By Vianne Fung
The first two weeks of the Fall semester for University of Calgary students marked the race to arrange and re-arrange their class timetables.
With the long line-ups at the Undergraduate Programs Office, academic advising is a current priority for students looking for the best-personalized course choices. But much to the chagrin of undergraduate student Anca Dan, the university’s current academic advising system has let her down.
In May, Dan, who is pursuing a political science degree as an unclassified student, had sought consultation with advisors at the Faculty of Social Science who then assured her that she needed only a final political science course out of two choices to fulfill her program requirements. Upon finishing one of the recommended courses over the summer, Dan was told she was still lacking a final course in political science in order to become eligible for the coming November convocation.
The Faculty told Dan they did not have full access to her program information or her full transcript.
“If the faculty doesn’t have access, who does?” Dan asked. “I believe this is misinformation. If this is happening to me, what about the 18-19 year-olds who trust their life with [academic advisors]? They need to be held accountable.”
After further inquiries directed to Faculty of Social Sciences Associate Dean (Academic) Dr. Gillian Ranson, Dan was granted permission to complete her degree with a non-political science class but remains unsatisfied with the academic advice she received.
“Of course advisors are human like everybody else,” said UPO Director Natalie Hampton. She noted the UPO has to stay on top of regulations from four faculties and changing yearly requirements. “It’s not simplistic to stay on top of all the regulations.”
Hampton said serious cases of bad program advice are rare and usually the result of miscommunication between the advisor and student, not outright error. She said the UPO will do what it can to help in cases of incorrect program advice, but must still ensure degree requirements are met in order to protect the integrity of the academic program.
“If a student is understanding their requirements for themselves, checking on a regular basis and not being passive on their advising then there aren’t very many problems and they’re usually sorted out right away,” said Hampton.
“One of the problems with unclassified students is because they’re not actually admitted into a program their records are incomplete,” said Hampton, noting courses completed outside the U of C won’t be credited on Degree Navigator. She said all students with a valid ID number can access the web resource.
Student Rights Advisor Patty Spady said students seeking her advice as a result of dissatisfaction with advising constitute only one to two per cent of students. She, like Hampton, recommended all students get a second opinion on any program advice.
“I would advise students to write down what the advice was and who the advisor was,” she said. “If unclear, seek advice from the academic department.”
Dan is currently completing the remaining course in her program through Athabasca University and is awaiting Fall Convocation in November.