Introduction For the purposes of this assignment, a female advisor in the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, who has chosen to remain anonymous, was interviewed about her role as an academic advisor and in working with high-ability students. A female undergraduate student in the USC Viterbi School of Engineering was also interviewed about her experiences with her academic advisor and as a Trustee Scholar. The student provided her first name as “Vincy” but not her last name. It is important to note the advisor interviewed is not the advisor of the student interviewed. For better understanding, the student is a Trustee Scholar at USC; she received a full tuition scholarship for academic achievement in high school. Vincy is also an honors program student at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. In bringing together our interviews, along with current research on academic advising in post-secondary institutions, we will consider student dynamics, needs, advisement issues, and potential ways to effectively advise high-ability students. Advising High-Ability Students Doughtery argued that “[High-ability] students are often overlooked in the advising process because they typically excel in academics and appear to work in a self-reliant manner” (as cited in Gordon, Habley, and Grites et al., 2008, p.200). However, it is important for advisors to realize that just because these students typically do well, they also have struggles. Doughtery mentioned that high-ability students
My passion towards working with students every day has led me to the decision of pursuing a doctoral degree in Student Affairs in Higher Education at Miami University. I have chosen this program to prepare myself for a future role as a professor or a senior level college administrator. This program will allow me to become more proficient within the students’ educational experience and therefore better engage students in active learning.
Being admitted into college is a difficult process, one that requires students to be diligent in their studies, engage in a number of extracurricular activities, and overcome the everyday pressures and challenges that high-schoolers face across the country. Admittedly, not everyone in the United States is born with the same opportunities as socioeconomic factors as well as historic injustices have contributed to a society in which some people are far more likely to achieve upward mobility – of which, obtaining a college degree is a necessary part – than others. While there is need to rectify this reality,
Some of the graduates stated they believe their determination to persist to graduation was due to having a mentor to help them throughout their college experience. A way to further this study could be to study the experiences of graduates who had mentors versus those who did not have a mentor and evaluate how this had an impact on their persistence to graduate.
I hereby declare that, except where I have made clear and full reference to the work of others, this submission, and all the material (e.g. text, pictures, diagrams) contained in it, is my own work, has not previously been submitted for assessment, and I have not knowingly allowed it to be copied by another student. In the case of group projects, the contribution of group members has been appropriately quantified.
While attending California State University, Long Beach, as an undergraduate in 2011, I mentored students who were members of the program TRIO Student Support Services (SSS). The program SSS provides academic support services for first-generation college students striving to earn a four-year degree. The program fostered my passion for diversity in higher education. As a member of the program, I mentored Hispanic and Black American college students. Secondly, I mentored students who experienced social and academic challenges. The program provided me a unique opportunity to mentor a sexagenarian. For instance, I mentored
After reading Sonja Ardoin’s (2014) “the strategic guide to shaping your student affairs career” book, I read a variety of important content that has allowed me to reflect not only in my fieldwork position, as an Advising Assistant for the Puente Program, but also my current status as a graduate student in the Educational Counseling program.
Many college professors find it very important to have parents, students and current instructors aware of the expectations for the upcoming student. By informing students,
Going to college and being in a university setting was the first time my perspectives and ideas were broadened. I was able to see the world outside my small suburb, and learned harsh realities, which I was sheltered from my whole life. Social justice advocate, Bryan Stevenson, expounds the idea of getting proximate to issues that one cares about. For me, getting proximate was accomplished by being on a university campus, and learning from the ideas of others, as well as new, first-hand experiences. As I was supported and encouraged in my growth at Loyola, I want to provide the same assistance for other students. Through my years I have excelled at organization and coordination, skills that I hope to apply in order to help students in a university setting. More so, I want to help support students who enter college, those who wish to expand their knowledge, viewpoints, and minds. Higher education would offer me a unique opportunity where I would be able to support students in their growth as a person, while offering encouragement and assistance to students throughout their college
As a recent graduate of Iowa State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Art and Design focusing on art history and education, the position as Education Coordinator and Advisor at Buena Vista University captured my attention as an opportunity to work with students through educational programming. As a recent college student, I provide a valuable perspective on academic advising through my own personal experiences. I have learned many advisors lack in truly connecting and catering to each student’s individual situation and needs. Buena Vista University, a relatively small area college, provides an opportunity to fully connect and provide personal one-on-one experience all students deserve. Subsequently, students gain the absolute most out of their college education. A large part of my career goals entail helping students of all ages engage, thrive and connect in their own individualized way.
Recruited 9th grade students for membership into the Upward Bound program at Battle Creek Central High School
For this paper, I decided to focus my attention on one population that I am potentially interested in working with, which are high school students. The first person I interviewed was a ninth-grade counselor at Alain Leroy Locke College Prepartory Academy. The second person I interviewed was a College Adviser, placed through USC, at Diego Rivera Learning Complex. While the first interview was conducted on site at Locke, the second interview was conducted on campus at USC. For both interviews, I came equipped with my questions already printed out and ready for me to write my interviewees responses down. In discussing the challenges that both the counselor and adviser experience in terms of learning, it is important to first understand the population of students that both professionals work with. While both schools are in South Los Angeles, Diego Rivera Learning Complex is a part of Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), while Alain Leroy Locke is run by Green Dot Public Schools—even though it is still within LAUSD boundaries. Both schools have a primarily minority and low-income population.
As a result, students and parents are starting to prepare for college much later than researchers recommend (Bell et al., 2009; Gibbons et al., 2006). According to research from Bell et al. (2009), students who attend schools with personnel dedicated to college guidance are more likely to feel confident about and familiar with the college application process. This finding is particularly significant, as first-generation college students report lower positive outcome expectations related to attending college, which can in turn impact their intentions, interests, and goals. Furthermore, with prospective first-generation college students reporting greater barriers related to college going, it is essential that counselors dedicated to college access are available to help raise positive expectations, as well as challenge negative expectations for this population (Gibbons & Borders, 2010). Although 65 percent of first-generation college students expressed interest in attending a four-year university in Gibbons et al.’s (2006) research, just 53 percent of all prospective first-generation college students were enrolled in college-preparatory courses. As a result, some counselors have started to realize how the rigor of classes is a systemic barrier
Institutions of higher education pride themselves in their ability to educate, serve, and meet the needs of the students in which it serves. This analysis shows collaboration on college/university campuses to foster success among first year students. With higher education today being in a state of dynamic change, it becomes crucial that faculty members recognize that their long time traditional roles have become somewhat non-existent. That is to say that there must be a relinquishing of past ideas and procedures.
Obstacles had never been obstructing my effort to succeed in life. As an engineer to be, it is important to me to be prepared for the hurdles in the real world. The world nowadays needs a person who could compete and has great abilities to stand on the same level as others. Multiple skills and critical opinion of an issue are essential for an engineer to jump into this challenging career. For me, a strategic planning and full preparation need to achieve the aim of being an expert engineer.
College can be very overwhelming and stressful at times. Many students struggle to keep up with all their assignments and due dates. There are many resources on college campuses that can aid students in time management; paper writing and studying habits, but the main resource that students tend to neglect are their professors. Professors are the ones that are teaching the material, assigning the homework and making the test. Student faculty interactions can be crucial to a student’s success in college. Whether it is for internship opportunities or recommendations, teacher’s jobs are to help students learn and succeed. Teachers are a great, free resource in college that seems to go unnoticed. Student-faculty interactions have major effects on a student’s self-efficacy and academic integrity. These are just a handful of the countless effects of student-faculty involvement.