On providing quality academic advising in higher education

On Providing Quality Academic Advising in
Higher Education
Prepared by James Tamayose

Higher Education
A couple of notes before proceeding.
1. This presentation is navigable and works best
when used as a slideshow presentation (PPSX).
2. This presentation may work well for
facilitating discussion on academic advising.

Higher Education
This Slide is Intentionally Left Blank

Higher Education
1. Introduction
4. Practices
6. References5. Filling Gaps
2. Theories
3. Techniques

Higher Education
1. Introduction 2. Theories
3. Techniques 4. Practices
5. Filling Gaps 6. References

Higher Education
2. Theories1. Introduction

Higher Education
3. Techniques
4. Practices

Higher Education
4. Practices
3. Techniques

Higher Education
5. Filling Gaps
6. References

Higher Education
6. References
5. Filling Gaps

Introduction Menu
To Main Menu
What is Academic Advising?
Describing these Matters…
The Power of Variability
Science, Art, and Discovery
No Cookie Cutter Approach

What is academic advising?
Situations in which an institutional
representative offers a college student
insight on an academic, social, or personal
matter (Kuhn, 2008)
To Previous Slide To Main MenuTo Section Menu

Describing these matters…
Academic, social, and personal matters
are opportunities for serving others,
teaching, and researching.

Since contexts in which these matters
occur vary, perhaps the ways that these
matters are perceived and experienced
also vary.

If contexts, perceptions, and experiences
vary, then perhaps there is no universal
approach for working through academic
advising situations.

Without a universal approach for working
through academic advising situations,
academic advisors have a plethora of
choices…

Introduction Menu
To Main Menu

Theories Menu
A Simple Definition for Theory
Meaningful Sets of Ideas
Different Strokes for Different Folks
To Main Menu
Examples of Sets
Whatever One’s Interests may be

Theory: A set of ideas used to explain
some other idea(s)
A set of ideas used to explain situations in which an
institutional representative offers a college student insight
on an academic, social, or personal matter

The spectrum of relevant phenomena in
the academic advising context is quite
broad as it encompasses and overlaps a
number of disciplines.

Examples of Sets
Tinto’s (1975; 1993) Theory of Student Integration
Astin’s (1984) Theory of Student Involvement
Chickering and Reisser’s (1993) Seven Vectors of
Development
Extended Notes

Behaviors, persons in context, temporal
(change, growth, and development),
environments, cognitions, psychometrics,
culture, and so on

There is a theory for everyone.
In the end, finding a theory that fits is much
easier than rewriting someone else’s theory.

Theories Menu
To Main Menu
Examples of Sets

To Main Menu
Theories Menu
Examples of Sets

Examples of Sets
To Main Menu
Theories Menu

To Main Menu
Theories Menu
Examples of Sets

Examples of Sets Extended Notes 1
Person-centered theories:
Vectors: People in the same vector are believed to similar with
respect to their development (i.e. kinds of people)
Behavior-centered theories:
Departure: Behavior  student’s exit from an institution.
Construct-centered theories:
Involvement: Construct  expressed through behaviors
demonstrating participation in something “meaningful”
Back to Examples of Sets

Any theory can potentially fall into one or more of
the three kinds of theories I just described.
For instance, an advisor could study the kinds of
people who depart.
People who depart because they prefer to work are not
necessarily comparable to those who leave due to lack of
motivation to study.
Back to Examples of SetsBack to Previous Slide

Sometimes exploring the overlap between
multiple theories can enhance one’s perspective.
Cabrera, Nora, and Castaneda (1993) examined the overlap
between Tinto’s (1975) Student Integration Theory and Bean’s
(1980) Student Attrition Theory
Back to Previous Slide Back to Examples of Sets

Researchers have applied grand theories to the
academic advising context
Erlich and Russ-Eft (2012) applied Bandura’s (1986; 2001) Socio-
cognitive Theory to propose an approach for advising
Stebleton (2011) applied Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ecological systems
theory to study international students
Reardon and Bullock’s (2004) examined Holland’s (1997) research
on work environments in academic advising contexts, specifically
career counseling
Back to Previous Slide

Techniques Menu
In what ways do Advisors Advise?
Purposeful Advisor Behaviors
Values in Action
To Main Menu
Pseudo-Customer Service Agents
Getting to Measurable Outcomes

What do advisors actually do (in terms of
their behaviors) when advising?
More importantly, HOW does advising emerge out of
possibly ordinary behaviors or activities (e.g. listening)?

