Michael Sylvester, resident TIPS gadfly, asked the searching question: > should an academic counselor be held liable > for giving incorrect advise to a student?
On 3 Dec 2002, hgelpi replied: > Nope, > > That is why they call it "advisement." When I taught the college > skills courses, going to the advisors was an important area. Students > should never blindly follow the advisors, they need to become educated > consumers. > The dominant response to this query, as in the one above, seems to be "hang tough", with (as I recall) nary a dissenting voice. Here's one. Assume that there's documented evidence that the advisor was consulted and gave incorrect advice (such as the advisor admitting it). In that case, I'd say that the university has a duty to ensure that the student doesn't suffer as a result of the error. My reasoning is that a student who consults an advisor does so in the reasonable expectation that the advice will be competent. Thus it's a cop-out to claim that the ultimate responsibility lies with the student (although, of course, that's exactly what universities do). If the student is supposed to know, and if the advice doesn't count, then why bother to get it? The university should therefore make an exception to the rule for the student or allow the student to register retroactively for the required course. I doubt that this will lead to a deluge of "me too's". Only those who similarly received bad advice should receive a similar break, and let's hope it's an isolated case. In cases where there's ambiguity or uncertainty in the rule to be applied, I always tell the student to get the advice in writing. That way, who's at fault can be established. And if it's our fault, we have a responsibility to own up and make it right. Stephen ______________________________________________________________ Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470 Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661 Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Lennoxville, QC J1M 1Z7 Canada Dept web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy TIPS discussion list for psychology teachers at http://www.frostburg.edu/dept/psyc/southerly/tips _________________________________________________________ --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
