Dietrich faculty share concerns about new advising model

Former faculty advisers in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences are voicing their concerns following recent changes to the advising system.

The Dietrich School is shifting advising responsibilities from faculty advisers to staff advisers as part of Pitt’s advising coordination project. Under the new shared advising model, former faculty advisers are becoming faculty mentors. These faculty mentors have expressed disappointment with a lack of information about their new roles and concerns about how it will affect student-professor connections.

While most Dietrich departments are currently implementing the shared advising model, departments such as biological sciences, psychology and neuroscience have had staff advising in place for the past few years, according to University spokesperson Meredith Herndon.

Some faculty mentors, like assistant political science professor Anthony Ocepek, are concerned about what the role of faculty mentor entails. He said Dietrich did not give specific guidelines for mentor roles and left it in the hands of each individual department. 

“[Dietrich] did receive a lot of pushback, and I would say that a lot of pushback from faculty advisers [was] because there was not a clear plan about what the faculty mentors actually were,” Ocepek said.

Herndon said staff advisers will focus on informing students about University processes, while faculty mentors will offer students specific expertise in their respective fields.

“Advisers help guide students to graduation by monitoring degree progress and helping them to understand University resources and opportunities,” Herndon said. “Faculty bring a depth of expertise in their academic discipline to share with students.” 

Herndon said each department will assign responsibilities based on the needs of its students and faculty. These responsibilities will be finalized for each department by December 2026, but all faculty mentors will still assist with some aspects of students’ lives.

“Among the consistent expectations of faculty mentors will be research engagement, professional development and guidance with graduate school applications,” Herndon said.

John Stoner, a professor of history and faculty adviser of 12 years, said in his new role as a faculty mentor, he is worried about the loss of connection between students and faculty.

“A student who needs to get their advising hold lifted will do that,” Stoner said. “They’ll move on with their life, and never further that relationship that allows for networking and professional development.”

Stoner said he feels the loss of connection will remove a gratifying aspect of the faculty advisers’ jobs.   

“Those of us who really felt invested as faculty advisers are concerned that we will see fewer students in a way that is enriching for all of us and satisfying to us from a work perspective,” Stoner said.

Katherine Wolfe, a teaching professor of economics and faculty adviser of 20 years, said she is curious if students will be motivated to meet with the faculty mentors since they aren’t required to see mentors to lift holds or for other advising-related requests.

“Why should we make a student who doesn’t need advice come and see both a staff adviser and a faculty mentor?” Wolfe said. “We still haven’t figured out how we’re going to make that work — [to] not overburden the students but still get them to come for advice.”

Stoner said he is worried about the quality of advice he can give a student if the first time he ever meets them is for career advice, and he doesn’t know them as a student.

“If a student comes to me to talk about graduate school, for example, unless I have a more holistic sense of them as a student, it’s really difficult for me to advise them,” Stoner said.

Some faculty members like Ocepek are looking at the transition with a more optimistic view. He said now that faculty members don’t have to concern themselves with the “nuts and bolts” of advising, they can focus more time on professional guidance. 

“Staff advisers are able to [lift holds and put in requests], [which] allow us as faculty mentors to divert more of our attention towards helping students when it comes to career [and] professional advice,” Ocepek said.

The Dietrich School has been hosting meetings with faculty, directors and departments and providing updates since the project was introduced by the Office of the Provost in the summer of 2024. Herndon said the University will continue to work with staff and faculty to ensure a successful transition.

“The school has and will continue to offer workshops for department chairs on how to develop a plan for implementing the faculty mentor model in their departments,” Herndon said.

Ocepek said as most Dietrich departments are planning what the role of faculty mentor will look like for them, students should be vocal with their departments about their needs. 

“Students [should] give feedback about the problems they see in their department because the more feedback [departments] can get, the more we can understand what a faculty mentor role should look like,” Ocepek said.