Advising Best Practices
At the beginning of every semester email your advisees to apprize them of your new office hours. Suggest that newly assigned advisees, especially incoming freshmen and transfers, stop by for an introductory meeting. The better you know your advisees, the more informed "advice" you can give during Advanced Registration, when they are having academic difficulty, or as they are getting ready to plan for life after New Paltz. The e-mail function of my.newpaltz.edu makes this type of contact easy.
When the Schedule of Classes becomes available, send another email to your advisees. Remind them of your office hours and let them know if you have sign-up sheets or other special procedures for seeing you prior to Advanced Registration. Remind them of their responsibilities for schedule building and suggest that they review the "Registration Checklist" under the student link on this Web site prior to meeting with you.
Keep brief advising notes of your appointments. Not only will these refresh your memory about the student's interests and plans in subsequent meetings, but they can also be used to reconstruct what you recommended in case any questions arise later on. One "Advising Log" is in each student's advising folder. If you need additional sheets, call Academic Advising.
Don't feel embarrassed to refer students to another office when they ask questions outside of your expertise. The "Academic Success Resource List" posted on the Academic Advising website gives you contact information and a description of the services for key offices on campus. If in doubt, call Academic Advising. We may not have the answer, but we usually know who does.
Take advantage of the resources and tools that are posted on the Academic Advising Web site. The "Registration Appointment checklist", the "Is Your Advisee Ready to Graduate checklist", and the "Course Withdrawal vs S/U: Considerations" have all been developed in response to faculty advisor requests. Combined with the Advising Handbook, these tools provide you with the information you need to be a successful advisor. Have suggestions for another resource or tool? Call Academic Advising.
