Your first academic year at the College can be a difficult thing, but in order to counter general first-year inexperience, the administration has set up an extensive system of advising to help you pick and choose your courses.
The most important person in the system is the faculty advisor.
Since the fall of 1990, all students have been assigned to a member of the faculty who assists in course selection and general academic planning, said Dean of Freshmen Peter Goldsmith.
Students receive their assignment when they arrive on campus.
Generally, efforts are made to match students with teachers in their area of academic interest, Goldsmith said.
Due to a large number of students who plan to major in the sciences when they first arrive in Hanover, students planning to major in biology, chemistry and other similar fields may not receive an advisor in their academic concentration.
The students are required to meet with their advisors at least twice: once during orientation to select fall courses, and again at the end of the Fall term to choose winter classes.
After that, "the frequency of meetings is up to the individual student," Goldsmith said.
Other resources exist in the advising system besides faculty advisors.
Undergraduate advisors and class deans can also serve as valuable resources for advice about classes and choosing a major.
"The deans are always available to students to talk about course choices," Goldsmith said.
Undergraduate Advisors "have an official function in the academic advising system," he said. "Students are asked to meet with UGAs before they meet with faculty advisers largely so UGAs can help them with the mechanics of course choices."
While "UGAs also have a perspective on courses that none of the deans and none of the faculty have," Goldsmith warns about allowing UGAs to tell freshmen whether courses are good or bad.
Other factors, such as interest, skill, and secondary school preparation make the appreciation any class different for each person, he said.
Other types of advising are also available at the College.
Students wishing to talk to a counselor about a variety of problems can make an appointment with one of the College's seven counselors.
