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Advising is handled in different ways at different institutions of higher education. As a professor for nearly three decades, I certainly love to do it when it involves talking to students about their passions, goals, graduate school, life issues, and future intentions. But admittedly, I do find it tricky to talk about classes in other departments that I can’t always really speak about as comprehensively. There are limitations to the model of faculty advising and it can be a good idea to seek out varying perspectives.
There are a number of things you can do to get the most out of the advising process. Perhaps the adviser you’ve been assigned is a professional adviser in a dedicated advising office at the college or in your field of study like an academic adviser in a business school. This person is a higher-education professional who has solid training in the ins and outs of the school and program and is in a good position to answer questions about transfer credits, resources for academic success, etc.
To augment this advising experience, seek out a faculty mentor as well. Maybe this is a person with whom you took a favorite class or who compelled you to rethink your major.
Be prepared for a productive meeting
You should meet with your adviser on a regular basis and before each new semester, and be sure to prepare thoroughly for your appointment. It’s disconcerting how many people wait to be advised, are late to sign up for classes, and then are frustrated that they’re full. It’s important to check the academic calendar for when advising and course registration starts for the next semester and to pay attention to announcements that come through via email and are printed on flyers around campus. At that point, it’s important to secure an advising appointment and have any registration holds lifted so you can sign up for what you most need and want. Go to your meeting prepared with questions written out in advance, and create some mock schedules you think you’d like for the next semester. It’s astonishing how many students show up to appointments without even a pen and paper to take notes.
Plan ahead
If you’re attending a smaller college or university with fewer programs and faculty, as is the case where I work, we cannot offer everything that’s in the academic bulletin every semester. That’s just the larger menu from which we decide what to offer. So, it’s a very good idea when you decide to declare a major or minor, and there are specific classes that you’re interested in taking, to then find out generally when they tend to be offered so that you can plan accordingly and plot out future semesters. Sometimes faculty will know what they’re teaching in advance, or they’ll know if they or a colleague will be on leave and not offering a class.
I’ve also seen cases where I’ve been very clear about the sequence of courses that a student should try to follow, explaining exactly what semesters those are offered, and how to position themselves for the most success. And all too often I later discover that they ignored my advice and signed up for a different set of classes even if the ones I suggested were actually available. Those students (and their parents) are usually the very same ones to later get upset if a class is only offered in a particular semester.
Double-check everything
It’s a wise idea to check with the registrar’s office about transfer credits, to be sure about certain specifications around language requirements, or any issues that seem idiosyncratic to your own record for which you need to be sure all your i’s are dotted and your t’s are crossed. Remember, you’re the one ultimately in charge of following up on what’s expected of you and making sure graduation requirements are met. While many, if not most, schools allow students to cross the stage on graduation day if they’re short by a specific number of credits, try to avoid this altogether because how anticlimactic is that? And, your degree isn’t conferred until you’ve completed everything.
Look ahead
Advising is a great time to talk about more than just your schedule for the next semester. Importantly, your adviser may know of exciting opportunities for research collaborations, internships, and jobs. It’s worth your while to get to know this person. Be honest about anything you’re struggling with, and ask for resources and support. Brainstorm with this person about majors and minors and what can be done with them in the future. You can let your adviser know what sort of classes you’re interested in seeing offered; we want to know what students would like to see incorporated into the curriculum as we think about designing future classes.
Expand your mind
Remember that when you sign up for classes, it’s really an opportunity to expand your mind. It’s like the expression goes, the mind stretched over a new idea, never returns to its original dimension. I was so hell-bent on taking as much sociology as I could because the University of Wisconsin-Madison has always been one of the top sociology programs in the country, but looking back on it now, I wish I’d have taken some other classes in other departments just for that sense of being even more well-rounded. That might have involved the risk of not doing as well as I did in my sociology classes, but it also would have been expansive in a different way. Along these lines, it’s beneficial to take courses with a wide variety of professors. Even if you come to adore one and choose to take more classes with that person, it’s still advantageous to encounter new ways of thinking, knowing, being, and inhabiting the world.
Develop a rapport
The rapport you create with your adviser can serve you well, far beyond graduation. This person may be someone you’ll want to rely on for recommendation letters, they may become a colleague should you wind up pursuing the same field they’re in, and they may even remain an enduring mentor and friend later on. Do what you can to try to meet them casually over coffee to chat more deeply, or if given an opportunity to take a faculty or staff member to lunch at the dining hall with free meal passes, consider inviting this person, and show your gratitude if and when they go out of their way to help and support you.