Advising Lacks Structure In Houses

When Clare K. Golden '95 moved into Mather House two years ago, she suddenly found herself without the academic and personal support she enjoyed during her days as a first-year in Grays Hall.

"Freshman year, our advisor was always there, always calling us up," she says. "After freshman year there was nothing. There's a huge difference; once you move out of the Yard, it's like, forget it, you don't exist."

Many upperclass students agree that first-year advising was better structured and more accessible. Once they move into the houses, students must learn how to use entry-way tutors, sophomore advisers, departmental advisers and senior tutors to meet their advising needs.

Currently, there is no formal or College-mandated structure for advising in the houses, according to Dean of the College L. Fred Jewett '57.

While some students say this decentralized advising system is adequate, other students and house tutors say the College should do more to structure and facilitate the advising process after the first-year.

Many students say their experience with advising in the houses has depended on the initiative they have taken on their own to find a tutor suited for their needs.

Although some have had luck in finding a tutor, others say they have never even met their assigned advisor.

"I couldn't give you his name if you asked me," says Jesse J. Szeto '94, a resident of Leverett House.

The First Year

Unlike some upperclass students, all first-year students know the name of their advisers because they are required to meet with them several times a year. First-year advising consists of a residential system in which each proctor is assigned between 20 and 30 students, the majority of which are his or her academic advisees. Non-residential advisors also hold mandatory meetings with their students during the year.

The entire system is monitored by the Freshman Dean's Office which checks in regularly with all proctors, according to Dean of Freshmen Elizabeth S. Nathans.

The proctor offers social and academic advisingin a series of formal interviews with the studentsas well as informal interaction in the dorm. Theproctor is also responsible for signing thestudents' study cards each semester.

"We tell proctors to expect seventeen to twentyhours of availability per week," Nathans says."But at the opening of the semester and duringimportant periods, they should be availabletwenty-four hours a day."

Because students solicit the proctor's adviceon a variety of academic and personal issues, theadvisers often act as referral services ratherthan experts. Helping students learn how to findfurther advice from other sources is a crucialfunction of the proctor, says Adam Siegel, aWigglesworth Hall proctor.

"We're trained to recognize we can't solveeveryone's problems," he says. "We need to helpthem to find the resources. I'm not a dean of thecollege and I'm not a psychotherapist."

Students offer mixed reviews of the first-yearadvising experience. While most agree there is asufficient amount of advising available somequestion the quality and necessity of thatadvising.

David Ganz '96 says he thinks the first-yearadvising system is "wonderful." However, he saysthe proctors tend to hand-hold the students. "Iterred on the side of babying you too much." hesays.

Nathans says a crucial aspect of the proctorrelationship is that the student can trust theproctor's authority. "The student must not thinkthat the proctor needs to triple checkeverything."

"I get the feeling [my proctor] doesn't reallyknow what she's talking about," says Lisa B. Eisen'97, who adds that she would not feel comfortablegoing to her proctor about a personal problem."It's not for lack of caring; it's just lack ofexperience.

Eli D. Chan '97 says he has difficulty locatinghis proctor due to her busy and erratic scheduleas a graduating medical student. "She has a lot ofodd hours," he says, "and for a while she wastouring all these hospitals around the country."

While students may not choose to build a closerelationship with advisers, most students say theproctor system offers a simple, accessiblestructure and provides a continuous relationshipduring this transitional year.

Help in the Houses

Though there are many specialized advisers inthe houses, student contact with tutors may beerratic in a system which often requires them tomake the first contact. The problem, says some,stems from the lack of requirements to call andmeet with advisees.

Many students and tutors say the house advisingsystem expects students to take the initiative todetermine on their own who would provide the bestsources of advice, a task students and tutors saycan be daunting at first.

"I think Harvard expects students to have itall together more than people actually do," saysDeborah B. Edgar '95.

Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III saysstudents can be startled by the unfamiliar setupof the house tutor system after the userfriendlystructure of the proctor system.

"Students experience dissonance because theyexpect to find a hallway with the proctor dooropen," he says. "There is not the same amount ofinformal availability."

Kirkland House Senior Tutor Garth O. McCavanasays the transition for the students from thefirst-year proctor system to the house advisingsystems can be jarring. "It's a shock. They are soused to having someone daily holding their hands,"he says.

