Creating an Effective Advising Program: Issues in

Advising Administration

NACADA Executive OfficeKansas State University

2323 Anderson Ave, Suite 225Manhattan, KS  66502-2912

Phone: (785) 532-5717   Fax: (785) 532-7732

e-mail: nacada@ksu.edu

© 2012 National Academic Advising Association

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Nancy S. King, Ph. DExecutive Assistant for

Strategic InitiativesKennesaw State University

770-423-6310

Basic Elements in Developing and Implementing a

Successful Academic Advising Program

Administrative supportDevelopment of institutional advising

missionSelection and training of advisorsRecognition/reward systemDevelopment of advising materials

(handbook, advising resources, information about advisees)

Assessment of effectiveness

The Planning Process

Identify the team and establish a timelineEssential to involve the major stakeholdersIndividual advising units need their own

mission statementsReview the institution’s mission

statement (advising mission must be compatible)

Assess the Environment

Who are our students?What are their advising needs?What are our major assets and

challenges?What is our overarching vision for the

kind of institution we want to be?

Develop a Vision for Success

What would our ideal advising program look like?

Benchmarking/Boundary monitoring CAS standards and guidelines NACADA core values

Ultimately what do we want to accomplish?

Establishing an Advising Program

Activating an advising program requires a written and published mission statement.

Questions to Consider in Developing the Mission

Statement

What is academic advising? What are our students’ advising needs? Who serves as advisors? Who is the administrator responsible for

the advising program? How are the advisors trained and evaluated?

What is the relationship between advising and the other support services of the institution?

What are the rights and responsibilities of the advisor?

What are the rights and responsibilities of the advisees?

What is the delivery model?

Develop Specific Goals

Academic advising should aid students in …

Developing suitable educational plans

Clarifying career and life goals Selecting appropriate courses and

other educational experiences Interpreting academic requirements Making students aware of all

available resources that enhance their education

Evaluating student progress toward their degrees

Developing decision-making skills Helping students become

independent learners The advising program should also

provide data about students’ educational needs.

White, Chapter 12, Advising Handbook

Variables to Consider when Selecting a Model

Size and type of institutionInstitutional missionAdministrative structureIdentification of advisors

(faculty/full-time advisors)Advisor loadSpecial needs of studentsFunding sources

Assessment of Structure Effectiveness:

Questions to ConsiderAre advisors accessible when and

where students seek academic guidance?

Are financial, personnel and physical resources available to support

and staff the structure that is in place?

Are reporting lines clear to all advisors? Is there a high level administrator who oversees the institutional advising system, someone to whom all college advisors are accountable?

How is advising organized?

There is no one best model. All are potentially effective for the delivery of advising services…

C. F. Pardee

2011 Survey of Advising: 817 Respondents

• A "faculty only" model is more common at 4 year baccalaureate colleges (35%); and 4 year colleges/universities who do not grant PhDs (20%)

• "Centralized units" staffed mostly by professional advisors or counselors are more common at PhD-granting universities (40%); and at 2 year colleges (33%)

And the survey says…

• For all responding institutions, some sort of a "shared model" was the most common structure indicated—53%– some students (undecided or transfer or

probation or undeclared or ??) advised in a center with faculty advising declared majors--true for half of the respondents who indicated a shared model

– a variety of other shared models, with professional advisors (in a center, a department, or a college) dividing responsibilities (in differing ways) with faculty advisors

What else did we learn about the organization of advising?

• 10% of the respondents use peer advisors in some way

• At 86% of the responding colleges, at least some faculty advise in some way

• Several struggled to describe their structures—13% wrote in more information to try to describe; 14% indicated 2 or more models used

Four Questions to considerabout modeling and remodeling

1. Who is advised?2. Who advises?3. Where is advising done?4. How are advising

responsibilities divided?

Questions to ConsiderIs it clear to students where they

obtain advising for their various needs, such as general education requirements, the major and minor subject areas, honors courses, pre-law or pre-medicine curriculum, exceptions to policies, academic probation, graduation, etc.? If students have multiple advisors,

is there a center to make advising referrals?

Questions to Consider

Do advisors understand the structure and their role within the larger

system? If the structure is decentralized, is there an advising resource and training center?

If the structure is decentralized or shared, does the structure promote

communication and cooperation among advisors in all units?

Questions to Consider

Is the structure conducive to sharing information and collaborating with other academic and student service units to create and implement policies that promote student development and success?

