<p>fall 2011. how soon can a student begin to meet with a academic adviser? are some academic advisers better than others? if so, which are the best and which should be avoided.</p>
<p>You can talk with an advisor any time. You can either meet with one in person if you live in the area or set up a phone appointment by going through the academic advising center. This can happen even before they actually assign an advisor.</p>
<p>If your child has indicated an expected major, they will assign an advisor based on that. If they are undeclared, then I guess they get one based on that. I rather doubt advisors are “rated”, although no doubt some are better than others. But initially the issues are usually pretty basic, and once a student does declare a major they will get an advisor from that department or area. If the student doesn’t like their initial advisor, they can go to the advising center and talk to someone else.</p>
<p>I would add that if there are more unusual or specific issues that arise, sometimes the student has to do some legwork themselves. No advisor can know every detail of every program at Tulane, and some are more motivated to dig into issues than others, like anywhere. Aside from that, I really doubt there should be any issues regarding the advisors.</p>
<p>i have to agree with FC in that some advisers are better than others, but it truly is up to you to understand your major and the requirements. i love my advisor and i go into see her every few weeks, sometimes just to chat. while she is very helpful in guiding me, i am also aware of both all the core requirements and major-specific requirements. it isn’t that hard to go on your department’s website and print out a “major checklist” of all the classes you need to take (especially helpful for sciences with a more rigid curriculum).</p>