As an incoming Engineering freshman, Radhika Gupta found college life to be both exciting and full of opportunity. But the huge number of options that Penn students have at their fingertips left Gupta a little overwhelmed.
Finding herself pulled in a multitude of directions, Gupta, like many others, turned to the Engineering Advising Department.
Unfortunately, Gupta said the department offered her little feedback.
"I had no idea what courses to take, and I wasn't given any sort of path to follow," Gupta said.
Now, Gupta's visits to the advising department have become little more than a formality.
The freshman said she only spoke with her peer advisor once last semester. Completely frustrated with the advising program, she now visits for the sole purpose of getting paperwork signed.
"I am a dual degree [student], and Engineering advisors just don't know anything about my majors," Gupta said.
Until Engineering students declare their majors, they are randomly assigned to faculty advisors. Because of this, incoming freshmen are paired with advisors that do not have knowledge of the students' intended majors.
While the College of Arts and Sciences also randomly assigns advisors, some Engineering students complain that unlike College advisors, their advisors do not know much about many of the majors offered in the school.
And many Engineering students say that the faculty advisors they have been assigned provide them with little guidance in course and major selection.
Benjamin Kamine, an Engineering freshman, said he plans to be a double major in the College and the Engineering School. Kamine pointed out that whereas his College advisor can speak knowledgeably about all the majors in the College, his Engineering advisor can offer him little help in choosing a specific focus within the school's vast curriculum.
"My advisor knows nothing about CSE, since his focus is purely bioengineering," Kamine said.
Kamine also said that he did not even know he had an Engineering advisor until the end of last semester -- which discouraged him from taking any Engineering introductory courses in the fall.
"It basically sucks. Now I am behind by a whole year," Kamine said.
Director of Engineering Advising John Keenan said he has heard a number of complaints from students who have had difficulty reaching their advisors.
However, Keenan maintained that students do have a number of alternatives available to them in the event that they cannot reach their advisors.
"Every student has [access to] a staff person, faculty advisor and the Academic Programs Office," Keenan said. "I think there are more than enough resources for them to use."
Despite the options that Keenan points out, many Engineering students say that there is still not enough to satisfy their needs.
"What good are these resources if we don't even know exactly where to go to get this help?" Kamine asked.
John Goldschmidt, a sophomore who recently transferred into Engineering, said that he finds his advisor to be more concerned with meeting requirements than actually helping him find classes that he would find enjoyable.
For that reason, Goldschmidt said, he spent a lot of time this semester searching for classes on his own.
"I guess that just goes with being in Engineering," he said. "The same people come in with the same problems, and advising tends to become rather standardized."
Andres Garro, an Engineering sophomore, also said that advice he receives from his advisor tends to be too broad for his liking.
"My advisor knows nothing about my major," Garro said. "While he does give me general advice, it is extremely hard for him to give me the specifics."
