Academic advising is available to assist all new and returning students from year one to graduation.
Academic advising will help you develop education plans for achieving your goals. It includes:
- receiving advice on academic matters
- taking ownership of your education
- making effective and informed decisions concerning your degree
- connecting university experiences to personal, academic, and career goals
- collaboration and partnership
On this page
Students can get help planning their academics through:
- academic advisors
- faculty program advisors
- student success guides- for first year students
- career advisors
Academic advising
Our academic advising team can help you with understanding transfer credits, program planning, degree requirements, or if you have questions or concerns about your academics.
Some issues are easily resolved via e-mail while others may require a discussion in person. Remember, advisors will be very busy during peak periods (registration) so plan ahead and book an appointment early!
Our academic advising team:
- Email: advisor@mta.ca
- Book an appointment (booking links available below)
Steph Girvan
Areas: BA, BFA, BMus, and BASc
Book an appointment with Steph
Shannon Liu
Areas: BComm and BSc
Book an appointment with Shannon
Susan Sparrow
Areas: Aviation
Book an appointment with Susan
Sarah Cormier
Areas: Incoming transfer students & information on prerequisites for professional programs
Book an appointment with Sarah
What can my academic advisor help me with?
Academic advisors can:
- assist with course selection and registration
- help interpret academic policies and procedures
- help you consider options for major and minor programs
- clarify degree and program requirements
- assist with program planning and tracking progress towards graduation
- provide guidance in formulating and realizing academic goals
- help you understand the consequences of academic decisions
- respond to concerns related to academic performance and academic standing
- answer your questions on academic matters and regulations
- highlight important dates and deadlines
- make referrals to appropriate resources
When should I meet with an academic advisor?
We suggest that you take the initiative to meet with an advisor at least once a year, and to seek advising when it is needed — whether you are struggling academically or not.
Contact an academic advisor any time you have questions or concerns about academic matters. Some issues are easily resolved via e-mail while others may require a discussion in person.
Students with a declared major or minor are strongly advised to consult with a program advisor prior to seeing an academic advisor.
Program advisors & department heads
Program advisors have particular expertise in their discipline and programs. Each academic department and program has a designated faculty member available to advise students. In some cases, the role of department head and program advisor may be filled by the same faculty member but this is not always the case.
Contact your program advisor
Once you've declared a major and minor, we strongly recommend you seek academic advising from a program advisor.
We also recommend you consult with program advisors as you consider your choice of major or minor.
What questions can be directed to your program advisor?
- Honours programs
- Independent studies
- Research opportunities
- Graduate/professional studies
- Program curriculum and course content
- Academic requirements and course options for honours/major/minor programs
- Program planning and course selection advice
- Complementary courses for major/honours programs which must be chosen in consultation with the program advisor
Program advisors for 2025-2026 (effective July 1, 2025- June 30, 2026)
| Arts Programs | Advisor |
|---|---|
| Art History | Dr. Anne Koval finearts@mta.ca |
| Drama Studies | Dr. Sarah Fanning drama@mta.ca |
| English | Dr. Janine Rogers english@mta.ca |
| Fine Arts | Prof. Jerry Ropson finearts@mta.ca |
| French Studies | Dr. Kirsty Bell mll@mta.ca |
| German Studies | Dr. Renata Schellenberg mll@mta.ca |
| Hispanic Studies | Dr. Juan Carols Martinez mll@mta.ca |
| Japanese Studies | Dr. Akiko Yoshizawa mll@mta.ca |
| Modern Languages, Literatures, and Cultures | Dr. Kirsty Bell mll@mta.ca |
| Music | Dr. Kevin Morse music@mta.ca |
| Visual & Material Culture Studies | Dr. Susie Andrews sandrews@mta.ca Dr. Christina Ionescu cionescu@mta.ca |
| Humanities Programs | advisor |
|---|---|
| Canadian Studies | Dr. Karl Hele canadianstudies@mta.ca |
| Classical Studies | Dr. Ilaria Battiloro classics@mta.ca |
| Community Engaged Learning | Dr. Fiona Black religion@mta.ca |
| Feminist and Gender Studies | Dr. Krista Johnston krjohnston@mta.ca |
| History | Dr. Hannah Lane history@mta.ca |
| Indigenous Studies | Dr. Karl Hele khele@mta.ca |
| Philosophy | Dr. Jane Dryden jdryden@mta.ca |
| Religious Studies | Dr. Fiona Black religion@mta.ca |
| Social sciences Programs | advisor |
|---|---|
| Canadian Public Policy |
Dr. Thomas Hughes |
| Commerce |
Dr. Carol Pomare |
