|
Advising
Notes for Students
|
YOUR
FACULTY ADVISOR:
MAKING THE MOST OF THE RELATIONSHIP
|
Who Are the Faculty Advisors?
They
are Skidmore faculty, who love sharing their academic
interests and enthusiasm for learning with students
and other colleagues. They want to help their students
grow both intellectually and personally throughout their
college careers.
How
Are Initial Advisor Assignments Made?
The goal
of the Dean of Studies Office is to find an advisor-advisee
connection that makes sense to the students and to the
faculty. That link could be determined by your
area of academic interest or by a classroom connection.
Such direct links aren’t always possible for first-year
students, of course, but all first-year students should
find their advisors receptive and informed. Transfer
students are assigned initially to the chair of a department
according to the student’s anticipated major.
What
is Your Advisor's Role?
At its
best, advising, like teaching, can be an activity of
discovery and clarification. The role of your
faculty advisor is to be as informed as he/she can be
about college opportunities, requirements, and resources,
to listen to students’ interests and concerns,
to help students focus and expand their range of questions,
and to help students make their own informed decisions.
Faculty advisors may also help you explore the many
intrinsic and applied values of a liberal arts education.
The more information students can give advisors about
their background and aspirations, the more responsive
and helpful the advisor can be. Keep in mind,
however, that faculty advisors are not personal or career
counselors (we have other great resources at Skidmore
for such issues).
What
is Your Role as Advisee?
To gain
the most benefit from your advisor’s experience
and perspectives, have questions ready and/or topics
to explore. Always make an appointment ahead of
time, or use the posted office hours, and go prepared
to advising sessions. Use the College
Catalog, the Master
Schedule of Courses, the Academic
Information Guide, and other paper and web-based
sources of information to research your questions before
you meet with your advisor. Thoughtful preparation
helps college students take responsibility for shaping
their own academic and personal decisions. Trying to
get advice (and a signature) on the fly, in the hallway,
a few minutes before registration, is a sure way to
frustrate yourself and your advisor.
What
Should Advisees and Faculty Advisors Discuss Before
Registration?
Discussing
courses that fulfill various requirements and building
a course schedule represent an important beginning,
but these activities are only a start. Also consider
possible connections among current and future courses
at the College, discuss the time commitments among your
course choices with respect to reading, writing, calculating,
memorizing, analyzing, and performing, and sketch a
long-range plan for your Skidmore education.
Such considerations are, we believe, the beginnings
of rewarding advisor interactions.
What
Other Topics Might We Explore?
The
student who wants to engage most productively with faculty
advisors (and with teachers) will move beyond registration-related
conversations. Here are some other topics you
might discuss with your advisor:
- excitement about a particular
course
- a problem you are facing
in a class
- time management and other
skills needed for success at Skidmore
- your longer-term interests
and aspirations
- co-curricular opportunities
at Skidmore that connect with your academic and personal
interests
- Honors Forum courses
- your choice of a major and
the “major declaration” process
- internships
- study abroad
- special lectures and performances
sponsored at Skidmore
- collaborative research opportunities
between students and faculty
- capstone possibilities in
your major
- national and international
scholarship opportunities
- graduate school and/or professional
and career pathways
Discussing
broad topics such as these will help you make the most
of, and contribute the most to, your Skidmore education.
Can
I Change My Advisor?
Often
it takes time for a mutually rewarding advisee-advisor
relationship to develop, and we hope you will do your
part in fostering a productive relationship. Most
students remain with their assigned advisor through
the first year at Skidmore. Students may, however,
request a change of advisor through the Dean of Studies
Office in Starbuck Center. It is important for
you to connect with a faculty advisor in the appropriate
discipline once you decide on your major (and to file
the Declaration of Major form with the Office of the
Registrar). For most students this happens during
the sophomore year.
What
If My Advisor Goes on a Leave?
The department
chairpersons, in consultation with the Dean of Studies
Office, reassign advisees when faculty are on leave
or on a sabbatical. You do not need to initiate
this process, but you are also welcome to make your
own choice of a new advisor through the Dean of Studies
Office.
Who
Makes the Decisions?
In their
advising role, the faculty offer perspectives and information
based on their extensive experience working with college
students, but they don’t, for example, choose
courses for you or require you to seek additional help.
An advisor may feel strongly about certain issues and
may urge you to consider a particular course of action,
but you must reach your own conclusions. In the final
analysis, you are accountable for understanding and
meeting all degree requirements. The advisor signatures
that you need for such processes as registration, adding
and dropping courses, and choosing a study abroad program
are indications, we hope, that you had a meaningful
interaction with your advisor as you made important
academic decisions. We encourage you to seize these
occasions for a rich dialogue with your faculty advisor.
What
Contact Will My Advisor Have With My Parents?
Skidmore
expects that you will communicate with your parents
on matters of interest or concern to you. The
faculty advisor works directly with you to help you
become increasingly confident about your ability to
discover opportunities and resources, anticipate problems,
seek the help you need, and research the answers to
your questions and problems. It is very seldom
if ever an advisor’s role to interact with parents
regarding a student’s academic progress and decisions.
Parents who need further information about college resources,
requirements, and opportunities may call the appropriate
administrative office—especially the Dean of Studies
Office or the Office of the Registrar for academic questions.
But keep in mind that even the administrative offices
will seldom agree to divulge specific student information,
for they share the same philosophy of working directly
with you and encouraging your ability to make informed
and thoughtful choices.
Are
There Other Sources of Academic Advice?
Your
own teachers are often the best sources, and you may
also turn to such offices as Dean of Studies and Registrar,
both in Starbuck Center. Consider too the major
publications of the College such as the Catalog,
the Academic
Information Guide, the New
Student Guide to Program Planning, and the Student
Handbook. These and many other information sources
are also published on web sites. In addition to
the many excellent web sites prepared by the academic
departments and programs, check these administrative
sites for academic, co-curricular, and career information:
|
