Academic Coaching
Unlimited one-on-one coaching sessions are available with a professional staff member throughout the fall and spring semester, as well as during the summer.
In AY 2019/20 the OAR facilitated 1,120 academic coaching appointments.
What is Academic Coaching?
College is weird. It presents new demands and expectations on how you learn from novel and/or more challenging forms of instruction than you have previously experienced. Academic success at Haverford requires adoption, acquisition, and/or adjustment of new habits, skills, and practices that match this weird environment we call college. Academic coaching at Haverford exists to make this strange environment more familiar, and help you reach your goals. Brian, Raquel, or Alex are available to work with you individually throughout your tenure at Haverford, from customs to commencement, to help you reflect, plan, and strategize on how to make your academic journey at Haverford more meaningful and rewarding for you.
How Academic Coaching Works
We deeply value stories in the OAR and we place your story at the center of every coaching session. Therefore, our work is less prescriptive and more collaborative. We recognize every student comes to Haverford with a story, and we lean into your story to identify your strengths we can use to help you overcome your current challenges or create tangible goals. This means we, as coaches, position ourselves as learners and may ask you a lot of questions; we also do not claim to have all the answers: we will work with you to find possible strategies, practices, and habits to employ. Some strategies may work for you, some strategies may not. Every learner is different and there is no one-size fits all guide to learning in college and that is why we view our work as a process and invite you to work with us over the course of your time at Haverford at your discretion.
Meet Your Coaches
Brian Cuzzolina
bcuzzolina [at] haverford.edu
In my practice as an academic coach I am interested in how your life stories impact your motivations, emotions, and how you make meaning and navigate this academic journey. Personally, my academic journey was marked by being labelled with a learning disability and thus, I am attuned to the various difficulties of doing schooling on such an inequitable ‘track’. Punk rock, and self-reflexive practices were things/strategies that have helped me navigate the challenges, and have motivated me in my work supporting students.
Watch a short welcome message from Brian.
Alex Cooke
acooke [at] haverford.edu
My academic coaching style is centered around learning about your interests and goals, and connecting the personal with the academic. As a Bryn Mawr graduate, I’m familiar with the rigors and demands of students in the BiCo, and with a social work background, am attuned to the ways in which life can have a direct impact on motivation and academic success. Building self-awareness and self-compassion have been key structures of my own academic and career journeys, especially when it comes to managing stress, anxiety, and perfectionism. I’m so looking forward to meeting with you!
Watch a short welcome message from Alex.
Raquel Esteves-Joyce
rjoyce [at] haverford.edu
Raquel specializes in addressing:
- semester planning
- transitioning to college
- time management approaches
- identifying your working style and how to make it work for you
- understanding and meeting classroom/college expectations
- using the course syllabus to optimize and organize learning
- preparing for and managing large assignments/projects (such as thesis)
- understanding and navigating through such challenges as imposter syndrome, procrastination, perfectionism, writer's block, etc.
Gab Montefalcone
gmontefalc [at] haverford.edu
As an academic coach, my goal is to help you gain awareness of your motivations, and interests and support you in finding your own success at Haverford. As a first-generation international student at Princeton, I am familiar with the significant adjustments that a rigorous undergraduate program requires. To overcome my struggles, I started asking myself a lot of questions, and I found this to be always the best place to start and build a deeper self-awareness. I am a learner at heart and I cannot wait to meet you and learn about your story and your passions. Remember you are the protagonist of the session! I will be a listener and a guidance to help you become the exceptional student you wish to be.