Since advisors offer insight, advisors
really should not solve advisee’s problems.

Advisors become unnecessary when they do
not have advisees.
Advisors’ ability to advise diminishes when
they have too many advisees.
To Previous Slide To Main Menu
Extended Notes
To Section Menu

Values in Action
Show empathy,
Ask the right questions,
Build current and preferred contexts,
Challenge and Encourage
Extended Notes

Techniques must yield outcomes that are
not only meaningful to the advisee but
also are MEASURABLE to those funding
advisors.

Customer Service Extended Notes 1
Student retention is a by-product of good
customer service (Spicuzza, 1992).
Labeling students as customers is not an ideal
practice (Propp & Rhoades, 2006)
Students often exhibit non-customer
characteristics (Svensson & Wood, 2007).
Back to Pseudo-
Customer Service Agents

For example, a student can volunteer to help a
campus visitor locate a building.
Essentially, the paying customer is providing a
service to someone who receives that service.
For that brief period of time, the student
sheds the customer label.
Back to Pseudo-
Customer Service Agents

A different example, students are products of their
respective universities.
Students produce value for their universities
based on the things students do and do not do.
Good products are often associated with
other good products (or students).

Values in Action Extended Notes 1
Egan’s (2013) Three-stage three-by-three model
on Skilled Helping
Recognizing the current situation, Creating
the preferred situation, Developing solutions
for going from the current situation to the
preferred situation.
Back to Values in Action
Click to see a Visual of
Egan’s Model

Values in Action Extended Notes 2
Rapp and Goscha’s (2012) Strengths Model
Using the strengths of an individual and
his/her environment to form niches.
These niches are seen as antecedents for
desired outcome(s)
Click to see a Visual of
the Strengths Model

Techniques Menu
To Main Menu
Values in Action

To Main Menu
Techniques Menu
Values in Action

Values in Action
To Main Menu
Techniques Menu

To Main Menu
Techniques Menu
Values in Action

Practices Menu
Thinking about Ethics
To be more Academic…
Wait there's more
To Main Menu
Advising with Ethics
Moving the Field Forward

What does doing the right thing mean?
What qualities do advisors use to know
what’s right?

The study of ethics is not necessarily
concerned with a specific individual’s or
group’s understanding of what is right
(Lowenstein, 2008)

Maximize benefit versus minimize harm
Advisees as ends versus advisors as means
Ensuring service versus empowering the
served

Wait there's more
The law can blur lines between right and
wrong.
Law and ethics share some overlap but
they are not the same.
Extended Notes
To Section Menu

As situation that require insight evolve, so
too must the people who provide insight.
Expand research, curriculum, and
opportunities (Habley, 2009).

Wait there’s more Extended Notes 1
Legal mandates (e.g. the Family Education Rights
and Privacy Act) can complicate advising.
For the most part, advisors cannot chase
protected information even if having it means
better advising
Back to Wait there’s
more

According to The Handbook of Campus Safety and
Security Reporting 2016 edition (US DoE, 2016),
a crime’s location matters (off-campus versus
on-campus).
Advising practices would differ for off-
and on-campus crimes.
Back to Wait there’s
more

Academic advisors can be agents of institutions
and fiduciaries to advisees (Richard, 2008; Rust,
2015).
Ethical dilemmas can emerge out of these
sometimes competing roles.

Practices Menu
To Main Menu
Wait there's more

To Main Menu
Practices Menu
Wait there's more

Wait there's more
To Main Menu
Practices Menu

To Main Menu
Practices Menu
Wait there's more

Filling Gaps Menu
A Starting Point
Expanding Research
Expanding Opportunities
To Main Menu
Expanding Curriculum
Closing Thoughts

A Starting Point
Build on Habley’s (2009) idea
Expand research, curriculum, and
opportunities

Expanding Research
What areas of advising need to be
researched?
What methods should be applied on
those areas?
Extended Notes
To Section Menu

What courses comprise an academic
advising program?
Are courses unique enough to fall into
their own category?
Extended Notes
To Section Menu

Can advisors’ ability to spot advising
situations be improved?
If so, what can be done to foster such
improvement?
Extended Notes
To Section Menu

Closing Thoughts
Academic advising is challenging.
Advisors must be able to maintain
their field’s credibility while growing
its viability.