He says he tells students the first week thatthe house system is more reflective of thetraditional "Harvard way of doing things,informing them of the resources and then lettingthem go and dig for the answers themselves."

Still, all houses provide masters, a seniortutor and both resident and non-resident tutors.There are four general types of housetutors--entry-way tutors, concentration advisers,non-concentration advisers and preprofessionaladvisers.

The system through which students and tutorsinteract, however, varies from house to house.Many houses offer sophomore nonconcentrationadvising which consists of a few meetingsdiscussing students' social and academic situationand concerns. The matchups are either random orbased on some shared academic interest.

Some of the problems tutors encounter, saysMcCavana, include students dealing with death,eating disorders and problems with classes.

Varying Experiences

Differences in the house advising systems aregenerally due to the initiative of senior tutorswho monitor advising and house tutors, who arrangeinformal study breaks and student meetings.

In Kirkland House, for example, each student isformally interviewed each year by an adviserassigned to them during their sophomore year. InLowell House, by contrast, there are no structuredindividual meetings. Sophomore advisers areencouraged by the house to call their advisees,but this interaction is not formalized, nor is itmonitored by the house office.

Student experiences with advising also varyaccording to how they choose to use the variety ofadvisers assigned to them in their house andconcentration.

"[House advising] is one of the most underusedresources by the undergraduates," says Kevin M.Groszkowski '96. He says students do not takeadvantage of the academic or personal advisingsources available in the house.

Elizabeth C. Bayley '96, a resident of DunsterHouse, says she enjoys the relaxed relationshipwith her entryway tutor and concentration tutor,unlike the formal academic meetings with herfirst-year proctor.

However, she says she does not know who hernon-concentration adviser is.

"It's sort of a mysterious thing for me," shesays. "I would like to know who the person is, butI'm already busy with the tutors I know."

She says her best resource is other students,especially "upperclassmen who know the ropes."

Gregory J. Lopez '95, a Lowell House resident,says he is satisfied with the current advisingsystem in the houses.

"They are supposed to be your peers more than astrict sort of relationship," he says.

But he says the system requires a certain"aggressiveness" on the students' part.

"It is easy for tutors not to know aboutstudents' academic problems until its too late,"he says. "It's not like the tutors are going tocome to you."

Advising Overlap

One of the major difficulties with the presentadvising system at Harvard, according to MatherHouse senior Tutor Mary Peckham and other tutors,is the overlap between the many advising systems,especially those of the houses and departments.

"Everyone can think that someone else is takingcare of the issue and some students can fallthrough the cracks," she says.

Adams House tutor Sarah Cusk says she feels theplethora of different tutors can cause confusionfor both the student seeking advice and the tutorsthemselves.

"It's confusing for most people," she says."They're not sure of the separate roles of thesophomore tutor, concentration tutor, and entrywaytutor."

But Cusk says that despite the excess ofadvisers, she finds the existing sophomore programto be very satisfactory.

She says she thinks the system will improve ifconcentration advisors "step in and take a moreactive role."

McCavana says he thinks the students "should begetting concentration advising from concentrationtutors and the department" and not from theirhouse advisers.

Catherine Patterson, a Dunster House tutor,says there may be some overlap, but that overallher role and those of the concentration advisorsserve distinct functions.

"Students will feel more comfortable with methan speaking with the head tutor in the historydepartment," she says. "There are specific kindsof questions they can ask me as an informaladviser."

Dunster House Senior Tutor Henriette L. Powersays she has always felt the house system was setup "to fill the lack of advising in theconcentrations."

McCavana and other senior tutors say adesignated tutor in their houses monitorssophomore advising to insure that all studentshave been contacted.

He says Kirkland House tries to providecontinuity in students' advising experiences bytrying to keep the same tutors advising the samestudents for all three years, "but there is acertain amount of turnover," he says.

Falling Through the Cracks

Man tutors say they are concerned that atroubled student could pass unnoticed through thehouse advising system.

McCavana says tutors try to make sure everystudent has contact with at least one member ofthe house staff. But he says it is possible forstudents with less noticeable problems to slipthrough the system.

