Academics

 

I want to go to a Yale where students of all class years, majors, and academic interests are empowered to explore and to concentrate in disciplines.

 As Academic Policy Director, I have worked with Council representatives to:

  1. Establish a Professor Meals program that has served 100 Yalies, to allow students and faculty to share a meal outside of the classroom.

  2. Plan the first-ever Preregistration Open House, for students who would like to clarify pre-registration procedures at the beginning of each semester.

  3. Advocate to Dean Holloway to reform Credit/D/Fail deadlines.

  4. Advocate for the promotion of ethnic studies education.

  5. Advocate successfully for the creation of select sophomore-priority seminars next year.

While this year has been a prolific one for academic policy in the YCC, there is still considerable advocacy we must continue in order to ensure progress.

Yale should:

  • Extend the period of time students have to designate a course Cr/D/F from two weeks to four weeks, in line with the policies of Harvard, Penn, and Brown.

  • Extend the deadline to convert a course from Cr/D/F to a Letter Grade to the last day of classes.

  • Establish a slate of sophomore-priority seminars, which would provide coursework tailored to second-year students in departments that are looking to increase their exposure to underclassmen.

  • Publicize the evaluations of Teaching Fellows who teach in multiple semesters, or publicize their CVs if evaluations are not accessible.

  • Consider implementing a special academic program in public policy or robotics.

  • Require seminar professors to include clear criteria for seminar admission in their posted syllabi.

  • Designate more labs as one credit courses, particularly those that are writing credits.

 

What YCC can do:

  • Follow up on the recommendations made in the Fall 2013 Undergraduate STEM Experience report.

  • Continue the pilot Professor Meals program, which was established to increase contact between faculty and students outside of the classroom.

  • Continue the pilot Pre-registration Open House, which was established to provide assistance to students during Camp Yale pertaining to how they may approach pre-registration for courses in multiple departments.

  • Survey students to determine the impact of CS50 on Yale’s academic experience, and especially the computer science department. Did it live up to its promise? How can it become a course that is more distinctly “Yale,” if we deem that to be a priority?