Private, Public & For-Profit Institutions: Best Practices for Meeting the Needs of Online Students through Academic Advising

Transcription

1 NACADA 2010 Private, Public & For-Profit Institutions: Best Practices for Meeting the Needs of Online Students through Academic Advising Kristen Betts, Jennifer Varney, Jon Gehrz, Lisa Haas & Heather Blackburn

2 Panelists Kristen Betts EdD Program Director & Senior Director of elearning Drexel University Jennifer Varney Director of Academic Advising Graduate Programs Southern New Hampshire University Jonathan Gehrz Senior Advanced Learner Doctoral Advisor Capella University Lisa Haas Academic Services Manager Colorado Technical University Heather Blackburn Program Manager Drexel University

3 Trends in Education (1) Fact: year-old full-time undergraduate students residing on campus represent only 16% of all higher education enrollments the vast majority of college and university students are non-traditional largely working adults struggling to balance jobs, families, and education ~ A National Dialogue: The Secretary of Education's Commission on the Future of Higher Education, 2008

4 Trends in Education (3) 21% growth rate online vs. 2% overall higher education growth rate between fall ~ Sloan, 2010 Three-quarters of institutions report that the economic downturn has increased demand for online courses and programs ~ Sloan, students taking up to 60% of their courses online ~ Chronicle of HE

5 Trends in Education (5) Today s adult learner is seeking increased flexibility and value. ~ EducationDyanmics, 2009

6 40% of online students leave without seeking assistance. (EducationDynamics, 2009)

7 If student enrollments are shifting, should our advising practices be shifting as well?

8 Lisa Haas Colorado Technical University, for-profit Work w/ online undergrad and masters students Differential: Advising team uses a team approach Each cohort metric based advisor-to-student ratio. If team works with more at-risk students, the ratio is smaller Have teams that focus on (a) new students, (b) students on academic warning/probation, (c) military students, and (d) continuing students Advisors available 7 days a week; Monday-Thursday, advising department has staff available until 7 pm CT; weekends available during day time hours

9 Jennifer Varney Southern New Hampshire University, public Work w/ online and non-traditional graduate students Differential: Work staggered shifts throughout the day Have campus visits for our non traditional students Proactive approach Multiple communication platforms Holistic approach to advising Seamless transition from admissions to advising Different program models

10 Jon Gehrz Capella University, for-profit Work w/ online doctoral Differential: Advising dept one of primary learner-facing entities w/in org Consists of various teams for specific schools, populations, degrees, sometimes phases w/in degrees/specialized areas My team specifically assists doctoral learners at research phase of their program comprehensive exam and dissertation which approximately represents 40% of current doctoral pop Majority of work assisting learners w/intricacies of dissertation, advice, resources, options to increasingly complicated experience Advisors generally available Monday-Friday, until 7 pm CT

11 Heather Blackburn Drexel University, private Work w/ online and non-traditional graduate students Differential: Primarily undergraduate on-campus pop w/growing online graduate enrollments One advisor responsible for specific program pop. Understand how financial aid rules influence course registration Closely monitor probationary students Connect to strong career resources Hold summer residency for online students with emphasis on career networking

12 Kristen Betts Drexel University, private Work w/ all online programs across institution Differential: Each college/school serves unique student population Focus on collaborative best practices Examine comparative research on academic advising both internal and external to Drexel Early engagement, one-stop access to quick links Innovative strategies to optimize technology and events to bring the campus to students who may never or infrequently come to campus

13 25 Best Practices (1) 1. Be proactive with students; get to them before they need to reach out 2. Put student needs first: one student at a time, all students in mind 3. Connect with other advisors for best online practices 4. Constantly refine and improving what you do; never stagnate 5. Meet students where they are

14 25 Best Practices (2) 6. Don t assume that students know anything or have done their own research 7. Return phone calls and s as soon as possiblepreferably w/in hours 8. Know what resources are available on the campus (physically or virtually) and online 9. When working w/ non-traditional students, be prepared to talk about non-academic material such as day care, family obligations, work obligations, etc. as these often have the largest impact on this group of students 10. Know University policies and programs well

15 25 Best Practices (3) 11. Listen / learn to work / accept learners where they are in their learning development - don t assume doctoral education / graduate education means superior level of readiness 12. Be responsive to needs and provide solutions appropriate for an adult learner s circumstances 13. Don t limit yourself to resources within your organization 14. Re-examine your own definition of learner success 15. Be open and accepting of the road less traveled

16 25 Best Practices (4) 16. Connect students with faculty and practitioners 17. Include online students in on-campus events 18. Provide tips on succeeding in online environments 19. Educate faculty on philosophy/culture for managing adult learners 20. Hold online (Skype, Wimba) advising sessions around key dates or events

17 25 Best Practices (5) 21. Meet and exceed expectations align marketing w/ actual experience and deliverables 22. Early engagement, pre-orientation, social media integration (Facebook, LinkedIn), campus points contact 23. Personalize the online experience by bringing the campus to students through an Online First-Year Experience, program/institutional events (e.g., Virtual Tea Orientation, Convocation, Speaker Series, etc.) 24. Training, expectations, guidelines for academic advising 25. Data driven decision-making know what you are doing well and what can be enhanced; benchmarks, goals, etc.

18 Audience Discussion Your Best Practices & Questions

19 Thank you!