<p>My S has applied to Hampshire RD and we are visiting in February. One question I have is when and how do students get the advisor with whom they'll work as they develop their concentration? Given the creative freedom students have at Hamp, this relationship seems even more important than at schools with rigid majors (where many advisors may have only a little conversation before approving a schedule).</p>
<p>Students are initially assigned a faculty advisor for their first year. Usually, this advisor is the teacher who leads the student’s first semester introductory tutorial course. This generally works out pretty well because students presumably chose a tutorial course that addresses some of their academic interests; so the tutorial teacher knows about the discipline(s) around which the tutorial course is based. This advisor helps with Division I course selection and developing discipline concentrations. S/he signs off on Division I completion and passes the student off to a 3-member Division II advisory committee who are selected by each Division I student.</p>
<p>Thanks, ALF. This forum (and others) have been so quiet I am not sure what to think. Hampshire is currently leading the pack for my son because he’s an alternative kid, but he’s not yet had a chance to work outside the typical box. All his other options are more traditional schools, and I’m wondering if he’ll be up for all the writing of a small LAC. Hoping that if he has more control over what to write about he’ll be able to do it.</p>
<p>Hi - I think it’s typical that college forums are quiet right now. Things will get busier in the spring. My older son is a Div II student (third year) at Hampshire and truly couldn’t imagine himself anywhere else. In terms of writing, my son is a theater major so hasn’t had a ton of writing beyond his first year. Has he visited Hampshire yet? I think it’s really helpful to visit and do an overnight if he can. If you have questions, just let us know! </p>
<p>We’ll be visiting next month but probably won’t be able to do an overnight. If he’s accepted we might try to arrange that. Thanks for the response.</p>
<p>Enjoy! Amherst and the surrounding area is a wonderful place. If you have questions at all, just ask.</p>
<p>In high school, our daughter whined incessantly about having to write a 5-page paper. After graduating from Hampshire (2013), she now thinks of writing anything less than 20 pages as child’s play. Given that her job (education apprentice in a Broadway theater) involves writing pages each day, she is certainly better-prepared than most college grads.</p>
<p>We’d be going from whining about 5 paragraphs to 5 pages. Meanwhile, my S16 has already written two partial novels. Kids are so different!</p>
<p>^^^ you said that!</p>