Advising

The Department of Political Science has a variety of advising resources available to provide undergraduate majors and concentrators with the information and support needed to successfully navigate through the program. Below you'll find further information about these resources,including the new option to request a faculty adviser.

Undergraduate Advising Office
The Undergraduate Advising Office should be your first stop with any questions or concerns about the undergraduate program. If one of the advisers cannot answer your question, any of them can refer you to the appropriate person.

The Undergraduate Advising Office is staffed by political science PhD students who hold open office hours each week (the schedule can be found below). Please stop by during these hours with any questions about requirements, course selection, your course of study, transfer and study abroad credit – and any other aspect of the program.

You should visit the Undergraduate Advising Office for assistance in completing your political science program planning form (you can find planning forms in the office, or here). The advisers in this office must sign and date this form in the approval column next to any listed class that requires approval to be counted toward your program (transfer courses, non-traditional courses, etc.). These forms cannot be completed by faculty advisers. Your form will be kept on file in the department, so that you may return each semester to meet with an adviser to update your form.

The advisers are also happy to speak about more substantive issues, including your research interests and theirs, internships and post-college plans. Since they've been through the graduate school application process, the advisers are great resources with whom you may discuss the process. Also, since they're current PhD students in the department, they're quite familiar with most political science faculty research interests, and can therefore refer you to a professor whom you may approach if you're looking for a thesis adviser, a research assistant job, or just looking to connect with a faculty member whose research corresponds to your own interest.

Requesting a Faculty Adviser
Often the best way to obtain advising from a faculty member is to contact aprofessor with whom you have taken a class in an area that interests you. You also have the option of having a faculty adviserassigned to you. To request a faculty adviser, please fill out theFaculty Adviser Request Form and submit it to the Undergraduate Coordinator,Nathalie Neptune, in 710 IAB, during the first two weeks of the semester. Please remember that faculty availability is different every semester (some goon leave, their schedules change, etc.), so there is no guarantee that yourassigned faculty adviser will be available in future semesters.

Onceyou're assigned an adviser, please contact him or her by email or during officehours. Please remember that you may consult your faculty adviser forany substantive issue, but you still must see an Undergraduate Adviser to havecourses approved and to fill out and update your planning form, or with anyquestions about departmental requirements and regulations.

Undergraduate Coordinator
The Undergraduate Coordinator, Nathalie Neptune, organizes the administrationof the undergraduate program. Nathalie is often the first point ofcontact for students who want more information about any aspect of thedepartment's majors and concentrations. She organizes the UndergraduateAdvising office schedule, publicizes internship and other opportunities, andcan provide information about the department's honors program, prizes andfellowships. Please keep in mind that Nathalie cannot approve any coursesto be counted toward the major (for that, please see an UndergraduateAdviser). Nathalie is in the office (710 IAB) Monday to Friday, 9am to5pm. Please email Nathaliewith any questions or concerns you may have about the program, and she'd behappy to meet with you or to refer you to the appropriate person.

Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS)
The DUS, Professor Jack Snyder, oversees the undergraduate program. Heis available during his officehours. While your first stop foradvising should be the Undergraduate Advising Office, the DUS is available toanswer any questions that the Undergraduate Advisers or the UndergraduateCoordinator cannot. In such a case, Nathalie or the advisers would referstudents to the DUS.

Economics - Political Science Adviser
Econ-Poli Sci majors may consult Professor Robert Erikson during his officehours. Please note that you should also see an Undergraduate Adviser tospeak about your major requirements and fill out a planning form. For anyquestions about the Econ-Poli Sci program that an Undergraduate Adviser cannotanswer, you'll be referred to Professor Erikson.

Political Science - Statistics Adviser
Poli Sci-Stats majors may consult Professor RobertShapiro during his officehours. Please note that you should also see an Undergraduate Adviser tospeak about your major requirements and fill out a planning form. For anyquestions about the Poli Sci-Stats program that an Undergraduate Adviser cannotanswer, you'll be referred to Professor Shapiro.

Faculty at-large
You are encouraged to contact any professor for advice during his or her officehours or by arrangement, to speak about your interests in any field ofpolitical science, course selection, or any other academic or post-collegeissues on which you need advice. For example, faculty members may provideadvice about graduate schools, suggest literature you might consult as sourcesfor your research, recommend specific courses or professors based on your owninterests, or offer information about research opportunities with faculty. However, please note that any issuessurrounding departmental regulations and requirements, major certification,course approvals, etc., should be taken up at the Undergraduate AdvisingOffice.