In light of budget cuts, there is a growing desire for accurate advising among students.
To address this need, CHASS has created an advising pilot program for the spring 2011 semester. Four graduate students were competitively selected to assist CHASS undergraduates in an effort to provide students with an additional advising resource for a wide range of questions.
Dara Leeder, director of student recruitment and retention, is the driving force behind the project and says the main purpose of the advisors is to provide walk-in help for students.
“The main function of these individuals is to support, not replace, the academic advising that occurs within our departments and the dean’s office. These individuals can assist with issues pertaining to college and university policies, degree requirements, transition issues, recruitment efforts, and university resources” Leeder said.
“Examples of areas they can discuss with students include: intra-campus transfer, registration procedures, the General Education Program, and determining strategies to assist those experiencing academic difficulty,” Leeder said.
The four staff members for the spring semester are current graduate students in CHASS and have backgrounds in the humanities and social science disciplines. They received on-the-job training and printed materials and websites for reference.
According to Leeder, the process for hiring the advisors began with interest emails from the director of graduate programs, and then interviews took place with applicants.
“We talked early in the fall about improving advising, and sent emails to garner interest in the potential positions,” she said.
The program is currently a pilot for one semester, with plans to evaluate its success in May. Leeder says the means of evaluation will be student input, the budget, and the advisors, to see how the program has been received.
One of the advisors, Courtney Mitchell, a graduate student in psychology with a concentration in school psychology, said she enjoys being an advisor because it fits with her educational background.
“I had experience working directly with students, and it fits great with my area. I also think it’s a good program because it’s a less formal way for students to get their advising needs met, or information for their majors, you don’t have to make an appointment with an advisor,” she said.
A second advisor, Whitley Anderson, a graduate student in English, agreed informal advising is a positive aspect of the program.
“The people that do drop by, they sometimes present questions that we might not know the answers to and lots of the questions asked are really good but can be answered easily. It’s just a better format to help students since they can just drop in and ask that quick question,” she said.
The advisors don’t always wait for students to come to them, and have recently been proactive towards students who might need academic help.
According to Mitchell, the advisors are reaching out to those on academic suspension or warning.
“We’ve been going to those students who especially might need guidance. I think this is something other colleges should implement, the more you can make advising practical and available to students and the better it is overall for students. You end up with a more informed student body,” she said.
Another advisor, Dawn Henderson, a graduate student in psychology, agrees this is a positive program.
“The students who come see us are very diverse, high GPAs and academic difficulty, and so far it seems they’re finding us beneficial, with this new furniture we’re more visible now and it offers more confidentiality, a comfortable environment,” she said.
Although the program has been advertised to CHASS students, anyone interested in double-majoring or minoring in a CHASS degree or transferring into CHASS is welcome to drop by. One to three of these individuals will be available Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on a walk-in basis in the Caldwell Lounge.
Adair-Hayes Crane, a senior in communications, said she thought it was a good idea, but wished it had been created sooner.
“I think it’s a really good idea, mainly because it’s not always easy to get an appointment with an advisor, and sometimes you may have quick question that you might not need to see your advisor for, and it saves time for advisors and students. I’m graduating in May, but otherwise I would’ve used it,” she said.
The advisors do get a stipend for their work, it’s considered a graduate assistantship according to Leeder, but the accumulation of experience is where Anderson says she finds her wealth.
“I love this job, Dara [Leeder] has been our anchor, and I think what we’re doing so far has had a really positive response. Student feedback has been high and I think the work we’re doing will speak for itself and we hope it will continue,” she said.
Advertising of the program has been limited, but is slowly being vamped up over the course of the semester.
Thomas Ryan, an exchange student from Manchester University, said he wasn’t aware of the program, but thinks it’s a good idea.
“I’ve seen the furniture but didn’t really know what it was and ignored it. I guess it’s a good idea along as that info that doesn’t conflict with what you advisor would recommend,” he said.
The academic support initiative is not a substitute for advising from academic major departments. Students must still visit their academic advisor for course registration approval, and our departments remain the most comprehensive source of information for major requirements, careers, internships and discipline-specific graduate studies.
