Undergraduate Excellence

Transforming Our Undergraduate Academic Experience

Since the founding of the University of Virginia, its ambition to serve the Commonwealth’s citizens as the best public university in the nation and as a global leader in higher education has been centered in the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. That remains true today as the College aims to deliver a 21st-century undergraduate academic experience that is second to none. In recent years, Arts & Sciences faculty and staff leaders have worked to update the College’s curriculum and create a first-year academic experience that has transformed the ways new students are introduced into UVA’s community. With that foundation in place, the College has shifted its efforts to the following strategic activities:

 

Pre-Major Advising

Last spring (2023), the College kicked off a process to evaluate the advising system for incoming first years and other undergraduates who have not yet declared a major. Academic wayfinding is an intrinsic part of a liberal arts education and our commitment to ensuring that all students have access to the university's opportunities. Our goal was to assess our current system and benchmark its structure and practices against those of peer institutions as we explored opportunities to enhance our advising resources. 

Since then, we have made an unprecedented evaluation of our principles and priorities for pre-major advising. We’ve conceptualized and discussed many ideas to create a sustainable and transformative advising approach. Since the announcement in April about the decision to connect pre-major advising with our first-year Engagements shared curriculum, we’ve quickly: 

  • Built an innovative professionalized advising model that draws on faculty expertise and relationship-building.
  • Hired an inaugural Senior Assistant Dean and Director of Undergraduate Advising.
  • Hired 14 advising specialists who will teach and advise students within the Engagements program.
  • Created an academic advising community of practice that is focused on the student experience.

The new advising ecosystem is fully prepared and ready to go for the Fall 2024 semester. For further information about the Pre-Major Advising project, please see our webpage at https://as.virginia.edu/pre-major-advising.

 

Promoting the Value of a Liberal Arts Education

We must continue to define and promote the inherent values of a liberal arts education and the distinctive ways it is realized at UVA. The College’s commitment to experiential learning provides for our students a distinct advantage and opportunity to develop the critical thinking skills and nimbleness of mind essential to the world awaiting them after graduation. The next step involves inviting students and College alumni to share their perspectives on their academic experience.

 

Significant New Online Resources for Undergraduate Students

The College Website, an essential resource for A&S undergraduate students, has undergone its first comprehensive rebuild in many years and was officially launched on June 4, 2024. This site provides students with the information and materials they need to manage their education at the College: deadlines, forms, policies and rules, and contact information for Association Deans and College staff. 

 

Project Committee

  • Jennifer Bair, Associate Dean for Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology
  • Judy Giering (co-chair), Interim Associate Dean, Undergraduate Student Services
  • Keisha John, Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
  • David Leblang (co-chair), Ambassador Henry J. Taylor & Mrs. Marion R. Taylor Professor of Politics and Interim Associate Dean for the Undergraduate Experience & Strategic Initiatives
  • Alicia Lopez Opere, Associate Professor of Spanish, Italian & Portuguese (GF)
  • Gretchen Martinet, Associate Professor of Statistics (GF)
  • Jamie Morris, Professor of Psychology and Chair, Department of Psychology
  • Karl Shuve, Associate Professor of Religious Studies
  • Janet Spittler, Associate Professor of Religious Studies
  • Andrew Stauffer, Professor of English and Chair, Department of English