Students will be spared the signature chase to register, preregister and change courses when a new academic advisory system is launched in 1999.

      New students will be assigned academic advisers. They must meet them to select courses when they arrive and again at mid-year to discuss their progress. After that, they need never see their academic advisers again and don't need their signatures at all on registration and course change forms. They will be encouraged to seek advice from the departments and programs of their majors in upper years.

      They will also have a handy guide to explain the academic advisory system and complaints and appeals procedures. It will steer them to the appropriate people or offices for academic advice and counselling.

      These are revisions to Trent's academic advisory system approved by Senate April 7. It has taken five years to achieve any consensus on changes to a system that reinforces Trent's hallmark as a small, caring university.

      Student complaints about getting multiple signatures to change, drop or add courses triggered the reform debate. Since 1994, committees, task forces and administrators have tackled changing a cumbersome if personalized system. This most recent version was recommended by the committees on college heads and colleges after consulting Senate, the student Senate caucus and the committee on undergraduate standings and petitions. It incorporates faculty board revisions and a couple of proposals presented to Senate in March by interim vice-president academic David Morrison

      The debate isn't over yet. Academic chairs want more discussion, said Morrison at Senate, about two recommendations. One requires students to file an academic plan when their declare their major(s) and the other encourages them to seek advice on course selection from departments or programs. Discussion has yet to begin on a separate recommendation calling for Senate to review and simplify academic regulations and appeal processes.

      The new system builds in room for change. The dean, academic chairs, college heads and senior tutors are expected to work together to improve the system. Students will regularly evaluate it. Each college will retain senior tutors to advise all students and can opt to create an advisory committee to help out the tutor during peak periods such as registration. Such a committee would consist of three college fellows otherwise expected to come up with ideas to improve the system within the colleges. Serving on an advisory committee would be considered university service.