DESCRIPTION
Understanding degree program requirements during the admissions process promotes a well-informed student. The best practice is for the pre-enrollment advisors to follow the students through the first semester. This allows advisors to make a connection with the students and serve as unofficial life coaches. Off-campus students often struggle with life pressures; having someone they can reach out to for ideas on how to handle the challenges in their life and accomplish the instructional goals are a valuable resource for them. Providing robust information on a website is also helpful allowing students’ access to valuable information at their fingertips.
QUALITY INDICATORS
1. The institution provides advising for students to set academic goals for themselves.
2. Students have access to transcript evaluation/degree audits.
3. Students have access to enrollment planning, including career exploration and employment outlook resources.
4. Students have access to personal development strategies.
5. The institution provides placement testing, if needed.
6. The institution uses predictive analytics data; especially high school GPA/ SAT or ACT scores/class grades to match aptitude for success within a degree program during the advising process.
SUGGESTED PRACTICES
- Provide a readily accessible career interest/aptitude evaluation tool.
- Provide employment research/resources by meta-major or degree program.
- Use at least three-touch points first week of class as a predictor of student success within the courses and provides follow-up for those who are not achieving.
- Provide access to a career advisor to ensure they are selecting the degree program that is the best match for their academic performance and aspirations.
- Evaluate transcripts and inform students about courses which are required before admission.
- Provide online tools that allow a student to input previously taken courses to determine the possible time to graduate.
- Create personal connections with incoming students through pre-enrollment advisors which encourage the students in successfully completing the enrollment process and first courses.
- Provide a website for students with a suggested degree program plan so the student knows which classes should be taken first and when to take subsequent classes.
- Provide a degree planning solution as an interactive tool which demonstrates consequences for of changes in degree and/or dropping courses which is attached to a year round schedule or established program plan/pathway/flight plan.
- Use an advisor tracking system to monitor the availability of the advisors to the off-campus students and the quality of those interactions.
- Follow-up student surveys evaluate the student experiences, identify the barriers that students encounter, and suggestions for improvement from the students.
- Make available a time management calculate that allows the student to enter their life activities (family, work, leisure) to calculator time for off-campus courses. Recommending number of courses to take.
EXAMPLES
- Franklin University has a MyTransferCredit App to assist applicants in determining how long it will take to complete degree and what actual cost is based upon the transfer credits (UB Business, 2016).
- Florida colleges and universities can take advantage of the FloridaShines state catalog systems which allows students to use the system degree audit system to assist in selecting a degree program appropriate for interests and aptitude.