The Randall Sophomore Advisor Program, which makes faculty available to sophomores, is underused, according to several officials and faculty members involved with the program.
The Randall program, which began in 1976, today attempts to provide an advising relationship for sophomores that differs from the one-on-one advising they receive as first-years. Rather than being assigned to one Randall advisor, all sophomores have access to a group of 12 faculty members in a variety of fields.
When Associate Dean of the College and Dean of Sophomore Studies Karen Krahulik was recently assigned to oversee the program, she discovered students were largely not taking advantage of the Randall program.
"In general, (the Randall advisors) felt that they were underutilized," Krahulik said.
Steven Cornish, associate dean of the College and dean of first-year studies, also considered the program to be underused when he served as its director last year.
Barrett Hazeltine, a Randall advisor and professor emeritus of engineering, said he is disappointed by the lack of students taking advantage of the program.
"Sometimes, it seems like a missed opportunity," Hazeltine said.
Hazeltine said he believes the University does not force every sophomore to have an assigned advisor because some students might not want that sort of direct relationship.
"Many Brown students are very independent and do not want so much advising," Hazeltine said.
At the end of their first year at the University, students are asked to select an advisor for sophomore year. Though many students keep their first-year advisors or select a new advisor of their choosing, the Randall program provides an advising opportunity for students who do not choose an advisor for sophomore year.
"Randalls are most worried about students that haven't made a connection with faculty members yet," said Ruth Colwill, a Randall advisor and an associate professor of psychology.
Colwill said one of the program's strong points lies in the fact that sophomores can easily bring issues to Randall advisors.
This year, the program was changed to facilitate quick communication between sophomores and Randall advisors. Previously, students had to go through an administrative assistant in the Office of the Dean of the College to make appointments for a meeting with a Randall advisor. These meetings were held in Rhode Island Hall. This year, the location for such meetings has been moved to University Hall, and some Randall advisors are allowing students to contact them directly for appointments and hold meetings in their own offices.
The move from Rhode Island Hall to University Hall was intended to put the office in a building that receives more traffic from students. Cornish noted the change will also make it easier for Randall advisors to refer students to specific deans in University Hall.
Anna Kentros '09 said she believes limited use of the program can likely be attributed to poor communication about what it entails and how it operates.
Kentros said she found out at the beginning of the year that she did not have an advisor because her first-year advisor had recently retired. At the start of the semester, sophomores received letters in their mailboxes that included the name of a sophomore advisor if they selected one at the end of the spring semester. No name appeared in Kentros' letter because she had not selected an advisor in the spring.
"It was a bit disconcerting when I saw that it was blank. They also didn't leave explicit directions about the Randall program, so I didn't understand how to use the program," Kentros said.
Kentros said she assumed she would not have an advisor for the entire year. Though she thought that by not selecting a specific sophomore advisor she would be assigned a single Randall advisor, the program instead gave her access to 12 advisors.
"I think it could be a valuable program, but they just need to improve awareness of it," Kentros said.
Krahulik said the Office of the Dean of the College has made information about the Randall advising program available in a number of ways. Such information was included in the "Charting Your Education" packet that was given to the entire sophomore class. Also, an e-mail was sent out to the sophomore class detailing the program, and Krahulik spoke about it during the Sophomore Class Meeting held on Sept. 5.
Neeta Pal '09 is one sophomore who has made use of the program. When Pal's first-year advisor left in the middle of Pal's first year, she had to explore other alternatives. This year, she has met with two Randall advisors.
Pal, who is thinking of concentrating in development studies, said she did not meet with Randall advisors to receive specific advice about her potential concentration. Instead, she just wanted to discuss her general plan for her time at Brown with a faculty member.
"It was just good to have someone sort of set up some kind of the framework of my choices," she said.
Colwill said Randall advisors are all very dedicated, have years of experience and know a lot about the University.
"I did have to provide a lot of background, but they can gauge pretty quickly what you're interested in," Pal said.
Still, Pal said she sometimes wishes she had a regular sophomore advisor.
"If you're really confused about everything, it's a bit troublesome that nobody is seeking you out," Pal said.
Though Randall advisors might only be able to provide general academic information to individual students, Colwill said she thinks this sort of advice can be very beneficial. What students often need is a new perspective on the choices they make during a sophomore year that can be confusing for some, Colwill said.
