With spring slowly settling over campus, another season of change approaches: fall enrollment.
Toward the end of every semester, students are repeatedly reminded to enroll in courses for the upcoming term. Emails, Canvas announcements and advising portals all echo the same message: be prepared, plan ahead, enroll on time. On paper, the process appears structured and accessible. In practice, many students find themselves navigating it alone.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison prides itself on fostering independence. From the moment students arrive on campus, they are encouraged to take ownership of their academic paths, explore freely and build schedules that reflect their goals. Tools like DARS (Degree Audit Reporting System) are designed to support this independence, offering a detailed breakdown of degree requirements and progress.
But independence without sufficient guidance can quickly turn into confusion.
While DARS is undeniably useful, it is also highly technical and often difficult to interpret without prior knowledge. Requirements are presented in dense categories, exceptions are not always clearly explained and course eligibility can feel like a puzzle rather than a plan. For many students, especially first-generation college students, transfers or those navigating multiple majors or certificates, the system can be overwhelming.
This confusion is not happening in a vacuum. For most students, their only formal introduction to these systems comes during SOAR sessions in the summer before their freshman or transfer year. While SOAR is intended to prepare students, the guidance is often brief and overwhelming rather than comprehensive. In a short period of time, students are expected to absorb a large amount of technical information about tools like Course Search & Enroll, MyUW and the course catalog, often without developing a clear understanding of how to use them independently.
As students’ academic paths become more complex, the limitations of these tools become even more apparent. DARS, for instance, typically allows students to run an audit for only one major or certificate at a time, making it difficult to see how requirements overlap or interact. Without a clear way to visualize these intersections, students are left to piece together their academic plans on their own, increasing the likelihood of confusion and error.
Academic advising, which should serve as a bridge between independence and clarity, often falls short of meeting student demand. Limited appointment availability, short meeting times and inconsistent advising quality leave students with unanswered questions. In some cases, students report receiving conflicting information depending on the advisor they meet with, further complicating an already stressful process.
The consequences of this lack of guidance are not minor. Students frequently discover too late that they are missing key requirements, have taken unnecessary courses or misunderstood sequencing for their major. As a result, many are forced to extend their time at the university, enrolling in summer sessions or additional semesters beyond their original expected graduation date.
This is not simply a matter of poor planning on the part of students. It is a structural issue.
A university that encourages independence must also ensure students are equipped to succeed within that independence. Clearer communication of requirements, more proactive advising and improved accessibility to academic support systems are not luxuries. They are necessities. Independence should not mean isolation.
UW-Madison has the resources and reputation to provide an exceptional academic experience. Strengthening its advising infrastructure and simplifying the way information is presented would not undermine student independence. It would empower it.
As fall enrollment approaches once again, students will log into Course Search & Enroll, cross-reference DARS and do their best to map out the future. The question is whether they will be doing it with confidence — or simply hoping they got it right.
Sungyun Jung is a freshman studying journalism and serves as the Opinion Editor for The Daily Cardinal. Do you believe UW-Madison should have more guidance for students? Send all comments to opinion@dailycardinal.com