"It's possible that students with psychologicalproblems can fall through the cracks," he says."We ask the entry tutors to keep their eyes open."

He says "teamwork" among the various housetutors is extremely important. "The bit ofinformation they pass on may be the small piece ofa puzzle that completes the picture and tells usthere is something wrong."

Patterson says it is difficult to identifytroubled students who do not seek help withoutinfringing on their privacy.

"I can't keep track every day of all 45students [in my entryway]," she says. "I can't doa whole lot if the student doesn't tell me thereis a problem and you don't want to be Big Brotherhanging over everybody's shoulder."

Power says the main problem is that studentshave no mandatory interaction withnon-concentration advisers since departmentaladvisers sign study cards. "It is completelyvoluntary, which can work well or terribly," shesays.

But she adds that she does not think a troubledstudent could pass unnoticed in the house. "Peopleare watching students from so many angles. It isdifficult to wander through Dunster depressed andhave nobody notice."

Leverett Senior Tutor Gordon C. Harvey says hethinks the dearth of mandatory advising sessionsin the houses can lead to students having lesscontact with advisers.

"With independence comes the risk of growingout of touch with the advisors," he says.

Power says that although there is no formalprogram to continue the sophomore yearadvisor-advisee relationship, she hopes therelationship will continue. But she acknowledgesthat this could be a problem if the student isnever contacted by their sophomore advisor.

Improving the System

Many of the houses have been trying to adapttheir advising systems to meet student needs andconcerns.

Epps says he would like to see changes definingthe role of the house tutors.

He says there is a need to emphasize theteaching role of the house tutors throughmandatory conversations between tutors andstudents. "They should meet with students severaltimes a year--academically and socially--to helpthem in making decisions about Harvard."

McCavana says he does not know how the "shock"of entering the house system could be minimized.

"I don't know if there is any way ofalleviating the problem," he says, "consideringhow Harvard is structured with all the[first-years] in the Yard; whatever we do, it willbe a jump."

Power says Dunster has attempted each year todo non-concentration sophomore advising in a newway, because "each year it is revealed to me andthe tutors that it does not work."

I Adams House, tutors have attempted to make iteasier for sophomores to make initial contact withtheir advisers through dinners held with themasters and senior tutor in the beginning of theyear.

"In the past they've had a problem facilitatingthe initial meeting with the sophomore advisee."says Carla J. Mazzio, sophomore advisingcoordinator in Adams House. Now at least 95percent of all sophomores have met their advisersat least once through the dinner series program,she says. Special attention is given to those whohave trouble meeting their advisers.

"I tried to schedule them in on another date,so there's no escape," she says.

Next year Mazzio hopes to improve the systemfurther. The advising program may become voluntaryfor the tutors, to make sure that those who doadvise are willing to make the necessary timecommitment.CrimsonDean of the College L. FRED JEWETT '57 saysthere is no College-mandated structure foradvising in the upperclass houses.

The proctor offers social and academic advisingin a series of formal interviews with the studentsas well as informal interaction in the dorm. Theproctor is also responsible for signing thestudents' study cards each semester.

"We tell proctors to expect seventeen to twentyhours of availability per week," Nathans says."But at the opening of the semester and duringimportant periods, they should be availabletwenty-four hours a day."

Because students solicit the proctor's adviceon a variety of academic and personal issues, theadvisers often act as referral services ratherthan experts. Helping students learn how to findfurther advice from other sources is a crucialfunction of the proctor, says Adam Siegel, aWigglesworth Hall proctor.

"We're trained to recognize we can't solveeveryone's problems," he says. "We need to helpthem to find the resources. I'm not a dean of thecollege and I'm not a psychotherapist."

Students offer mixed reviews of the first-yearadvising experience. While most agree there is asufficient amount of advising available somequestion the quality and necessity of thatadvising.

David Ganz '96 says he thinks the first-yearadvising system is "wonderful." However, he saysthe proctors tend to hand-hold the students. "Iterred on the side of babying you too much." hesays.

Nathans says a crucial aspect of the proctorrelationship is that the student can trust theproctor's authority. "The student must not thinkthat the proctor needs to triple checkeverything."

