Advising Differences

If you are transferring to Western Illinois University from a community college, you may notice some differences in the structure of academic advising. At a community college, the focus of advising was probably on graduating with an Associate’s Degree or learning the program requirements for transferring to a four year institution. It is possible that as a student at a community college, you might not have utilized your advising resources.

Like community college advising, advisors at a four year institution will focus on the basics, such as what is a credit, how do you create a class schedule, how should I manage my time, etc. In addition to the basics, advisors will also work with students to be developmental. Developmental advising recognizes the importance of interactions between the student and the campus environment, focuses on the whole person, and works with the student at that person's own life stage of development. Thus advisors need to be aware of other things going in a student’s life because of the impact they may have on the student’s success in college.

Adapted from:

King, M.C. (2002). Community college advising. Retrieved July 14, 2008 from NACADA Clearinghouse of Academic Advising Resources Web site

King, M. C. (2005). Developmental academic advising. Retrieved July 14, 2008, from NACADA Clearinghouse of Academic Advising Resources Web site