For the first time, University administrators are requiring that all underclassmen in the College of Arts and Sciences meet with professors in their declared degree programs during a three-week “mentoring period,” which kicks off on Monday, Sept. 17. Students and their “faculty mentors” will discuss course options for the spring semester, as well as post-graduate possibilities and career goals.
Upperclassmen in the College of Arts and Sciences and students in the Doisy College of Health Sciences are also encouraged to meet with their faculty mentors sometime between Sept. 17 and Oct. 5, but they are not strictly required to do so. This semester’s mentoring period will not affect other students of the University.
“Freshmen and sophomores will meet will academic advisers, but nothing will change for juniors and seniors,” said Denise Sleet, an assistant dean in the College of Arts and Sciences who supervises academic advising.
The mentoring period is an innovation tied to the University’s new undergraduate advising system-put into operation this summer-which divides responsibilities between faculty mentors and professional academic advisers.
Under the new arrangement, academic advisers will help students select a major and keep track of core requirements, as well as providing access to the Career Center and other University resources. Meanwhile, faculty mentors-one each for a student’s major, minor, or certificate program-will guide students in choosing courses within their degree program. Faculty mentors will also counsel students about career planning and opportunities for internships, research and studying abroad.
“The new system allows faculty not to worry about core requirement registration; that will be taken over by academic advisers,” said Associate Provost for Undergraduate Affairs Donald Stump, who is in charge of implementing the mentoring program. “[The new system] gives faculty more time to talk about [other] issues-what direction are you going with your major?”
During the upcoming mentoring period, freshmen and sophomores in the College of Arts and Sciences will be asked to have their faculty mentors sign a sheet to return to their academic adviser, who will in turn provide students with PIN numbers, allowing them to register themselves for classes based on their faculty mentors’ recommendations.
Students whose faculty mentors will be unavailable between Sept. 17 and Oct. 5 will be able to get approval from their departmental offices.
Underclassmen in the College of Arts and Sciences who have not yet formally declared a major through an academic department will be encouraged to talk to representatives of programs that interest them; their academic advisers will be able to provide a contact person for each department.
