[ First Ten Questions to Ask an Advisee ] [ The Advising Appointment ]

Your Role

The role of the advisor is not just to look over a student's schedule and make sure the course load looks appropriate and balanced. An advisor can play an important role in helping students think about how their courses for the term fit into their overall academic and career goals. Students can also benefit from having the adviser tell them that it's fine to take a chance or two on courses.

Advisor Responsibilities

  • Be knowledgeable about university and departmental requirements, policies and procedures;
  • Maintain adequate office hours throughout the semester;
  • Provide a respectful, supportive atmosphere;
  • Keep accurate records;
  • Ensure that students are provided access to services on a fair and equitable basis;
  • Discourage students from circumventing institutional policies and regulations; and when confronting situations in which students have violated policies, addressing the issues and referring students to the appropriate agency;
  • Recognize the limitations of their positions and being familiar with university resources in order to make appropriate referrals; and
  • Maintain confidentially according to established standards.

Advisors help students navigate the advising and registration process, choosing and/or changing your major, working to achieve academic success and trying to maximize career options.    

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Faculty Advising Guidelines

  • Provide adequate meeting time for advising with your students. For second-year students plan to offer at least 20-30 minutes each.
  • Be familiar with Tiffin’s graduation requirements and check your advisee’s progress each semester.
  • Encourage your advisees to identify areas of interest and help them select a balanced course of study – leading to possible majors.
  • If your advisee has received a poor grade, ask them to make an appointment with you within the next week to discuss their difficulty.
  • Make sure your advisees know that they can meet with you during the year beyond course request/registration times. Encourage them to take the initiative.
  • Find opportunities to let your advisees know that they can talk about non-academic concerns, if they want to. Use your role as an advisor to help them seek and find the help they need.
  • In the course of your conversations, make sure your advisees know about the resources and opportunities available to them at TU (Student Affairs, Health Center, Career Center, and Internships).
  • Ask periodically about future plans (beyond TU). Encourage exploration and flexibility in course selection and activities beyond the classroom
  • If you are contacted by parents and are comfortable talking with them, be sure there is a FERPA waiver (in the student’s official file in the Registrar’s Office) before discussing specific information with them. Student files are confidential. You should never discuss a student’s record with another student. Conversations with colleagues about students should be limited to a legitimate educational interest. As an advisor, you may need to be in touch with an advisee’s faculty members if there are problems or concerns, and similarly you may have other faculty members contacting you about concerns with one of your advisees. It is useful to keep the school dean informed of concerns about a student, and you should expect to hear from the dean when she has received information that you, as advisor, should know.

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First Ten Questions to Ask an Advisee

  1. What do you hope eventually to do with your life?
  2. Why did you choose to come to the University?
  3. What major or majors are you considering?
  4. Why are you considering those majors -- simply to prepare for a career?
    • Do you really like that area of study?
    • Do you think it will lead to a high paying job/prestigious job?
  5. Are there any special situations that we need to consider in planning your educational program? For example, do you have a job? Are you responsible for your family? Do you have a learning disability?  Do you have military obligations?
  6. What questions do you have about:
    • the University?
    • your major?
    • requirements?
    • scheduling?
  7. Where will you you be living? What kinds of outside activities do you like? (sports, music, theater, student government, literary)
  8. Are you aware of the resources available to you? (tutoring, counseling, career planning, study abroad, honors)
  9. What, if anything, worries you about your college career? Or do you have concerns about adjusting to the university?
  10. How can I as your adviser help you most?
    • university policies
    • scheduling
    • career guidance
    • problems -- personal, academic
    • information

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The Advising Appointment

Though the variety of topics covered in an advising appointment depends upon the purpose of the appointment, a certain structure or process is common to all. Following is an overview of some techniques that can be used in an advising session.

  1. Opening --­ Greet the student by name and in a relaxed manner. The student may be nervous so a warm welcome and a low-key question such as "What can I help you with today?" can be reassuring at the same time that it gets the session started.

  2. Talking with the Student --­ The student may find it difficult to express himself. Resist the temptation to "help" by putting words in the student's mouth, finishing the sentence yourself or otherwise taking over the conversation. Careful phrasing of your questions and indicating that you are receptive to the responses should facilitate good communication.
  3. Silences in the Conversation --­ Silences do not necessarily mean a breakdown in communication or a lack of activity. The student (or the advisor) may be searching for words or reflecting upon something that has already been said.
  4. Admitting your Ignorance ­ -- If the student asks a question regarding factual information to which you do not know the answer, admit it. Get the information immediately, if possible, or call the student back. While one person cannot be expected to know everything, it is reasonable to expect the advisor to get the information in question. Students have greater respect for the advisor who does not hesitate to admit his ignorance.
  5. Bad News ­ When the advisor must give the student bad news, it is not helpful to minimize the gravity of the situation or to be unrealistically optimistic about what the student can do to handle it. However, it is very important that the advisor continue to express an attitude that is receptive and non-judgmental. She can demonstrate her support of the student by helping to put the issue into proper perspective and focusing attention on the positive actions that can be taken to resolve the problem. This may require additional appointments.
  6. Additional Problems -- ­ Sometimes the student will have unexpressed questions or problems beyond the one, which appears to be the reason for the appointment. The advisor can give the student an opening by asking, "Is there something else you would like to ask about?" or "Do you have something else on your mind?"
  7. The Frequent Visitor ­ -- One of the most difficult advisees to work with will meet frequently with his advisor. This student appears to be receptive to the advisor's suggestions and will often say "I feel so much better after talking to you, " but, in fact, never follows up on the information and strategies discussed during the appointment. This student seems to continue to hope that talking about something will make it happen. Other frequent visitors are sympathy seekers, complainers and the overly dependent. While it is true that their willingness to keep appointments indicates some success on the part of the advisor, they take up time that could be available to other students.
  8. Setting Limits on the Appointment ­ -- The appointment is normally a fixed length of time. It is better if the advisor and advisee realize this from the beginning. Follow-up appointments can be made, if necessary. However, there are times when an advisor sees a student in crisis and time constraints need to be set aside.
  9. Ending the Appointment ­ -- When the advising session is finished, it is easy to get overly involved in casual conversation. This can extend the appointment far beyond the allotted time. A phrase such as, "Do you think we have done all we can for today?" or "Let's make another appointment to get into this further, "effectively maintains a friendly yet professional tone.

Adapted from Darley's Interview Techniques. Prepared by the University of Delaware College of Arts and Science Advising Center.

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