As Patrick O’Neill (2013) reminds us: “Pausing at the half allows us to reflect on the good work we have done, what we haven’t done, and what we must do to advance our personal and professional development.”
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The Regional Review Implementation Committee is finalizing their report to the Board of Directors to be presented during their Mid-Year Meeting in April 2021.
‘Black Girl Magic’ has since become indoctrinated into Black culture and used to combat the devaluing of Black women in society. This article aims to highlight the experiences of Black women as college students and aid the practitioners supporting them.
The effects of some student interactions last longer than the appointment time slot. Sometimes they last a lifetime. It is not always the student who exits the meeting feeling impacted.
The emphasis on retention has become an even greater focus and concern for many institutions across the country as students question the logistics of attending classes in the midst of a pandemic. The why statement challenges students to think about their purpose and their motivation to pursue their declared major.
Two of the lead advisors and the learning strategist at the Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM) have developed, implemented, and improved a coaching method to work with students facing Imposter Phenomenon.
Research has shown students gain more from their college experience when they engage in high impact practices. The author’s institution has implemented several HIPs into its curriculum and daily practice.
Problem-based learning has been shown to improve learner independence and confidence and long-term retention of knowledge in college settings. A PBL advising activity was designed to help University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa (UHM) undergraduate students learn about University requirements and campus resources and identify solutions to advising-related problems.
Orientation programs are essential for the on-boarding process for new academic advisors. The author addresses the development and establishment of a virtual orientation program that will position new academic advisors towards success in the advising profession.
Having a global orientation to the components of academic advising will facilitate the creation or revision of an advising program. From this overview, questions can be raised and details explored.
Primarily serving students on academic probation and students with multiple faculty referrals requires revised practices to address recurring negative behaviors affecting students' academic progress and matriculation throughout the time of service delivery.
Email strategies and establishing a steady inbox workflow can allow academic advisors to serve students effectively while also evading the feelings of email fatigue.
Complete editions of AAT are provided to facilitate one-touch capability, but readers are encouraged to view the individual articles and provide feedback to authors.
Amidst the chaos of an epochal tragedy, the author gained clarity about the purpose of their work. Advising is a contribution to the common good, and advisors prepare students to contribute to the common good in numerous ways.
The use of vector to explain a structure that carries, delivers, or directs us to information (of any type) is especially suitable to advising during a time of uncertainty that requires adaptability and the ability to both anticipate and manage change.
In times of great uncertainty, one could argue that advising has never been more important as a platform to help students clarify educational choices, navigate the academic quagmire of academic policies, and to keep students engaged with their programs and university.
Policies help students, parents, faculty, and staff understand the institution’s values and how those principles are employed in everyday operations. The author discusses a model that can be used when developing policies in academic advising and student success.
Onboarding is an opportunity for employers to teach skills, share information, and outline behaviors that will set the new hire on a path toward job success.
Over the last decade, much of the technology focus in higher education has been on new technology tools, but websites still play a critical role in the college experience. Beyond serving as the virtual front door to campus, websites provide support to students throughout their entire academic journey.
Inequities in education were exacerbated through the year 2020 and this trend continues in 2021. Global disparities in internet access and availability of electronic equipment needed for virtual education are escalating the existing racial disparities in education that are compounded by economic and regional pressures and family obligations. It is imperative that institutions and communities look for solutions to reduce these emergent disparities created over the last year and a half to find solutions and provide targeted support for diverse students.
Effective student support at undergraduate institutions requires multidisciplinary personnel, expansive resources, an accurate understanding of students’ academic needs, and a holistic approach to student wellness. Grounded in the near-peer model, Academic Coaching at Brown provides individual guidance to undergraduate students through peer leaders—referred to as coaches—through a comprehensive, student-centered approach.
Universities and advisors cannot eliminate all barriers for all students who desire to study abroad, but they can help students overcome their individual concerns. How can advisors support students’ study abroad decisions?
Despite many challenges, the pandemic has bulldozed a path for innovative practices that has shaped the future of advising and has changed the way we work for the foreseeable future. Life after the pandemic will undoubtedly take new forms and involve the continued use of educational technology. The advising community should prepare for continued shifts to accommodate busy students accustomed to virtual platforms.
For each Academic Advising Today column I wrote as NACADA President, I spent time reviewing what the NACADA Presidents before me wrote at the same point in their presidencies. The themes are fairly consistent: transition, reflection, and appreciation
The only thing that is constant is change… As you move forward this fall on your campuses, please know that your association is here to support you every step of the way.
The relational aspect of advising is gaining momentum as higher education continues to wrestle with student retention while simultaneously juggling technological advances, decreased funding, and the digital advances of a global society. Although the development of a relationship between the advisor and student is imperative, the advising structure/model also plays a role in the relational aspect of advising.
