Q. I'm a freshman, entering A&S or CSOM in September. How do I find out the name of my pre-major advisor?
A. Every freshman in A&S and in CSOM has an academic advisor who is a member of the faculty or of the University administration. You'll receive an email at your bc.edu account before the first day of Fall semester classes, with the name of your advisor and information about your first meeting. Students in CSOM are also assigned peer advisors with whom they will work with throughout the year.
Q. I'm an A&S sophomore ad haven't yet chosen my major. How do I find out the name of my pre-major advisor?
A. Usually your advisor will be the same faculty member or administrator who you worked with during your freshman year. If that person is on leave or for some other reason not advising during your sophomore year, you’ll be paired with a new advisor, most often in a department in which you’ve taken at least one or two courses. Check Agora during or after the Labor Day weekend. If questions arise over the summer, contact your associate dean or call the Center (617-552-9259) for a quick response or to be referred to the person or office best able to help you.
Q. I don't know who my advisor is, (or: I knew but I've forgotten. And I don’t know how to contact my advisor.
A. If you are a freshman in A&S or in CSOM, or a sophomore in A&S who has yet to identify a major, call the Center (617-552-9259) or log in to Agora. Your advisor's name will be on Student Services records, available to you once you enter your username and password. If you are an upper-class student and have declared your major, contact your major's department. If you are a student in LSOE or SON, contact your school's undergraduate dean's office. If you know your advisor’s name but have forgotten how to contact him/her, use the “Directory” feature on BC Info or the BC home page to obtain the information.
Q. How do I arrange an appointment with my advisor?
A. Call or email your advisor to set up an appointment. Be sure to mention the sorts of things you’d like to talk about so that both you and your advisor can be prepared to make the best use of your conversation and so that your advisor can be certain to allow ample time for your meeting. If you urgently need to meet with your advisor because you have a pressing question or concern, make that need known. If for some reason your advisor can’t arrange an early meeting with you, he/she will make sure that you can meet with either your associate dean or with the Director or Associate Director of the Center. If you email your advisor to set up a meeting and don’t receive a response within a day, or sooner if your concern is truly urgent, call (617-552-9259) or stop by the Center in Carney 418.
Q. I never hear from my advisor.
A. Are you checking your bc.edu email account at least once a day or have you forwarded mail automatically to another account? Your advisor expects to be able to contact you through your bc.edu email account and may have tried to do so. If you did not respond, or if your advisor's email bounced back because you exceeded your mailbox quota, your advisor may not know how to reach you. Try sending an email to your advisor. If you don’t know his or her email address you can find it by using the “Directory” feature on BCInfo or on the Center's "Advisor Directory." If you don’t receive a response within one weekday, call (617-552-9259) or stop by the Center in Carney 418.
Q. I have an emergency and I can't contact my advisor.
A. For pre-major students in A&S and CSOM, the Center may be able to help or can refer you to someone who can (617-552-9259). Or contact your associate dean:
A&S freshmen, David Quigley (617-552-3286)
A&S sophomores, Clare Dunsford (617-552-2277)
CSOM students should contact the deans in the Undergraduate office (617-552-3932)
If your safety or the safety of a friend is ever at issue or in a medical emergency, call BCPD (617-552-4444) immediately for help and transportation.
