A year after its creation, the University Academic Advising Center has a fresh face to help students figure out how to pursue that double degree in music and engineering with a minor in history and a few theater classes on the side.
The center’s new director, Susan Fox, and her assistant, Gregory Cera, help students navigate the academic requirements of such a schedule.
Fox took over the year-old office at the beginning of Fall Quarter, and she said her first priority is to spread the word of its services to all Northwestern students.
“We’re a good resource on advising issues,” Fox said. The center specializes in “dealing with issues that transcend the schools,” including transfers between NU’s six undergraduate schools, the pursuit of joint degrees and the selection of majors.
“We serve as a clearing house,” she said. “Instead of hearing about a major from somebody down the hall in the dorm, they can come here.”
Stephen Fisher, associate provost for undergraduate education, said he hopes the center will build on its success from last year.
“Lots of students came in, representing all schools and all classes,” Fisher said. “I really do think it accomplished its purpose.”
According to Cera, more than 400 people used the center last year, meeting with counselors, asking questions by e-mail ([email protected]) and attending workshops. Most of the advising — about 21 percent — helped students select a major. About 17 percent involved explaining specific program requirements, and more than 15 percent dealt with transfers between schools.
The office is not designed to replace students’ academic advisers within their schools but rather to complement that advice, Cera said.
“We get paid, basically, to know the requirements, the interschool transfer process,” he said. “Sometimes they don’t know that stuff.”
Another advantage of the center, Fisher said, is that Fox and Cera are trained counselors.
“(The center) distinguishes itself from academic advising in the past because the staff are trained professionals in their area,” he said.
Consequently, the center is not just about doling out information on distribution requirements; it can help students identify their interests and apply them toward an academic program.
“We’re good especially when they’re ambiguous about what they want to do,” Fox said. She uses a list of majors to narrow down a student’s fields of interest and sets him or her on an appropriate academic course.
The center also educates students about the school and programs they are thinking about, increasing the chances they’ll be approved for a transfer, Fox said.
“They’re much more likely to be accepted if they can articulate what the program is about,” she said. “We help them identify questions that are important.”
More than 30 people have used the center so far in September, according to Cera. And despite a small staff — Fox and Cera, plus a soon-to-be-hired program assistant and work-study student — the center hopes to accommodate even more students this year.
The center’s first event this year will be an interschool transfer workshop Oct. 4, with sessions at 3 and 6 p.m.
“It’s just our second year of existence; a lot of students don’t know about us,” Cera said.
Added Associated Student Government Academic Vice President Sameer Gafoor: “You see great numbers of students coming in there, and we still can have greater numbers. It’s one of the hidden secrets of NU, one that incoming freshmen should know about.”
