Date of Graduation

1991

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Abstract

This is a descriptive study which compares and contrasts perceptions and perspectives on the academic advising process with a special focus on its legal aspects. The population surveyed was 35 faculty, 650 students and 7 administrators from ten private, independent, religious-affiliated, baccalaureate degree-granting institutions with a full-time student population of 500-1100. The faculty survey reported the perceptions of the faculty on the value of academic advising and on how well prepared and up-to-date they were on advising matters. The information gathered was readily quantified. Faculty were given four cases for analysis of their legal dimensions. A decision-action score was generated to measure faculty understanding of legal matters. Fifty percent of the faculty attained a low score on this scale (less than 9 points out of 18). Scores were generally higher for faculty members who most recently joined the system. The survey used with students was designed to discover maps of action taken in resolving eight common advising problems. The instruments were ordered by rank of respondent and from a random sample of 100 completed surveys, representative of the distribution of students from the different colleges were analyzed. Analysis of student responses revealed the extent to which students' responses deviated from the traditional institutional patterns. On simulations dealing with their rights the students scored extremely low; on matters concerning the technical aspects of "studenthood" (grades, etc.) students scored extremely high. Open-ended questions were used to discover the administrators' ideas on the future of academic advisement and on the best organizational system and personnel to support the advising program. The major findings of this study showed that while there are many dimensions to the advising role, the manifestations of this role have crystallized at the more traditional level; the expanded role, which involves a more helping relationship and a sensitivity to the rights of others remains "blurred" and is minimally sought after. Administrators in this study report that the faculty are the best prepared to serve as advisors; however, on close assessment faculty are wanting in preparation and keeping current in advising matters. In addition, only one administrator reported that academic advising was rewarded in some way on that campus. Constituents expressed considerable satisfaction with the advising process but demonstrated a low ability to handle the personal, legal, and career implications of academic advising, making the satisfied dimensions quite narrow.

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