Student Support Services specific to Philosophy center on a faculty dedicated to student learning. Faculty members are readily available to listen to student concerns and to offer counsel and direct help when warranted. This includes matters of understanding the subject area, technology in the classroom, and general academic and transfer advising. When more specialized help is called for, referrals are made.

It is recommended that all students take advantage of the knowledge and expertise that regular faculty members have to offer in the way of suggestions and counsel concerning long-term educational plans, including the choice of college majors, transfer opportunities, and course load parameters.

Tutoring

Limited face-to-face tutoring is available from the course instructor during office hours, or by appointment.   In addition, all Philosophy students are encouraged to use HCC’s online tutoring system for help with any philosophy class. Questions submitted to the ASK queue will be answered within 24 hours – and usually much before that. Tutors are on duty 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Online tutors will not do homework for you, but they will guide you in the right direction. To maximize the effectiveness of the system, be specific when you ask questions, and let the tutor know what class you are taking.  You will receive two responses – one from an English tutor and one from a philosophy tutor.

Registering for online tutoring is easy. Go to HCC Askonline. Select a user name and password that you will remember. Use any e-mail address, and add your student ID number (W number). It will probably take five minutes to set up your askonline account. After that, you can submit questions in seconds. Tutor responses are not e-mailed to you. To see the answers, log back in to the system and click the bright yellow NEW button.

Online tutoring is also available for accounting, history, government, chemistry, physics, biology, math, English, and papers in all disciplines.

Blackboard

Philosophy courses with a Blackboard component (Distance Learning, Hybrid, or Web-enhanced) all involve computer training and assistance.  This includes familiarizing students with Blackboard at the start of each course, and offering one-on-one help in a lab situation for those who require it.  Distance Learning students are required to complete an online orientation prior to entering an online course.  In addition, technical help is offered whenever a problem arises, whether it be a problem with software performance or student error. Additional help is regularly provided by way of referral and an online tutorial.

Students in Philosophy courses are encouraged to take advantage of the availability of open lab time, particularly those who do not have high-speed online access, and/or printing capabilities at home.

Library

Library resources in Philosophy are limited only by a student's willingness to take advantage of the broad resources that can be accessed online, through interlibrary loan, and reciprocal borrowing privileges at select area libraries, including the University of Houston collection which supports graduate studies.

Financial Aid

HCCS philosophy students are encouraged to explore all avenues of financial aid, including targeted population scholarship programs, grants, work-study, and other sources of funds that do not result in a burdensome debt at the time of graduation.

While scholarships specific to Philosophy are few, students who show great academic promise are encouraged to explore all scholarship categories in search of those opportunities which promise a realistic chance for such an award. Philosophy instructors regularly write letters of recommendation for student scholarship applications.

Useful Links

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Online Course Search for Guests
HCC Libraries
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Online Tutoring
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