The Undergraduate Assembly passed a proposal last night urging the advising office to improve the quality of academic advising.
The proposal recommended several measures, including more interaction between students and their advisors and the implementation of a feedback mechanism in the form of a mid-year and end-of-year survey for first-year students to fill out about their advisors.
The UA also hopes that the advising office will streamline information about course selection and advising and create Webcasts and online tutorials to help incoming freshman navigate the complicated course-registration process.
"This has been an issue on the UA for many years, and, this time, we would really like to try to see it through," UA Executive Vice Chairwoman and College junior Sarah Abroms said.
The organization also passed a proposal authored by College freshman and Daily Pennsylvanian contributing writer Chi-Chi Achebe encouraging the University to improve efforts to match students' projected majors with both academic and peer advisors with experience in that field of study.
The UA worked with the Student Committee on Undergraduate Education to develop the proposal.
"We look forward to more SCUE-UA academic advising collaboration," said College junior and SCUE chairwoman Elizabeth Slavitt.
Other items discussed during the meeting included:
n Town-hall meetings held last week in which the UA surveyed about 20 students to gather student feedback on dining.
Results showed that only three out of the 20 had used all of the meals on their meal plan first semester and that, on average, freshman had 24 meals left over.
Some possibilities for recommendations to improve the dining system include extending dining-hall hours, more flexibility in the freshman meal plan and online ordering and delivery for Savory restaurant.
There are no plans to survey any more students despite the low turnout.
n Ticket sales will begin next week on Locust Walk for the "Clash of the Classes" event that will occur at the Feb. 9 basketball game against Dartmouth College.
The UA was unable to obtain a bursar machine for sales, so they will be cash-only.
n The UA mid-year report - which details last semester's accomplishments such as the release of the Ruckus music service and the continuation of the UA bus service to the airport - was released last week and will be sent out in a schoolwide e-mail in the near future.
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