Q. I'm not sure how to use the Center or what's available there.
A. Think of the Center as a resource for information and as one of several places to which your own advisor may refer you if you need more information than an individual advisor can provide. Your academic advisor works through the Center but does not have an office there. You will meet your own advisor in his or her office (or, perhaps, over lunch in the Eagle's Nest or Hillside, or over hot chocolate in the Chocolate Bar) rather than in the Center, and you'll schedule appointments directly with your advisor rather than through a central scheduling coordinator. The acting associate dean for freshmen, Dr. David Quigley, holds office hours in the Center, as well as in Gasson 109. The associate dean for sophomores in A&S has her office in Gasson 109, and the associate and assistant deans for CSOM students have their offices in Fulton 360. Because permanent staff members in the Center know well the questions pre-major students often ask and because they are committed to helping students find answers to their questions and concerns, the Center is an appropriate place to call or stop by when questions arise. Dr. Nathans and Dr. Browne, the Director and Associate Director of the Center, enjoy meeting with individual students by appointment or, more briefly, on a drop-in basis. If you're at the other end of the BC world from Carney, you can phone. Someone will be available to talk with you between 8:00 a.m. and 4:45 p.m., Monday through Friday. And for immediate and convenient links to virtually any BC resource you might want or need to use, for calendars which will confirm deadlines or alert you to the time and place of A&S and CSOM programs and University events, check out the Center's web site.
Q. I'm not sure how to add a course; withdraw from a course; arrange for enrichment courses at another school; take a leave-of-absence; get proof for my instructors that I was sick the day of the midterm test; or lots of other routine procedures that aren't “routine” for me! And I don’t know what the dates and deadlines are for drop/add, course withdrawal, or registration.
A. View "Resources for Students" on the Center's web site, and follow the link that looks most appropriate. Good places to start are the links to “Academic Policies and Procedures,” and “Student Services.” Both take you to comprehensive pages where you can almost certainly find what you need to know. The Center has most of the forms and policy information sheets you will need; so does the office of your associate dean. If you’re still in doubt don’t guess, check deadlines, policies, and procedures by phoning the Center (617-552-9259).
Q. I got closed out of a course I absolutely have to take. Now what do I do?
A. Go to the scheduled class, then speak with the professor about the possibility of an “override” which will admit you to the class even though the registration limit has been reached. A designated faculty or staff member in each department office can process the override for you, if the instructor and department officers agree that you can join the class.
Q. I found a really great course, but the catalog says it has several prerequisites that I don't meet. How can I get registered for it?
A. Slow down! The course will be just as “great” a year or two hence when you’re better-prepared for it. Those prerequisites were carefully considered by the faculty and exist because meeting the expectations of the course in question will depend on your mastery of material from the prerequisite classes. It's true that students can sometimes gain permission to bypass prerequisites, but doing so is rarely wise. You'll get more “value” from the class and, as a practical matter, probably do better in the course if you have the appropriate background. By all means talk with the professor and with your advisor about how best to pursue your interests, but be wise and wary about taking a course that seems especially important to you before you're truly ready to enjoy and benefit from it in every possible way.
Q. I went to the ____ department's meeting for prospective majors, but my questions weren't answered. What do I do now?
A. There are several good options. The Center's "Academic Programs" web page could lead you to the information you're seeking. Or call the department office to request an appointment with the faculty member overseeing undergraduate programs. For departments location and contact information, view list of A&S academic departments and CSOM academic departments. Be sure the receptionist knows the nature of your question, that you attended the department's meeting, and that you still need more information. If you still can't track down the information you need, schedule an appointment with your associate dean or with the Director or Associate Director of the Center.
Q. My assigned advisor doesn't share my interests and says she/he can’t tell me which courses I should take. And every time I talk with my advisor, she/he sends me to another office or tells me to check out another web site.
A. Check out the "Roles and Responsibilities" section of this web site to be sure you aren't expecting your advisor to tell you which courses to take or to help you to decide between particular sections of larger courses. No advisor and student will find that they share, in equal measure, every interest, but your advisor can help you to connect with someone who knows how best to help you to pursue particular interests and then can talk with you about how specific interests mesh with your overall academic and personal plans. It's part of your advisor's role to help you connect with the person or office who can offer you the most expert help with each significant question, or the most authoritative information about pursuing a particular interest. Expect referrals. Your advisor makes them not because she/he is uncaring or uninterested, but so that you'll get the best advice and information available. Your advisor also expects that you’ll take the initiative to consult specialized sources of information about academic programs and planning – most notably, the web sites of the departments and programs in which you’re most interested. If you're still concerned, call the Center (617-552-9259) and ask to make an appointment with Dr. Nathans or Dr. Browne.
