Get Your Students Hired
Hi Eric,
You are on point! We need to let students know that we GENUINELY care about them and their success.
Patricia Scales
Being genuine is the key because students can sense indifference and lack of concern very easily.
It can be very difficult to advise students. Some are receptive to feedback, while others may be resistant. I find treating them like adults they respond much more openly.
When advising students it is very important to be patient, but even more important to be disciplined. It is vital to be clear with students as to what is expected from them, as well as what can be acomplished by them. Advising is meant to orient a student as to the path to take, and as such needs to be very clear as to the goals, the means, and the obstacles. Choice is up to the students, it is up to the advisor to make those choices clear.
Hi Christopher,
Listening is key! Students like to be heard, and they love knowing that we are in their corner.
Patricia Scales
Hi Richard,
Students love feeling a sense of importance. We have to let our students know that we truly care about them as a person and their academic success.
Patricia Scales
I totally agree with this way of advising students. the trick is showing sincerity in caring about each individule students best interest in mind and showing the rest of the students everyone is being treated fairly. Sometimes giving a student the little extra attention they need to be succesful can be mistaken for not treating each student fairly.
I would say that the key to successfully advising students would first be to actively listen to the student. Listening will allow the advisor to have a clear understanding of a number of things, including the student's goals, needs, and even perhaps academic level.
From there, the advisor should show interest in the student, by encouraging the student to push towards their goals, seek additional help if needed, and in general provide positive feedback to the student.
Hi Brenda,
I agree! Rules must be established for any thing to work effectively.
Patricia Scales
Hi Mahnaz,
Students should not be given their grades; make students earn their grades. Students will rise to the bar, even if you set high standards.
Patricia Scales
Hi Harpreet,
I like the steps you take with advising. Anytime you tear a student down; you should always leave on a note where you have built them back up. Honesty is always the best policy with students. Do not sugar coat things with students, be honest.
Patricia Scales
First- Come to the level of the student to understand them better- empathize with them
Second- do not lecture
Third- Be practical and tell them the truth
Fourth- Give them correct information
Fifth- Help them to the point where they are motivated to stand back up.
I believe students should be actively involved in their academic growth and decision making. They should be given the opportunity to share their interests and educational goals. Students should be challenged to reach their goals and learning potential.
Having an open door policy is great, but htere need to be some rules associated with that too. Open door does not mean that one student can interrupt another; nor does it mean the door is 100% open 100% of the time. Sometimes, students need to be told to wait 15 minutes or come back in an hour. I have had student feel that my office is their office, and they should have access at all times.
Hi Jason,
I am sure you do an outstanding job by trying to keep your students focused. Students can quickly lose focus toward the end. Keep them focused as much as you can.
Patricia Scales
That is a great approach to take with you students. Though my approach is a little more direct I encourage my students to communicate to me what they may be struggling with in there lives so we can make accomodations. Being proactive is the key! Great Post.
I currently teach a class that is late in the program and I often find that my students begin to lose focus because they see the light at the end of the tunnel. My approach is to be very direct and honest about the competitive nature of our industry and the high standards that they will be required to perform to.
Hi Daniel,
Honesty is the best policy! Do not sugar coat things with students, shoot straight from the hip with them. We do not know it all and when we can't assist a student we should get the expert in that area involved.
Patricia Scales
I believe there are several keys elements that an instructor needs to consider when advising students however being as honest as possible is probably the most important. It is paramount that instructors use their expertise as much as possible and be straightforward with respect to the skill level and experience. Honesty is a two way street though, Instructors also need to be honest with themselves and remember that they are not experts in all fields of study and may need to advise students to seek information elsewhere as needed. For example, today I had a student ask me for a few key things that I had observed about them they could use on their resume. After observing them for the past 6 weeks I was able to give them 2 thoughts that I believed would be beneficial but I advised them to seek additional help from our career services team on how to properly incorporate them into their resume.
Hi Kim,
I concur! Students need to know that we genuinely care about them.
Patricia Scales