"It's a tough situation, since the English Department especially has these strict period requirements," he says. "The English Department has been good about making sure that if there are classes like those that fulfill requirements, history and literature concentrators get preference when they need it."

Goodwin says although he knows some students were counting on taking Bercovitch's course, they understand the unavoidable and unexpected nature of his absence.

"If someone gets sick, he gets sick, and there's nothing you can do about it," he says.

Kimberlee K. Bortfeld '98, a psychology concentrator, says she thinks the College could do a better job of compensating for absent professors.

"There are definitely times when you go through the course catalogue and there's just nothing," she says.

But Tarissa Mitchell '99, an English concentrator, disagrees.

"The only problem I've ever had with this sort of thing was a couple years ago, when a teacher I wanted to take a course make necessary courses available to those whoneed to take them.

"If you need a course, you get it," he saysemphatically.

Desperately Seeking Advisers

Although students can usually find curricularalternatives to bracketed course offerings,finding an academic adviser or a thesis adviser isoften more difficult.

The 1997 senior survey, in which students werespecifically asked if they had been left withoutan adviser when a Faculty member took a leave ofabsence or left the University, shows significantstudent dissatisfaction.

The statistics varied widely from oneconcentration to the next. In some concentrations,it had never happened, while in others nearly 30percent of students reported being left without anadviser.

"Apparently there are a non-negligible numberof cases in which the student does not getadequately picked up, or is left to seek out analternate adviser independently," said Harry R.Lewis '68, dean of the college. "The departmentsshould remember to be proactive in taking care ofthis problem."

In the Biology department, nearly 27 percent ofstudents said an adviser on leave had left themalone.

William Gelbart, the head tutor for biology,said the problem of advisees being left alone isinevitable.

"It's tough because people need to havescheduled leaves and you can't really not assignsomeone to be an adviser because they're going tobe on leave two years from then," he said.