Q. I haven't had time to meet with my advisor this semester and now I can't get my registration code. If I have to register late, all the classes I want will be closed. How can I get my registration code right away?
A. The University provides that registration access codes are distributed by advisors as a way to help ensure that students review their plans in a timely way with a faculty or senior staff member who is familiar with their academic plans and who can confirm that the program they propose will keep them on track to meeting their academic goals. The University’s registration calendar and the Center’s advising calendars provide lots of reminders about the need to schedule appointments and about the responsibilities students bear for doing so. Registering late is hard, but it’s also a reminder that advising depends on substantive conversations and isn’t just a formality.
Q. My parents don't agree with what my advisor wants me to do. Who's right?
A. You, not your parents and not your advisor, must make academic and personal choices, and you, not your parents and not your advisor, will be responsible for those choices. Parents and guardians are legitimately concerned with your welfare and may be accustomed to being involved in your academic and personal decisions. They will almost certainly express their opinions, which may or may not be grounded in detailed knowledge of current curricular options, graduate and professional school requirements and practices, an up-to-date understanding of the job market, and so forth. Your advisor will tell you honestly his or her opinion of how well or thoroughly you are exploring your options and will try to help you see the potential consequences of each choice you are considering. When opinions seem to conflict, weighing options and reaching a choice with which you're comfortable and confident is difficult. Any of several staff members at BC can talk with you about how to frame conversations that address conflicting advice and can help you to develop the perspective you will need to weigh alternatives. Consider talking with a member of the Counseling Services staff, a trusted pastoral counselor, a staff member at the Career Center, your associate dean, or the Director or Associate Director of the Center.
Q. I took six courses every semester in high school and I did fine. Why can't I start with six full courses here? I know I can handle it.
A. Some freshmen will be enrolled in a Cornerstone advisement seminar or topic seminar in addition to their five full Fall semester classes. The Cornerstone seminars are designed to complement the other courses of a first freshmen semester and enrolling in one can significantly enrich your first semester program. Otherwise, taking six courses in a first freshman semester is unwise – so unwise, in fact, that it’s not allowed by the faculty’s policies. In their qualitative and quantitative demands on your time and talents, your University courses will almost certainly be more challenging than the courses you completed even in the strongest secondary school program available to you. Assignments are longer, you are expected to work far more independently, and most of all, you are responsible for synthesizing materials from lectures, assigned reading, papers or problem sets, and for coming up with your own “big picture” of the concepts and material of each class. Your instructor’s role is no longer to lead you step by step through the material: you will in significant ways lead yourself, guided by your instructor and by the material of the class. There’s also no longer a specific “amount” that it’s “enough” to know: it’s no longer enough to “read pages 10-22 for Tuesday and work the problems on page 321.” There’s always more that could be (or is) “recommended,” always more that you might “do” or “learn.” At first, you’re likely to feel overwhelmed. Can you ever do enough or learn enough? Almost certainly you can, and you will, but acclimating to new ways of organizing your time and your work is almost always more demanding than students expect it to be. Your education isn’t a contest and it isn’t a race. Making the necessary adjustments to University coursework before you try carrying a heavier-than-expected academic load is a wise plan.
Q. I have a lot of really hard courses this semester. I would do better if I only needed to enroll in four classes, rather than five.
A. The normal and expected course load for all first, second, and third year students in A&S and CSOM is five full courses each semester. If you are concerned about managing the combination of courses you have chosen, you should meet with your advisor and with your associate dean as soon as possible. It's not uncommon to feel overwhelmed. The mature and appropriate thing to do is to ask for help early. Your advisor or your associate dean can speak with you about what are likely the several paths to your chosen goals; the staff in the Connors Family Leaning Center, AHANA Student Programs, or Learning Resources for Student-Athletes (LRSA) can help you to bolster the skills that make managing university coursework easier and more comfortable. Reducing your load below five courses requires the permission of your academic dean. Because there are long-term planning consequences involved in completing fewer than the expected number of courses each semester, reducing your course load is an option to pursue only after very careful consideration.