"I get the feeling [my proctor] doesn't reallyknow what she's talking about," says Lisa B. Eisen'97, who adds that she would not feel comfortablegoing to her proctor about a personal problem."It's not for lack of caring; it's just lack ofexperience.

Eli D. Chan '97 says he has difficulty locatinghis proctor due to her busy and erratic scheduleas a graduating medical student. "She has a lot ofodd hours," he says, "and for a while she wastouring all these hospitals around the country."

While students may not choose to build a closerelationship with advisers, most students say theproctor system offers a simple, accessiblestructure and provides a continuous relationshipduring this transitional year.

Help in the Houses

Though there are many specialized advisers inthe houses, student contact with tutors may beerratic in a system which often requires them tomake the first contact. The problem, says some,stems from the lack of requirements to call andmeet with advisees.

Many students and tutors say the house advisingsystem expects students to take the initiative todetermine on their own who would provide the bestsources of advice, a task students and tutors saycan be daunting at first.

"I think Harvard expects students to have itall together more than people actually do," saysDeborah B. Edgar '95.

Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III saysstudents can be startled by the unfamiliar setupof the house tutor system after the userfriendlystructure of the proctor system.

"Students experience dissonance because theyexpect to find a hallway with the proctor dooropen," he says. "There is not the same amount ofinformal availability."

Kirkland House Senior Tutor Garth O. McCavanasays the transition for the students from thefirst-year proctor system to the house advisingsystems can be jarring. "It's a shock. They are soused to having someone daily holding their hands,"he says.

He says he tells students the first week thatthe house system is more reflective of thetraditional "Harvard way of doing things,informing them of the resources and then lettingthem go and dig for the answers themselves."

Still, all houses provide masters, a seniortutor and both resident and non-resident tutors.There are four general types of housetutors--entry-way tutors, concentration advisers,non-concentration advisers and preprofessionaladvisers.

The system through which students and tutorsinteract, however, varies from house to house.Many houses offer sophomore nonconcentrationadvising which consists of a few meetingsdiscussing students' social and academic situationand concerns. The matchups are either random orbased on some shared academic interest.

Some of the problems tutors encounter, saysMcCavana, include students dealing with death,eating disorders and problems with classes.

Varying Experiences

Differences in the house advising systems aregenerally due to the initiative of senior tutorswho monitor advising and house tutors, who arrangeinformal study breaks and student meetings.

In Kirkland House, for example, each student isformally interviewed each year by an adviserassigned to them during their sophomore year. InLowell House, by contrast, there are no structuredindividual meetings. Sophomore advisers areencouraged by the house to call their advisees,but this interaction is not formalized, nor is itmonitored by the house office.

Student experiences with advising also varyaccording to how they choose to use the variety ofadvisers assigned to them in their house andconcentration.

"[House advising] is one of the most underusedresources by the undergraduates," says Kevin M.Groszkowski '96. He says students do not takeadvantage of the academic or personal advisingsources available in the house.

Elizabeth C. Bayley '96, a resident of DunsterHouse, says she enjoys the relaxed relationshipwith her entryway tutor and concentration tutor,unlike the formal academic meetings with herfirst-year proctor.

However, she says she does not know who hernon-concentration adviser is.

"It's sort of a mysterious thing for me," shesays. "I would like to know who the person is, butI'm already busy with the tutors I know."

She says her best resource is other students,especially "upperclassmen who know the ropes."

Gregory J. Lopez '95, a Lowell House resident,says he is satisfied with the current advisingsystem in the houses.

"They are supposed to be your peers more than astrict sort of relationship," he says.

But he says the system requires a certain"aggressiveness" on the students' part.

"It is easy for tutors not to know aboutstudents' academic problems until its too late,"he says. "It's not like the tutors are going tocome to you."

Advising Overlap

One of the major difficulties with the presentadvising system at Harvard, according to MatherHouse senior Tutor Mary Peckham and other tutors,is the overlap between the many advising systems,especially those of the houses and departments.

"Everyone can think that someone else is takingcare of the issue and some students can fallthrough the cracks," she says.

Adams House tutor Sarah Cusk says she feels theplethora of different tutors can cause confusionfor both the student seeking advice and the tutorsthemselves.

"It's confusing for most people," she says."They're not sure of the separate roles of thesophomore tutor, concentration tutor, and entrywaytutor."

