Fall 2007 Advising Update Session

1. Fall 2007 Advising Update Session Thank you for coming!

2. What’s in This Year’s Session? • VJC advising system basics • We are doing well – thank you! • Focus on career support • Learning Beyond for students and faculty • Advisor survey results • The new WebXpress • New Policies and Issues • A chance for Q & A

3. The VJC Advising System Basics • Faculty based system typical of small colleges • All fulltime faculty advise • Advise in teaching discipline whenever possible • Faculty in non-major disciplines advise deciding students • Advising required for students with fewer than 30 credits • Degree Audit as fundamental guiding document

4. THANK YOU!!!Advising is Going Well… • On the Spring 2007 Noel-Levitz survey students rated their satisfaction with academic advising at a significantly higher level than at our peer institutions. • In last Spring’s online survey of advisors 98% agreed or strongly agreed with the following statement “I am confident that I understand how to advise effectively.”

5. Developmental Career Advising • Noel-Levitz result shows VJC students get LESS career support from their advisors than at our peer institutions • Goal: Increase career focus of advising • Increase advisor consciousness about career development • Freshman advising, focus on self-exploration • Pre-graduate school advising • Recommending Career HQ services • Working with Career Services Asst. VP Chris Noya to implement new strategies

6. Learning Beyond • One-Credit-Options (OCOs): • One credit add-on course • 15+ hours of experience • Gradable academic component • OCOs in service, culture, travel, etc. • Faculty encouraged to be creative! • 3-credit Service Learning courses • Study Abroad (plan early!) • Field Placements (internships, career related placements, etc.) • Please recommend LB experiences to your advisees!

7. Advisor Survey Results • 87 (out of 110 or so) Advisors took online survey in Spring 2007 • Highlights: Big picture looks good! • Most feel well-supported by Advising Office and Department Chairs • 96% say advising “important”, 95% say they “enjoy” advising • Comfort with using WebXpress system • Strong understanding of curriculum • Lowlights: • Reluctance to embrace annual mandatory sessions (sorry… the Dean made me do it…) • More students need to set up appointments ahead of time • Some frustration with understanding Degree Audit • Not much use of Advising website (available through Student Solution Center link on “Quicklinks” list on VJC homepage)

9. Student Survey Results • On the whole very satisfied with academic advising • Areas of weakness or frustration? • Career advising • Promptness of advisor communication

10. The New WebXpress • New “For Advisors” section • All subsections unchanged • On the student side – new “Email My Advisor(s)” function • WebXpress “for Parents” Allows parents to see academic info as well as financial (different from FERPA release which is in comments field) • Degree Audits available to students and advisors through WebXpress as usual

11. New Policies and Issues • New minimum grade standards for “Major Requirements” in all majors, and for “Secondary Requirements” in some majors • Most depts. tougher standards • Retroactive to all catalog years but all pre-Fall 2007 courses “grandfathered in” • Post-semester manual updating will be done by Registrar and program leaders so degree audits are correct • Degree Audit fine points • Sub-minimum coursework to bottom of that section • 300+ general electives not listed in “other courses” • CORE program correction – no formal study hall • Academic probation and suspension • Two consecutive semesters on probation then suspension unless appealed • Signed preregistration form is true “paper trail”

12. Q & A…??? • What is unclear? • What can be improved? • How can I help? • My job is to help you help the students… please put me to work! • THANK YOU FOR COMING!