What is your course about?
My course is about onboarding students to college life. The course aims to explain what an advisor is and what they can do to help students. The course outlines the student’s responsibilities in their college experience and within the advising relationship. The course helps students understand university policies and procedures, including support information like success services.
How does it fit into a program?
Advising falls within both enrollment management and student success arenas. Advisors become the centralized hub of information and referrals, which primes advisors as excellent facilitators of the learning process through an advising course. Each major falls within a college department, and there are a variety of program needs based on those differences.
What is it that excites you about this course?
My excitement about this course is two fold. First, the opportunity to help learners become self-motivated learners and to take control of their academic pursuits. I am excited that learners will learn how to navigate the college experience with skills they can apply to life. Secondly, I am excited for advisors to collaborate and combine their knowledge into resources for advisees to grow and learn. There is a future possibility of learners collaborating and supporting one another through both peer-advisors and collective discussions, which is very exciting to consider.
What are the non-negotiable elements of the course?
The advising course must relieve advisors of the information transfer aspects of the advising relationship. Advisors are discouraged and overworked by the sheer number of advisees they must see each registration cycle. Limited time for advising appointments, high turn-over rates, and low-morale among the department effects learners experience and advisors expertise. Through this advising course, advisors will be able to direct learners to resource and free their advising interactions to become life changing relationships that enhance both the learner and the advisors lives.
What are some secondary elements you want to fit in?
I see now that this advising course has the opportunity to help students find their purpose in life and stay connected with their long term goals and motivations for coming to college. All to often when the coursework gets challenge or we face personal obstacles we can decide that college isn’t for us or we weren’t really interested in that topic. I think helping students self-actualize by working through the reflection of their college growth, learning, and challenges can help today’s learners embrace the learners mindset.
ETC:
Sincerely I would like for the advising course to become a place that gives students the choice of delivery method, time of day, social interaction (or lack-thereof), and limits hesitation to ask questions they might perceive as silly or common knowledge to others. I also believe that there is amazing opportunity for learners to support one another and form collectives of support.
The Advisor That Cares 