Expanding Research Notes 1
Reflective inquiry (RI) can be applied to identify
topics of interest.
RI allows for the deliberation of professional
purpose and possibilities (Lyons, 2010).
This can enhance team facilitation and
development (Bolton, 2014).
Back to Expanding
Research

RI can be helpful in separating the following two
kinds of recurring issues
1) issues that should continue to recur to keep
advising a viable profession
2) issues that need to be handled in order to
boost confidence in advising
Back to Expanding
Research

Ideally, advisors interested in expanding research
should be well-versed in their preferred methods.
Professionals lose credibility when they create
more problems than they solve (Schon, 1983).
Professionals must be cognizant that
methods cannot solve every problem
(Brookfield, 2010).

Expanding Curriculum Notes 1
A sizeable amount of academic advising content is
needed to justify an advising curriculum.
Inspired from Hemwell and Trachte (2005)
Understanding the purposes and missions
of college, social context of learners,
models of learning, and interpersonal
communication
Back to Expanding
Curriculum

Understanding students’ learning styles is an
important part of how they will utilize the insight
offered by advisors (Muehleck, Smith, & Allen,
2014).
Advisors have to possess knowledge of
learning and advising styles.
Back to Expanding
Curriculum

Understanding learning and advising styles is a
necessary prerequisite for assessing their utility in
various situations.
Courses where students learn about learning
and advising styles should come before
courses where students evaluate those styles.
Back to Expanding
Curriculum

As a whole, an academic advising curriculum
must allow students to derive self-worth
(Reynolds, 2003; Lowenstein, 2005).
By the end, advisors must be confident in their
ability to advise others.
If not, advisors may create more problems
than they solve.

Expanding Opportunities Notes 1
Research, advising, or building curriculum
around the following groups
1. Undecided Students
2. Indecisive Students
3. Students with unique identities
Back to Expanding
Opportunities

Undecided students are likely to need and will
benefit from advising (Gordon & Steele, 2015)
Generally, these students are undecided on
Their major area of study (Anderson,
Creamer, & Cross, 1989)
Vocational choices (Lewallen, 1995)
Back to Expanding
Opportunities

Indecisive students are chronically undecided due
to psychological anxiety (Lewallen, 1994).
Understanding motivations to be indecisive
comes before reducing indecisiveness.
Back to Expanding
Opportunities

A few motivation-related concepts.
Locus of control (Rotter, 1966),
Self-determination (Deci & Ryan, 1985; 2000),
Self-regulation (Bandura, 1991),
Need to belong (Baumeister & Leary, 1995)
Back to Expanding
Opportunities

Descriptive terms students use to form their
identities as well as descriptive terms institutions
use to classify students into similar / different
units of analyses affect advising practices.
How many descriptive terms are needed to
attain adequate academic advising?
Back to Expanding
Opportunities

Finding advisors who can truly empathize with
their advisees becomes increasingly difficult as the
complexity of students’ identity increases.
Improving cultural competence (Sue & Sue, 2013)
Reducing unhelpful empathy (Duan & Hill, 1996)

A Starting Point
Filling Gaps Menu
Expanding Research
To Main Menu
Closing Thoughts

Expanding Research
Filling Gaps Menu
A Starting Point
To Main Menu
Closing Thoughts

Filling Gaps Menu
A Starting Point
Expanding Research
To Main Menu
Closing Thoughts

Closing Thoughts
Filling Gaps Menu
A Starting Point
Expanding Research
To Main Menu

To Main Menu
Filling Gaps Menu
A Starting Point
Expanding Research
Closing Thoughts

Astin, A. (1984). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher
education. Journal of College Student Personnel, 25, 297-308.
Bandura A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive
theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Bandura A. (2001). Social cognitive theory: an agentic perspective. Annual Review
of Psychology, 52, 1–26.
Bean, J. P. (1980). Dropouts and turnover: The synthesis and test of a causal
model of student attrition. Research in Higher Education, 12(2), 155–187.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press.
Cabrera, A. F., Nora, A., & Castaneda, M. B. (1993). College persistence:
Structural equations modeling test of an integrated model of student retention.
Journal of Higher Education, 64(2), 123–139.
Introduction and Theories Sections 1

Chickering, A. W., & Reeser, L. (1993). Education and identity (2nd ed.). San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Erlich, R. J., & Russ-Eft, D. (2012). Applying social cognitive theory to academic
advising to assess student learning outcomes. NACADA Journal, 31(2), 5-15
Holland, J. L. (1997). Making vocational choices: A theory of vocational
personalities and work environments (3rd ed.). Lutz, FL: Psychological Assessment
Resources.
Kuhn, T. L. (2008). Historical foundations of academic advising. In V. N. Gordon,
W. R. Habley, T. J. Grites & Associates (Eds.), Academic advising: A
comprehensive handbook (2nd ed., pp. 3 – 16). Manhattan, KS: National Academic
Advising Association.