But Cusk says that despite the excess ofadvisers, she finds the existing sophomore programto be very satisfactory.

She says she thinks the system will improve ifconcentration advisors "step in and take a moreactive role."

McCavana says he thinks the students "should begetting concentration advising from concentrationtutors and the department" and not from theirhouse advisers.

Catherine Patterson, a Dunster House tutor,says there may be some overlap, but that overallher role and those of the concentration advisorsserve distinct functions.

"Students will feel more comfortable with methan speaking with the head tutor in the historydepartment," she says. "There are specific kindsof questions they can ask me as an informaladviser."

Dunster House Senior Tutor Henriette L. Powersays she has always felt the house system was setup "to fill the lack of advising in theconcentrations."

McCavana and other senior tutors say adesignated tutor in their houses monitorssophomore advising to insure that all studentshave been contacted.

He says Kirkland House tries to providecontinuity in students' advising experiences bytrying to keep the same tutors advising the samestudents for all three years, "but there is acertain amount of turnover," he says.

Falling Through the Cracks

Man tutors say they are concerned that atroubled student could pass unnoticed through thehouse advising system.

McCavana says tutors try to make sure everystudent has contact with at least one member ofthe house staff. But he says it is possible forstudents with less noticeable problems to slipthrough the system.

"It's possible that students with psychologicalproblems can fall through the cracks," he says."We ask the entry tutors to keep their eyes open."

He says "teamwork" among the various housetutors is extremely important. "The bit ofinformation they pass on may be the small piece ofa puzzle that completes the picture and tells usthere is something wrong."

Patterson says it is difficult to identifytroubled students who do not seek help withoutinfringing on their privacy.

"I can't keep track every day of all 45students [in my entryway]," she says. "I can't doa whole lot if the student doesn't tell me thereis a problem and you don't want to be Big Brotherhanging over everybody's shoulder."

Power says the main problem is that studentshave no mandatory interaction withnon-concentration advisers since departmentaladvisers sign study cards. "It is completelyvoluntary, which can work well or terribly," shesays.

But she adds that she does not think a troubledstudent could pass unnoticed in the house. "Peopleare watching students from so many angles. It isdifficult to wander through Dunster depressed andhave nobody notice."

Leverett Senior Tutor Gordon C. Harvey says hethinks the dearth of mandatory advising sessionsin the houses can lead to students having lesscontact with advisers.

"With independence comes the risk of growingout of touch with the advisors," he says.

Power says that although there is no formalprogram to continue the sophomore yearadvisor-advisee relationship, she hopes therelationship will continue. But she acknowledgesthat this could be a problem if the student isnever contacted by their sophomore advisor.

Improving the System

Many of the houses have been trying to adapttheir advising systems to meet student needs andconcerns.

Epps says he would like to see changes definingthe role of the house tutors.

He says there is a need to emphasize theteaching role of the house tutors throughmandatory conversations between tutors andstudents. "They should meet with students severaltimes a year--academically and socially--to helpthem in making decisions about Harvard."

McCavana says he does not know how the "shock"of entering the house system could be minimized.

"I don't know if there is any way ofalleviating the problem," he says, "consideringhow Harvard is structured with all the[first-years] in the Yard; whatever we do, it willbe a jump."

Power says Dunster has attempted each year todo non-concentration sophomore advising in a newway, because "each year it is revealed to me andthe tutors that it does not work."

I Adams House, tutors have attempted to make iteasier for sophomores to make initial contact withtheir advisers through dinners held with themasters and senior tutor in the beginning of theyear.

"In the past they've had a problem facilitatingthe initial meeting with the sophomore advisee."says Carla J. Mazzio, sophomore advisingcoordinator in Adams House. Now at least 95percent of all sophomores have met their advisersat least once through the dinner series program,she says. Special attention is given to those whohave trouble meeting their advisers.

"I tried to schedule them in on another date,so there's no escape," she says.

Next year Mazzio hopes to improve the systemfurther. The advising program may become voluntaryfor the tutors, to make sure that those who doadvise are willing to make the necessary timecommitment.CrimsonDean of the College L. FRED JEWETT '57 saysthere is no College-mandated structure foradvising in the upperclass houses.