Pardee, C. F.NACADA Clearinghouse of

Academic Advising Resources, “Organizational Structures for Advising”

Three Major Components

• Training and professional development

• Rewards/recognition

• Evaluation/assessment

Training and Development

Expected or required of all advisors – professional, faculty, peer,

administratorsMust be comprehensive and on-goingShould be carefully connected to the

mission, goals, advisor outcomes and the student learning outcomes of the program

Training and Development

Key Elements of Development Programs

Informational• Institutional Programs, Policies and

Procedures• Curriculum Requirements• Campus Resources

Key Elements of Development Programs

Conceptual• Advising Definition• Student Development Theories• Learning Theories• Connecting Advising to

Retention/Persistence• Research

Key Elements of Development Programs

Relational• Relationship Building• Communication Skills• Questioning Skills• Mentoring Skills

Using NACADA Resources for Professional Development

NACADA Homepage: http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/

Using NACADA Resources for Professional Development

Using NACADA Resources for Professional Development

NACADA Homepage: http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/

Using NACADA Resources for Professional Development

Advisor Performance Evaluation

Must be connected clearly to advisor outcomes and learning outcomes

Must be connected clearly to articulated expectations

Must be connected to institution or department job description

Should be tied, for faculty, to the teaching component of the tenure

and promotion elements

Advisor Performance Evaluation

Strategies/IssuesStudent Surveys Peer Evaluation or Observation Documented achievement of

outcomes (Portfolio)Self-evaluation Connection to Merit IncreaseDoes Everyone Deserve Top Scores?

Recognition/Reward System

Extrinsic Rewards:Release TimeReduction in Non-Instructional LoadAdditional/Alternate CompensationPromotion/Tenure DecisionsAdvisor Awards

(local and national)Recognition by Administration

Intrinsic Rewards:

Contributions to students’ growth and success

Satisfaction of teaching both inside and outside the classroom

Student appreciation

Advising Challenges

Gaining Institutional Support

Understand and navigate campus politics• Be visible• Know the players and build relationships• Recognize the “hot spots”• Identify and articulate priorities• Collaborate with other departments and

units• Share information and successes

Advising Challenges

Gaining Institutional Support

• Connect advising to key initiatives on campus, i.e. retention, graduation rates, student persistence

• Provide assessment of advising• Connect advising to the mission of the

institution• Build support for advising with student

leaders and alumni

Advising Challenges

Advising Administration Challenges

Unit Issues:• Mission• Advising model• Delivery of services• Professional development and staff

motivation • Rewarding staff• Faculty advising issues• Finance/budgeting

Advising Challenges

Advising Administration Challenges

Campus Issues:• Identify Campus Allies (Get out of your

office!)• Outreach to Campus Groups• Campus Politics• Communicating with Administration

PeersOverarching Issues:• Technology• Assessment/Evaluation/Planning

Advising Challenges

Changing Student Demographics

Diversity of Students– Ethnic/racial background– LGBTQ– Underprepared – Special Needs

• Disabilities• Mental Illness

– Nontraditional Students• Age of students• Delayed enrollment• Part time• Work full time• Financially independent• Families/Children• Veterans

Advising Challenges

Retention and Graduation Rates

• Be prepared to demonstrate what you are doing to help in retention efforts

A) Spend staff/office time identifying what your office does to promote student retention.B) Learn what other schools are doing through academic advising to increase retention.C) What research/publications are available to help you address your specific student populations?

• Be prepared to make recommendations for improvements your office (and other offices) can make to positively affect retention

A) You know what students need. What else can you/your office provide with appropriate time/resources?

Advising Challenges

Financing Advising Programs

• Improved retention, persistence, and graduation rates (RPG) yield positive financial results.

• Some institutions have used advising fees to provide for additional staffing.

• Other institutions have made use of volunteer advisors (alumni, retired faculty) during peak periods.

Advising Challenges

Administration of Advising Cluster

• Advising Administration Commission

• Advisor Training and Development Commission

• Assessment of Advising Commission

• Ethics and Legal issues in Advising Interest Group

Steering Committee Representative:

David Spight, Asst. Dean for Advising, University of Texas-Austin (512-232-8405) //dspight@austin.utexas.edu

Advising Challenges

Group Activity

Questions???? Review????

Have a terrific NACADA Conference!