Reardon, R. C., & Bullock, E. E. (2004). Holland’s theory and implications for
academic advising and career counseling. Journal of the National Academic
Advising Association, 24, 111 – 123.
Stebleton, M. J. (2011). Understanding immigrant college students: Applying a
developmental ecology framework to the practice of academic advising. NACADA
Journal, 31(1), 42-54.
Tinto, V. (1975). Dropout from higher education: A theoretical synthesis of recent
research. Review of Educational Research, 45(1), 89 – 125.
Tinto, V. (1994). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures for student
attrition (2nd ed.). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

Egan, G. (2013). The skilled helper: A problem-management and opportunity-
development approach to helping (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage.
Habley, W. R. (2009). Academic advising as a field of inquiry. NACADA Journal,
29(2), 76–83.
Lowenstein, M. (2008). Ethical foundations of academic advising. In V. Gordon, W.
Habley, and T. Grites (Eds.) Academic Advising: A Comprehensive Handbook (2nd
ed., pp. 36 – 49). Manhattan, KS: National Academic Advising Association.
Propp, K. M., & Rhodes, S. C. (2006). Informing, apprising, guiding, and
mentoring: Constructs underlying upperclassmen expectations for advising.
NACADA Journal, 26(1), 46-55.
Rapp, C. & Goscha, R. J. (2012). (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University
Press. The Strengths Model: Case management with people with psychiatric
disabilities
Techniques and Practices Sections 1

Richard, M. M. (2008). Legal foundations of academic advising. In V. Gordon, W.
Habley, and T. Grites (Eds.) Academic Advising: A Comprehensive Handbook (2nd ed., pp.
50 – 67). Manhattan, KS: National Academic Advising Association.
Rust, M. M. (2015). Legal issues in academic advising. In P. Folsom, F. Yoder, & J. E.
Joslin (Eds.) The new advisor guidebook: Mastering the art of academic advising (2nd ed.,
pp. 159 – 176). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Spicuzza, F.J. (1992). A customer service approach to advising: Theory and application.
NACADA Journal, 12(2), 49‐58.
Svensson, G., & Wood, G. (2007). Are university students really customers? When
illusion may lead to delusion for all! International Journal of Educational Management,
21(1), 17–28.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education (2016). The
Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting, 2016 Edition. Retrieved from
https://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/safety/handbook.pdf
Techniques and Practices Sections 2

Anderson, B. C., Creamer, D. G. & Cross, L. H. (1989). Undecided, multiple
change, and decided students: How different are they? NACADA Journal, 9(1),
46-50.
Bandura, A. (1991). Social cognitive theory of self-regulation. Organizational
Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 248-287.
Baumeister, R., & Leary, M. R. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for
interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological
Bulletin, 117, 497-529.
Bolton, G. (2014). Reflective practice: Writing and professional development (4th
ed.) Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Brookfield, S. (2010). Critical Reflection as an Adult Learning Process, in N.
Lyons (Ed.) Handbook of reflection and reflective inquiry: Mapping a way of
knowing for professional reflective inquiry (pp. 215-236). London, UK: Springer.
Filling Gaps Section 1

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in
human behavior. New York, NY: Plenum Press.
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The ‘what’ and ‘why’ of goal pursuits: human
needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227–
268.
Duan, C. & Hill, C. E. (1996). The current state of empathy research, Journal of
Counseling Psychology, 43(3): 261 – 274.
Gordon, V. N. & Steele, G. E. (2015). The undecided college student: An academic
and career advising challenge (4th ed.). Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
Hemwall, M. K., & Trachte, K. C. (2005). Academic advising as learning: 10
organizing principles. NACADA Journal, 25(2), 74–83.

