Responsible Advising

Graduation relies on student responsibility in addition to new policies.

While Temple is exploring new, more aggressive advising and academic policy initiatives to improve students’ retention and four-year graduation rates, it is important to remember advising is a two-way process.

The university is doing its part by adding measures to prevent students from dropping out and help students graduate in four years. As Alexis Sachdev reported last week [“Policy changes to be enacted,” Feb. 1], the university is including and revising five academic policies aimed at retention and graduation rates. This week, Angelo Fichera looks into the university’s new advising initiatives [“Aggressive Advising,” Page 1].

It is the responsibility of the student to navigate his or her major and university requirements, as well as schedule regular meetings with academic advisers to ensure they will graduate on time.

While the university’s efforts are commendable, it is important students take responsibility for their education.

Last week, The Temple News reported an average of 53 percent of students at four-year institutions graduate within six years. At Temple, 67 percent of students graduate in six years.

With the series of academic and advising changes made possible by the university-wide administrative system’s switch to Banner, the university can take a more active role in preventing students from taking classes they will not receive credit for, or making sure they have the necessary prerequisites to ensure academic success.

Graduating in four years may seem increasingly challenging each year, but, in most cases, more responsibility will fall on the students to keep up their part as the university reorganizes academic advising and updates academic policies to better assist students.

Requirements for the various majors and academic programs are listed in the Temple Undergraduate Bulletin and on the department’s and programs’ respective branches of the university’s website, as are the general education and core requirements.

Academic advising is a service students are paying for regardless – so why not take advantage of it?

Keeping track of personal requirements and scheduling regular meetings with academic advisers will aid Temple’s efforts to improve graduation and retention rates, and keep students’ loan money from reaching a ridiculous amount and spiraling out of control.