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Students
Academic Planning
Throughout your first year at Trinity, academic planning will involve you, your first-year
seminar adviser (or your
adviser in
Guided Studies,
the Interdisciplinary
Science Program [ISP],
the Interarts Program,
or
The Cities Program),
your First-Year Mentor, and the Registrar's Office. Your faculty
adviser and your
mentor will consult with you regarding your choice of courses and your future academic
plans. Until you choose a major (by the end of your sophomore year), your faculty
adviser will assist you with course selection, as may your mentor.
Faculty advisers are assigned to you until you choose a major. If for any reason you would like to request a change of adviser, contact the First Year Program Office at extension 5331. After you have declared a major, you department will assign you an adviser within your field of study.
The Major
Each student must complete a major. His or her choice of major must be made prior to
Registration for the first semester of the Junior Year. A maximum of 12 courses in a
single discipline may be required for a major, and no more than 18 courses overall.
Some majors require cognates as well. Majors currently established include:
Student may also propose individually-tailored, interdisciplinary majors.
While a student may take courses during his or her first year which will be part of a major that is declared later, the College does not recommend that students commit themselves to any particular major during their first year.
Students are responsible for ensuring that their academic work meets the highest standards of academic integrity. The Handbook contains explicit information about plagiarism and other kinds of academic dishonesty. Ignorance of the College’s policies and the information in the Handbook does not excuse the occurrence of such dishonesty. It is vital that students, particularly first-year students, understand the importance of academic integrity. Typically, first-year students are unclear on the issues of paraphrasing, proper citation, and the multiple submission of work. First-Year Faculty are urged to spend class time or part of an advising session discussing academic integrity.
An instructor who suspects a student of academic dishonesty is strongly encouraged to make a complaint to the Academic Affairs Committee, which is charged with adjudicating such cases, via the Dean of Students, Mary Thomas.
Faculty
Helpful Hints for Advisors of First Year Students
All too often signs of the common first-year student malady, the inability to reconcile the freedoms of college with the responsibilities of meeting academic and non-academic commitments, do not appear until late in the semester. Although students are able to withdraw with a W up to 4 weeks after the start of classes, a withdrawal usually means placement on academic probation due to the normal first semester load of 4 credits. Ideally, students should seek out their advisers long before the last weeks in the semester for help in assessing their academic needs and problems. In reality, those students usually most in need of help are often most reluctant to seek it.
As an adviser, it is important to recognize that the transition from high school to college can be frightening and even paralyzing for some students. Despite your best intentions, you may find it difficult to get a student to open up to you and admit that he or she is not coping well with the academic demands or the social pressures of Trinity. If you suspect that a student may be experiencing these difficulties don’t hesitate to be direct. Below are some suggestions for drawing out recalcitrant students.
Where do I refer a student who needs:
Tutoring: Ann Reuman, Associate Dean of Students, can assist students in obtaining the services of a tutor.
Personal counseling: Depending on the type of counseling needed, you might want to refer to the Counseling Center, Chaplain, Health Center, Women’s Center or the Dean of Students Office. Students in need of clinical psychological counseling should be referred to the Counseling Center. Non-clinical counseling support services on campus include the Chaplain, the Dean of Students Office, the Health Center and the Women’s Center. If you are unsure as to the type of counseling needed, refer the student to the Dean of Students office
Career counseling: Career Services, the Dean of Students Office and the Internship Office can all be helpful.
Writing assistance: The Allan K. Smith Center for Writing and Rhetoric
Help with Math: The Math Center
Study skills support: The Dean of Students Office offers study skills workshops.
Assistance with a learning disability: The Dean of Students office can arrange for students to meet with Dr. Mark Brown, our learning disabilities consultant.
Information on foreign study programs: Office of International Programs
Information on experiential learning opportunities: The Internship Office, the Community Service Office or Career Services.
Medical assistance: The Health Center. Contact Campus Safety or TCERT in case of emergency.
Questions often asked by First-Year Advisers:
1. What do I do if I have an advisee who is missing classes due to illness, family emergency? Have the student contact the Dean of Students Office to let one of the Deans know that the students is missing classes and for what reason. Alternatively, you or the parent could call for the student. The student should be advised to speak to his/her instructors before getting behind in work or missing assignments or exams.
2. What do I do if I suspect academic dishonesty? An instructor who suspects a student of academic dishonesty is strongly encouraged to speak directly to the student and following the discussion, if dishonesty is still suspected, make a complaint to the Academic Affairs Committee, which is charged with adjudicating such cases, via the Dean of Students, Mary Thomas.
3. Who has to take English 101 and when do they have to take it? New students are informed during the summer as to whether or not they are required to take English 101 to complete the writing proficiency requirement. Students will benefit greatly by taking English 101 during their first semester however they are not required to take it at any specific point in their college career.
4. What do I do if I have an advisee who is enrolled in a math or foreign language class that is too difficult for them and the Add/Drop period has already ended? Speak to the instructor and/or department chair about the possibility of the student appealing to Academic Affairs for permission to drop down to a lower level course in the same subject area.
5. What do I do if I have an advisee who seems to have trouble fitting in at Trinity? It depends on the reason for the difficulty. Sometimes these students need help finding a point of connection within the community (i.e. a student organization, religious group). First-year mentors, PRIDE leaders and RA’s can often be helpful in this regard. Seminar events of a social nature such as dinners can also be helpful. A referral to the Dean of Students Office, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, or the Women’s Center may also be appropriate for students who are generally dissatisfied with the Trinity culture or environment.
6. What do I do if an advisee and I just don’t seem able to connect? Even the best-intentioned faculty advisers can find themselves with an advisee with whom they have difficulty communicating. In your packet is a list of sample questions compiled by Ann Reuman for first-year advisers. You may find some of the questions useful in stimulating conversation in these situations. Another option is to hold small group meetings with advisees. New students sometimes find it more comfortable to open up in a setting in which there are other students. In addition, other students in the group can model more communicative faculty-student behavior for the student. Finally, if you truly feel that it would be more beneficial to your student to have a new adviser, contact the First-Year Program Office. Note: It is always a good idea to let all of your students know that they can change advisers at any point in their college career.