Advising in the College

Before coming to Penn, I have to admit that while I was 100% sure of my choice to attend, I was still anxious about one aspect of academic life. For a few months up until my first meeting with my academic advisor, there was one big question swirling around in my mind: who would look out for me?

It wasn’t that I didn’t know about college advising, but instead, I had people fill my mind up with bogus ideas about how it’s nearly impossible to get any attention at a medium-sized research university like Penn. I’d gone through all of high school having to push and push for fifteen minutes of most of my overworked teachers’ time and I really didn’t want to have to do that again. I was used to having to make an effort to meet with teachers, but I figured that logically, it would be have to be easier to do so in going from high school in an underfunded district to a resource-rich university.

After I graduated in June, my advisor contacted me to set up a meeting to discuss course selection and Penn. We talked about what major I was thinking about and options for classes, but she also took an interest in my personal interests. We discussed everything from unheard of Jewish diasporic communities in the Amazon, China, and India to how excited I was for my summer trip to Europe. Not only did I leave the meeting reassured, but also more excited than I already was for Penn. 

My relationship with my advisor has developed since then. While she’s helped me with what advisors are traditionally associated with like tutoring resources and course selection, she’s also been a reassuring on-campus presence. She’s supported me in difficult decisions like withdrawing from a class, directed my attention to interesting career paths like the U.S. foreign service, built up my confidence around applying to a competitive academic program, and chatted with me about topics like complexities of Penn’s many websites, the Philadelphia School District, and international politics.

My relationship with my advisor has not only enriched my experience in the College of Arts & Sciences, but also taken the institutional feel out of navigating my academic journey. In exchange for the occasional help with Penn InTouch, I have someone who’s not just concerned with my major, but someone to look out for me.

- Karin H.