If advisors are to embody NACADA’s (2017) Core Values, they must evaluate ways their philosophy or techniques perpetuate systemic inequities. One such framework worth consideration is parallel planning and alternative advising.
As the profession of academic advising continues to evolve, it is important for academic advisors to develop strong leadership skills to advocate for students, their roles on campus, and the academic advising profession.
The authors explore Hansen's (2018) five rules for disciplined collaboration through the lens of their 2020 NACADA Annual Conference presentation, which mashed up Strengths-based Advising and The Umbrella Academy.
Undergraduate students often lack regular encounters and communication with middle and older adults. Interactions between advisors and advisees of different generations can have positive spill-over effects in the college and university community and beyond.
Transfer students face many challenges and barriers that traditional students do not. The more t knowledge of the nuanced policies and procedures gained throughout the transfer process, the more likely they will succeed.
It is important for advisors to help art students shift their preoccupation with career trend forecasts and look at the lifelong arc of their pursuit in the arts. A focus on life’s work expands students’ perspectives.
At the time they enter college, some students already have aspirations to attend graduate or professional school. What steps can advisors take to help undergraduate students lay the foundation for success in graduate school and their future careers?
Planning for an advising session with an advisee involves the advisor learning as much as possible about the student. While getting to know advisees as unique individuals is important, leveraging generational and institutional data can frame the puzzle. Once academic advisors know their advisees, they can begin to identify and assist with student needs.
In the past year, the higher education community has experienced massive changes. As practitioners working in a helping profession, advisors may be experiencing burn-out and pandemic fatigue. The authors discuss strategies to combat additional stress and promote advisor self-care.
With more than a decade of successful leadership development to celebrate, the NACADA Emerging Leaders Program recognizes the many members of the ELP classes who have served in leadership positions and welcomes the incoming Class.
The author found the NACADA Virtual Administrators’ Institute to be broadly relevant for new and seasoned advising administrators, for those in small programs with limited oversight and those in charge of large programs, for those overseeing faculty advisors and those in charge of primary-role advisors.
The author always been drawn to conversations related to continuous improvement, outcomes, and focusing on how data can help inform decisions and drive the story advisors tell about their work. The NACADA Assessment Institute proved to be a perfect fit for learning more about academic advising assessment.
President Kyle Ross discusses NACADA’s new Vision, Mission, and Strategic Goals and looks at what is next for the association.
Academic advising personnel may find ourselves battling fatigue, worry, and uncertainty, all while lifting others up. Holistic academic advising strategies take a lot of time, energy, and resources, but they make a difference. Take some time to fill your own cup, and know that NACADA will continue to be here, dedicated to you, your growth, and your professional development.
This article aims to provide academic advisors with the following: (1) enhance their knowledge and understanding of the challenges experienced by racially minoritized students at predominantly White institutions; (2) explain Laura Rendón's validation theory and it’s six tenets; and (3) provide some practical implications, utilizing validation theory, to foster a sense of belonging and student success for racially minoritized students at predominantly White institutions (PWIs).
Attachment Theory offers a distinctive framework for understanding the advisor-student relationship from a developmental perspective.
Academic advising has long been touted as one of the most effective retention methods offered by institutions of higher learning (Nutt, 2003; Tinto, 1987) but is rarely recognized as a way to improve career outcomes for graduates of the institutions. While advisors should not leave their scope of expertise when working with students, advisors can seamlessly merge conversations related to career readiness into their appointments.
Cooperating with NACADA, Tsinghua University has been probing a new path for international professional development in the cross-cultural context. This cross-cultural training program could bring more possibilities for global members from different countries who are willing to improve core competence effectively.
The authors discuss an intake survey created to proactively connect students to support services and other needed resources prior to enrollment. They contend that this tool and process rests at the very heart of equity work, helping each student find success along their academic pathway according to their unique needs.
Creating a schedule that balances out a student’s coursework and extracurricular activities is a critical factor that impacts their overall academic success and sets the tone for how they will progress forward in their academic career.
Academic advisors have been challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic to effectively meet student needs in predominantly virtual settings. As a result of institutional COVID responses, advisors have been navigating zoom-fatigue, work-life balance, and setting boundaries to avoid being perpetually accessible. However stressful these new challenges have been, they are creating opportunities for institutions of higher education to review historical practices and improve upon them as new technologies become commonplace.
Using humor in academic advising applies meltwater to the ice of generational and positional differences.
Workload issues are relevant to the recruitment of prospective advisors, effectiveness and retention of current advisors, and the full range of institutional settings.
By utilizing proactive advising, advisors can make the first move in teaching students to assess their own needs through modeling, kickstarting the advising as teaching process in a way that meets students halfway.
As the academic advising profession continues to transform, we will continue to see more mid-level advisors needing support.
Learning how to create a good assessment plan makes sense when you consider the potential for assessment to improve academic advising practices.
