As a student in the College of Arts & Sciences with two majors and one certificate, I have received excellent guidance from my academic adviser and faculty mentors. However, in discussing this with students and administrators I have learned that this level of service is not universal.
Faculty mentors who do not know their mentees’ names and academic advisers who routinely forget their students’ majors are examples of the necessity to improve this service.
The University administration needs to make connections between students and advisers. It must provide the standard of assistance to students that we expect in their principle task at our University—learning.
Students ought to receive the same level of attention and support from their advisers and mentors during their time at Saint Louis University, as they did from the department of undergraduate admission during high school.
However, the burden of advising does not lie solely on one segment of the University. Academic advisers need to accurately and effectively communicate about curriculum and registration with students. Students must plan ahead when scheduling meetings with their advisors and mentors.
Faculty mentors need to be present and helpful to students when selecting courses and seeking internships. It is not difficult to imagine, though, why a faculty member, whose body of work is evaluated primarily by his in-class instruction and published research, would not significantly value his role as a mentor.
Where’s the incentive? The administration must demonstrate their stated commitment to the Integrated Advising Model, now in its fourth year at SLU.
–Patrick Grillot is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences.