point average, and an average score on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or its equivalent.

Tutoring is provided at no charge and is available in most basic subject areas. In your first two years of study, if you anticipate or encounter difficulty with course work, you are encouraged to arrange tutorial assistance during the early part of each semester. Act 101 Program students may be required to use tutorial services to remain in the program.

Counseling services provided by the Act 101 Program render professional support to you, particularly in your first two years at the University. These services help you deal with academic and personal concerns, such as time management, stress management, and conflict resolution. Peer counselors provided to first-year students will help facilitate your adjustment to college life and the university environment.

We put the YOU in Professional U. The team in Alumni and Professional Engagement is ready to assist you every step of the way as you earn your degree and launch into life after graduation! We provide personalized support and coaching as well as employer and alumni connections so you can build toward a meaningful career consistent with your interests, abilities, aspirations, and values.

Career and professional development are a lifelong process. We encourage you to develop your own career journey, connect with your career coach, and engage with career and professional development resources starting your first semester on campus.

Not sure where to start? Meet with your coach to take the FOCUS2, a web-based career planning and guidance experience.

To help every student achieve their goals, group and individual instruction are offered on career topics such as self-assessment, career exploration, leadership and career readiness skills, interviewing, graduate school preparation, internship and job search strategies, and resume writing. Job and internship opportunities are posted electronically through Handshake, an online career management system available to every student free of charge.

A career library of websites, printed, and software-based information covering career options, professional associations, employment trends and salaries, internships, job listings, and graduate/professional schools is available on our web pages 24/7.

The Offices of Disability Services provide accommodations and accessibility resources to members of the university community. We are committed to serving a diverse student body, and want all students to achieve academic success through equitable access to University programs, services, activities, and facilities. Accommodations are determined on a case-by-case basis through an interactive process with disability professionals. Additional resources are available for all students within our campus-wide support system. 

The Frederick Douglass Institute for Academic Excellence, under the inspiration of Frederick Douglass and other distinguished leaders of all racial and ethnic backgrounds, promotes academic excellence among students and enhances their understanding and appreciation of human diversity.

The institute is part of the PA State System of Higher Education collaborative established to enhance the academic life of participating universities and to enrich their campus climate. It enables all members of the university community to identify with a man whose life and work embodied American democratic ideals and educational excellence.

The Commonwealth University Libraries are well-respected and uniquely integrated academic libraries with a common goal of providing for your information needs in your individual academic and professional studies. 

Our high-quality services and guidance support our academic programs by focusing on you, the student, and your individual needs. Each library has a unique history and energy, but all have talented librarians and staff to help you find, evaluate, and effectively use all kinds of information sources: print and electronic books, journals, newspapers, databases, websites, and more. Your ID card and your name are all you need to access the library’s electronic resources – day or night, on or off campus. Each has comfortable spaces that are available for studying alone or in groups.

Hours of operation are available at commonwealthu.libcal.com/hours.

Materials, resources, and all other information are available on the Library Office page.

The Office of Testing Programs and Services supports the University’s educational mission by providing national, graduate, professional certification, distance education examinations, state civil service exams, and University assessments to students and other examinees in a professional, secure, and accessible environment. University test centers adhere to the National College Testing Association (NCTA)’s Professional Standards and Guidelines, as well as the American Association of University Administrators (AAUA) Ethical Principles for College and University Administrators. Bloomsburg’s Test Center was nationally certified by the NCTA in 2016 and earned re-certification in 2021 for five more years.

University Assessments administered at the test centers include:

• ALEKS Math Placement
• Kaplan and ATI Nursing assessments

Additional exams available at the test centers:

• English Proficiency (TOEFL)
• Graduate School Entrance Exams (GRE General Test, GMAT)
• Nursing School Entrance Exam (ATI TEAS)
• PA and NY State Police Exams
• PA State Civil Service Exams
• Prior Learning Assessment for College Credit (CLEP, DSST)
• Proctoring Exams from Other Colleges (Test Proctoring Services)
• Workforce Development Exams
• Professional Certification and Licensure
  (PRAXIS, PAPA/PECT, APICS, PA Notary, CASLI Interpreting, CompTIA, NCE, EMT and Paramedic, IT Certifications - Microsoft/Cisco/CompTIA/GIAC, Pharmacy Technician, etc.)

Each campus operates a Professional Testing Center onsite, and for additional information and online registration, visit the test centers’ websites.

The U.S. Department of Education provides grant funding for the TRIO Student Support Services (TRIO SSS) program to provide eligible students with additional resources for success in higher education from enrollment through graduation. Participants are EITHER first-generation college students, income-eligible, OR students with disabilities AND demonstrate an academic need for services.

SSS provides opportunities for academic development, assists students with basic college requirements, and motivates students to successfully complete their postsecondary education. The goal of SSS is to increase the college retention and graduation rates of its participants. Services include academic support (e.g., tutoring, advising, success workshops), career exploration, personal development resources, financial aid counseling, financial literacy programs, scholarship opportunities, graduate school readiness, social and cultural events, and may offer a first-year summer bridge program.

Student assistance is provided by TRIO SSS staff, faculty, Peer Mentors, Tutors, educational technologies, and learning communities.

University Learning and Writing Centers

The University Learning and Writing Centers at Commonwealth University offer peer tutoring (content and writing support), supplemental instruction, and academic coaching for undergraduate students.

The Writing and Literacy Engagement Studio (WALES) Support for Writing and Reading

The Writing and Literacy Engagement Studio (WALES) supports your growth as a writer and reader. We enjoy easing the writing process for all students from any background working in any major. We also enjoy helping you develop strategies for reading and making sense of research and course material. You set the agenda for each appointment – whether you’re concerned about reading material; getting started on a writing project; improving clarity, grammar, organization, or citations; or about any other aspect of reading, writing, or the English language.

Our diverse group of undergraduate WALES Consultants represent a variety of majors and share the common goal of working with you to develop skills and strategies. Email wales@commonwealthu.edu to request an appointment. Additional information is available at their website.

The Office of Workforce Development is laser-focused on career and workforce education. We want to make sure you have options that help you take the next step in achieving your goals. Our education solutions — in the classroom and online — are ready to serve all learners for today and in the future.

Whether you are looking to expand your skill set, earn professional credits, or leverage past experiences into college credit, we welcome you. Our courses and certificates are configured to pair perfectly with your busy schedule. If you need to learn and work, these options will fit nicely into education and career pathways, and stackable credentials to degrees. Earn ACE Credit®, HRCI Credits, IACET CEUs, PMI PDUs, SHRM PDCs.