First-year students are encouraged to take 4 credits in the fall term and 5 credits in the spring term, but one cannot prevent them from taking as many as 5.5 in the fall. If you are concerned that the schedule your advisee is asking you to sign will overwhelm him or her, you should feel free to consult with the residential college dean. In addition to expressing your reservations, you can remind students that if in a few weeks they are feeling overwhelmed, they can drop the course before the mid-term date without the course appearing on the academic record. You would then want to be sure to follow up with such students to see how they were managing their course load.
You might also use this meeting to solicit students’ reactions to their first few days at Yale as another way to further get to know them. Are there problems the student is encountering that should be brought to the attention of the residential college dean? It is imperative that students get your signature on their course schedule, but with luck, you will have established a relationship with your student that transcends this official act.
What to do if you are unable to sign your advisees’ schedule on time.
Click here for guidelines and procedures.