| Economics |
Dr. Carla VanBeselaere |
| Environmental Studies |
Dr. Brad Walters |
| Geocomputing |
Dr. Dave Lieske |
| Geography |
Dr. Tim Reiffenstein |
| Health Studies | Dr. Christina MacDougall cmacdougall@mta.ca |
| International Economics and Business |
Dr. Carla VanBeselaeren |
| International Relations |
Dr. James Devine |
| Mathematical Economics |
Dr. Niels Anthonisen |
| Philosophy, Politics, and Economics |
Politics Stream: Dr. Dave Thomas Inquiries: |
| Political Science |
Dr. Thomas Hughes |
| Sociology |
Dr. Fabrizio Antonelli |
| Science programs | advisors | |
|---|---|---|
| Aviation (Science) | Fraser Turner aviation@mta.ca |
|
| Biology | biology@mta.ca | |
| Biochemistry | Dr. Jeffrey Waller chembiochem@mta.ca |
|
| Biopsychology | Dr. Karen Crosby kcrosby@mta.ca |
|
| Chemistry | Dr. Glen Briand chembiochem@mta.ca |
|
| Cognitive Science | Dr. Genevieve Desmarais psych@mta.ca |
|
| Computer Science | Dr. Laurie Ricker cs@mta.ca |
|
| Data Science | Dr. Geoffrey Cruttwell math@mta.ca |
|
| Environmental Science | Dr. Josh Kurek envsci@mta.ca |
|
| Mathematics | Dr. Geoff Cruttwell math@mta.ca |
|
| Physics | Dr. Ralf Bruening physics@mta.ca |
|
| Psychology | Dr. Genevieve Desmarais Dr. Lisa Dawn Hamilton psych@mta.ca |
Certificates
Arts Administration - TBD
Biopsychology - Dr. Karen Crosby kcrobsy@mta.ca
Canadian Arts and Culture -Dr. Karl Hele khele@mta.ca
Community Engaged Learning -Dr. Fiona Black fblack@mta.ca
Data Analytics - TBD
Data Management -TBD
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion -Dr. Fabrizio Antonelli fantonelli@mta.ca
Foundations of Health - Dr. Christiana MacDougall cmacdougall@mta.ca
Mi'kmaq Studies - Dr. Karl Hele khele@mta.ca
Music Education - Dr. Kevin Morse kmorse@mta.ca
Public History - Dr. Hannah Lane hlane@mta.ca
Social Research Methodologies - TBD
Studies of Indigenous History - Dr. Karl Hele khele@mta.ca
Theatre Arts - Dr. Sarah Fanning sfanning@mta.ca
Visual Literacy and Culture - Dr. Susie Andrews sandrews@mta.ca and Dr. Christina Ionescu cionescu@mta.ca
Contact your department head
Department heads must approve the following:
- Registering for a course without having the prerequisites
| Arts and humanities | Acting Dean: Dr. Andrea Beverley |
|---|---|
| Canadian Studies | Dr. Karl Hele khele@mta.ca |
| Centre for Indigenous and Critical Canadian Studies | Dr. Krista Johnston krjohnston@mta.ca |
| Classics | Dr. Ilaria Battiloro ibattiloro@mta.ca |
| Drama and Screen Studies | Dr. Sarah Fanning (director) sfanning@mta.ca |
| English | Dr. Peter Brown pbrown@mta.ca |
| Feminist and Gender Studies | Dr. Krista Johnston (director) krjohnston@mta.ca |
| Fine Arts | Prof. Jerry Ropson jropson@mta.ca |
| History | Dr. Hannah Lane hlane@mta.ca |
| Modern Languages and Literatures | Dr. Renata Schellenberg rschelle@mta.ca |
| Music | Dr. Kevin Morse kmorse@mta.ca |
| Philosophy | Dr. Jane Dryden jdryden@mta.ca |
| Religious Studies | Dr. Andrew Wilson awilson@mta.ca |
| Visual and Material Culture Studies | Dr. Christina Ionescu (director) cionescu@mta.ca |
| Social Sciences | Dean: Dr. Yves Bourgeois |
|---|---|
| Commerce |
Dr. Carol Pomare |
| Economics |
Dr. Carla VanBeselaere |
| Geography and Environment |
Dr. Tim Reiffenstein |
| Health Studies | Dr. Christina MacDougall (director) cmacdougall@mta.ca |
| Philosophy, Politics, and Economics |
Dr. Jane Dryden (director) |
| Politics and International Relations |
Dr. Dave Thomas |
| Sociology |
Dr. Fabrizio Antonelli |
| Science | Dean: Dr. Jennifer Tomes |
|---|---|
| Aviation | TBD |
| Biology | Dr. Karen Crosby kcrosby@mta.ca |
| Chemistry and Biochemistry | Dr. Jeff Waller jwaller@mta.ca |
| Cognitive Science | Dr. Genevieve Desmarais (coordinator) gdesmarais@mta.ca |
| Mathematics and Computer Science | Dr. Mark Hamilton mhamilton@mta.ca |
| Physics | Dr. David Fleming dfleming@mta.ca |
| Psychology | Dr. Lisa Dawn Hamilton ldhamilton@mta.ca |
Student success guides for first year students
Our Student Success Guides are your first point of contact for navigating life at Mount Allison. They check in with you each semester, answer questions year-round, and connect you with the right resources. Their role is to make sure you know what’s available and help you access support you need to thrive during first year.
First year students can contact successguides@mta.ca and book an appointment with them below.
Student success guides for first year students
Jacob McKiel (He/Him)
Areas: First year students in BSc, BFA, BMus, and first year varsity athletes
Contact: jmckiel@mta.ca
Book a meeting with Jacob
Kevinique Stubbs (She/Her)
Areas: First year students in BA, BCOMM and first year international students
Contact: kstubbs@mta.ca
Book a meeting with Kevinique
Manley Liu (He/Him)
Areas: First year first generation students
Contact: mliu@mta.ca
Book a meeting with Manley
Career advisors
To help you find your way from academic studies to a rewarding future, we provide group programs, individual career advising, and career resources.
For more information, visit career planning and resources.