2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
    Mar 19, 2024  
2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Academic Advising


The advising program at Sweet Briar serves to guide each student through the crucial years of building an educational foundation to support her future goals. The priority of faculty advisors is to support students, provide sound guidance, help navigate inevitable challenges and honor successes.

Pre-declaration Advising

Prior to her arrival, each student is matched with a pre-declaration academic advisor on the basis of initial interests. The College provides initial academic advising during orientation. During this initial meeting, the student begins to plan her program of study. As the process unfolds, each student creates a network of key individuals who will help her to make informed decisions about her academic work, pre-professional experiences and co-curricular activities.

Post-declaration Advising

As soon as a student identifies her major, minor or the certificate program she may wish to complete, she will be assigned an advisor in that specific area. Working with an expert in the field allows a deeper focus in a discipline or area of interdisciplinary study. Since these academic advisors remain connected with alumnae who have gone to graduate school or on to a career path, they help current students develop post-graduate goals and real-world contacts. Our faculty also connect students to networks of colleagues throughout the world.

Goals of Advising

Sweet Briar students actively participate in planning their own education. For this reason, the College’s advising program maintains a strong focus on self-assessment and decision-making.

In the process of helping students make their own choices, academic advisors interpret College requirements, assist with course selections, monitor advisees’ academic progress and make referrals to campus resources. Advisors encourage students to make informed decisions about their own academic progress. The program provides assistance for students as they develop their educational objectives and integrate their academic and co-curricular experiences.

The responsibility for advising students about graduate programs and career plans is shared among the dean of the College, members of the faculty and the career services staff.