Q. My parents have made enormous sacrifices to pay for my BC education and they assume I'll major in ____. I've tried the first course for that major and it's just not a good fit. What I really want to major in is ____ but my parents will be devastated, and I owe them a lot.
A. No advisor can speak directly to your relationship with your family, and every family is different from every other. But all parents, in the end, want their sons and daughters to be happy and to live fulfilling lives. That said, parental hopes and dreams – and, truth be told, sometimes your own hopes and dreams – can impact choices even when all the “objective” evidence says moving in a different direction would be more satisfying. Hopes and dreams and preconceptions die hard, and sometimes painfully. No advisor can act as intermediary between you and your family, but there’s lots of support at BC for the conversations you may eventually want to have with your family, and with yourself, about pursuing the program and the work that truly gives you joy. Speak with your advisor about your concerns and consider talking with a staff member at Counseling Services, the Career Center, or in one of the college chaplaincies, or make an appointment with your associate dean or with the Director or Associate Director of the Center.
Q. I don't agree with how my professor graded my paper (midterm test, quiz, etc.). What do I do now?
A. Asking to talk with a professor about how he or she evaluated your work can be scary, but you're the one who must make the contact and ask questions on your own behalf. Be sure to review the assignment or test question carefully. It may suddenly become clearer to you why your work was evaluated as it was. If not, ask to speak with the faculty member privately, during office hours, or by special appointment. Don't just show up, and don't buttonhole the faculty member immediately before or after class. Your concern deserves a private meeting, one for which both you and the faculty member have set aside specific time. Tell the professor forthrightly that you're puzzled about why the work was evaluated as it was and that you would like to go over it with the faculty member to be sure you understand the faculty member's expectations and how more appropriately to meet them. In the meeting itself, try to remain calm. Fifty years from now it really will make little difference to you or to anyone else what grade you received on one assignment, and your world as a premed, a future lawyer, or an MBA candidate years hence won't stand or fall on one paper or one test. The less confrontational you can be and the more you approach the matter as an intellectual discussion between two adults, the more you will gain from the conversation. What you “gain” may well not be a higher grade and remember that any faculty member has the right to lower a grade as well as to raise it if a review of the work suggests that is appropriate. Over-dramatizing the issues – e.g., “My parents won't pay for my next semester here if I get less than a B in this course,” or “I'll have to leave school if I fail” – is never appropriate. It seeks unfairly to transfer responsibility for your performance and your academic record to someone else, and that only makes the person you are speaking with defensive and angry. You will be working with the faculty member at least until the current semester ends, and perhaps again later in your undergraduate career. You have much to gain by approaching the conversation calmly and with the genuinely appropriate objective, which is to gain a fuller understanding of the course material and expectations. Conversations about grades, though difficult, offer you an opportunity to demonstrate the maturity and perspective and intellectual commitment that quickly win faculty members' admiration and respect.
Q. My [father, mother, brother, sister, uncle-who-is-a-famous-professor] read my paper and says it clearly deserves an A. I got a C. Maybe I should have my [father, mother . . .etc] call my professor. Or, I forgot to drop a class before the deadline, but I really don’t want a “W” on my record. My father is a BC graduate; I’m sure if he calls the dean, he can fix things.
A. If you’re tempted to take this approach to problem-solving, talk first with your advisor, your associate dean, or with the Director or Associate Director of the Center. Even in difficult situations, the University respects your maturity as a member of the community and expects that you will take direct responsibility for conversations with members of the faculty and staff. Don't risk earning a reputation as a student who has others carry the ball for you. Take another look at the “Confidentiality” section and the “Roles and Responsibilities” section of this web site, then resist the temptation to have someone call on your behalf.