Lewallen, W. C. (1994). A profile of undecided students. In V. N. Gordon (Ed.),
Issues in advising the undecided college student (Monograph No. 15) (pp. 5–16).
Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina, National Resource Center for the
Freshman Year Experience.
Lewallen, W. C. (1995). Students decided and undecided about career choice: A
comparison of college achievement and student involvement. NACADA Journal,
15(1), 22-30.
Lowenstein, M. (2005). If advising is teaching, what do advisors teach? NACADA
Journal, 25(2), 65–73.
Lyons, N. (2010). Reflection and reflective inquiry: Critical issues, evolving
conceptualizations, contemporary claims and future possibilities. In N. Lyons
(Ed.), Handbook of reflection and reflective inquiry: Mapping a way of knowing
professional reflective inquiry (pp. 3 – 22). London, UK: Springer.

Muehleck, J. K., Smith, C. L., & Allen, J. M. (2014). Understanding the advising
learning process using taxonomies. NACADA Journal, 34(2), 63-74.
Reynolds, M. (2003). Faculty advising at small colleges: Realities and responses.
In M. K. Hemwall & K. C. Trachte (Eds.), Advising and learning: Academic
advising from the perspective of small colleges and universities (NACADA
Monograph No. 8, pp. 21–32). Manhattan, KS: National Academic Advising
Association.
Schon, D.A. (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action.
New York, NY: Basic books.
Sue, D. W., & Sue, D. (2013). Counseling the culturally different: Theory and
practice (6th ed.). New York, NY: Wiley.

Aiken-Wisniewski, S. A., Smith, J. S., & Troxel, W. G. (2010). Expanding research
in academic advising: Methodological strategies to engage advisors in research.
NACADA Journal, 30(1), 4–13.
Anderson, M. L., Goodman, J., & Schlossberg, N. K. (2012). Counseling adults in
transition: Linking Schlossberg’s theory practice in a diverse world (4th ed.). New
York, NY: Springer.
Bean, J. P. (2005). Nine themes of college student retention. In A. Seidman (Ed.),
College student retention: Formula for student success (pp. 215-244). Westport,
CT: American Council on Education and Praeger Publishers.
Borgard, J. H. (2009). Toward a pragmatic philosophy of academic advising.
NACADA Journal, 29(1), 43–46.
Crookston, B. B. (1972). A developmental view of academic advising as teaching.
Journal of College Student Personnel, 13, 12-17.
Other Valuable References 1

Evans, N. J., Forney, D. S., Guido, F. M., Patton, L. D., & Renn, K. W. (2016).
Student development in college: Theory, research and practice (3rd ed.). San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Hughey, J. K. (2011). Strategies to enhance interpersonal relations in academic
advising. NACADA Journal, 31(2), 22–32.
Kuh, G., Kinzie, J., Schuh, J. H., Whitt, E. J., & Associates. (2010). Student
success in college: Creating conditions that matter. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-
Bass.
O'Bannon, T. (1972). An academic advising model. Junior College Journal, 42, 62,
64, & 66–69.
Pascarella, E. T. (2006). How college affects students: Ten directions for future
research, Journal of College Student Development, 47(5), 508–520.

Rendon, L. (1994). Validating culturally diverse students: Toward a new model of
learning and student development. Innovative Higher Education, 19(1), 33 – 51.
Rendon, L. I., Jalomo, R. E., and Nora, A. (2000). Theoretical consideration in the study
of minority student retention in higher education. In J. Braxton (Ed.) Rethinking the
departure puzzle: New theory and research on college student retention (pp. 127-156).
Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University Press
Self, C. (2008). Advising delivery: Professional advisors, counselors, and other staff. In
V.N. Gordon, W.R. Habley, & T.J. Grimes & Associates (Eds.), Academic advising: A
comprehensive handbook (2nd ed., pp. 267-278). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass
Tinto, V. (2006-2007). Research and practice of student retention: What next? Journal of
College Student Retention, 8(1), 1–19.
Ward-Roof, J. A. (2010). Designing successful transitions: A guide for orienting students
to college (Monograph No. 13, 3rd ed.). Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina,
National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition.

Other outlets
NACADA YouTube channel
https://www.youtube.com/user/NACADAEO
NASPA YouTube channel
https://www.youtube.com/user/NASPAstuaff

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Introduction and Theories
Techniques and Practices
Works that may be of Interest
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s
“Regression-style” adaptation of Egan’s Model
Sample Interpretation: New Perspectives” influences and is
influenced by “The Story” and “Values” at Stage 1 (The Current
Situation) + “Change Agendas” in Stage 2 (The Preferred Situation)
In The Skilled Helper
readers will see the
model presented in the
opposite order.

Simplified conceptual diagram of the Strengths Model
For more detailed information, please check out the third
edition of The Strengths Model by Rapp and Goscha.

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