| Module 1: College Advising
Introduction to MTSU Academic Advising Principles of Academic Advising
Students are the most important individuals in any educational institution. Largely, the university exists for and because of students. Advising should provide academic guidance and a way to further students’ intellectual, social, and physical development. For advising to ensure student success, the following functions must be observed: - Academic advising must be a systematic, consistent, and continuous process with an accumulation of personal contact between advisor and students. These contacts have both direction and purpose.
- Advising must concern itself with holistic issues, and the advisor has a responsibility to help the student attend to the quality of his/her college experience.
- Advising must be goal related. Students should be encouraged and supported in exploring goals. Then goals should be established and owned by the student and should encompass academic, career, and personal development areas.
- Advising requires the establishment of caring human relationships in which the university must take equal responsibility to initiate advisor-students relationships.
- Advisors should be models for students to emulate, specifically demonstrating behaviors that lead to self-responsibility and self-directness.
- The advising system should seek to integrate the services and expertise of academic and student affairs professionals.
- Advisors should seek to utilize as many campus and community resources as possible. They should effectively identify and communicate academic and career options, services, and resources. Additionally, advisors should be continuously involved with professional development in the advising area in order to best meet the needs of the students.
Adapted from Winston, R.B., Ender, S.C., & Miller, T.K. (Eds). (1982). Developmental approaches to academic advising. New Directions for Student Services, No. 17. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. |
