Every year I ask Management first year students,‘freshers',why they have chosen to study their subject at university. The top response is usually ‘to get a good job’ or ‘to get a good degree […to get a good job]’. Given the competitive graduate job market, it is increasingly important that students don’t leave it until the upper years to develop their employability. This presentation will share the design and delivery of a compulsory module to develop first year student employability at Leeds University Business School (UK). It will include: how models of employability can inspire module design and assessment and student advising; the role of an academic personal tutor in employability advising; practical employability activities designed for first years; approaches to evaluating/evidencing students’ employability; and a module evaluation.

Advisors see many students who are intellectually capable of succeeding in college, but whose difficulties with factors such as self-management, decision making, coping with stress, interpersonal relationships and adjusting to change adversely affect academic success. Evidence suggests strong Emotional Intelligence (EI) is an important factor in college success and student persistence. Interpersonal and leadership skills, self-management in time and commitment ethic and intrapersonal skills (self-esteem and stress management) are EI skills that impact successful functioning in school. In particular, the first year of college is a transitional time when these skills can make the difference between success and failure. This session reviews research supporting the relationships between EI and academic performance and first year success. Programs and activities to enhance student emotional intelligence will be demonstrated.

While the practice of providing undergraduate students with formalized one-to-one academic advice and guidance is relatively commonplace in the English-speaking University – often provided through academic members of staff – it is a tradition that has largely failed to gain a solid foothold in Australian universities. In this session, we report on a large two-year initiative that employed more than 90 teaching members of academic staff to act as academic advisor to a small cohort from our commencing student population of more than 1,300 first-year students. We further report on the results of a research effort that sought to capture the perceptions and attitudes of students and staff involved in the new academic advising program. Research of this kind casts light on the challenges involved with establishing a new advising culture within the Australian context.

Of the millions of students who begin post-secondary education, only 40% actually graduate within a six-year period. Recognizing the importance of post-secondary education in the global community, many foundations and initiatives have been created focusing on increasing student completion rates. Utah State’s Board of Regents tasked each of the State institutions with developing four-year graduation maps to increase timely graduation. We will explain how we are partnering with students, parents, faculty, administration and IT staff to create and distribute these graduation maps. We will share templates for semester by semester program maps, which include specific courses and important milestones students should reach each semester. By guiding them through these requirements, students will know the path to timely graduation.

In facing the reality of a multinational and multi-faith student body, providing spiritual support is increasingly challenging. As our world is plagued with ethnic conflicts and violence committed in the name of religion, the fact that students from different national and religious backgrounds study together in a tertiary institution provides us with both opportunities and challenges. The interaction of different faiths may either lead to dissonance due to contentious dialogue or become non-existent in order to preserve harmony. In this presentation, the multi-faith Chaplaincy team of The University of Melbourne share their experiences of creating opportunities to cultivate an authentic multi-faith collaboration on campus.

Concerns about “time to degree”, pass rates and drop-out rates have triggered a deliberate change in the processes that a Faculty use to manage academic advising and student support.

Moving away from a decentralised system, where advice was provided by Programme Directors and their individual teams, the Faculty Manager and the academic Manager of Teaching and Learning created a central advising team in the Faculty. This team provides students with continuous academic advice, not only during registrations, but also throughout the year. Through consolidated academic advice, problems can be identified sooner, and proper support systems implemented, to assist students throughout their academic journey.

This paper will explore the preliminary findings after the first implementation of such a central academic advising team as well as possible adjustments for the future.

Students transferring from international universities often experience a more challenging transition period than traditional transfer students. New teaching styles, frequent assessments, culture shock and unfamiliarity with US university and cultural norms all influence student success, yet support programs remain a rarity. Recognizing this gap in student support prompted us to take action! Learn how NAU’s Center for International Education developed a one-credit student success course specifically for international transfer students. CIE 100 includes facilitated learning, guided assessments and panel presentations provided by NAU faculty, staff and students, with an intentional focus on student and life skills. Learn how international transfer student support programs can arm your students with skills for success!

There is an increasing number of students with disabilities that are enrolling in higher education, especially those with invisible disabilities. It is therefore important for advisors to receive basic professional development training in working with this population of students. During this session, we would be talking about what qualifies as a disability, general overview of different types of disabilities typically encountered in higher education, appropriate language to use when addressing an individual with a disability, some American, UAE and Australian laws governing rights of individuals with disabilities, resources that can improve the accessibility for educational opportunities in college, relevant referrals for advisors to consider in their work with a student with a disability, and resources for continued training in this area.

Student engagement, retention and success are central to the university context, and an integrated, collaborative partnership of an academic program and an academic advising service can be pivotal in facilitating positive student outcomes and a successful university experience. An ongoing dialogue, and indeed a challenge, in the field of academic advising is that of how to most effectively partner with academic programs. This presentation examines an academic advising collaboration within a Graduate School program, identifying the elements that make it a successful, best-practice partnership model. It also presents research conducted within the program measuring the effect of intervention on individual students. In doing so, the presentation outlines key messages regarding the facilitation of successful partnerships within tertiary program-academic advisor contexts, and evidence that these interventions have positive impact.

This presentation argues that academic and professional communication skills need to have an explicit focus within the curriculum. The approach taken is that employability skills are, fundamentally, academic skills that are contextualised to the workplace. Learning activities that are explicitly designed to have a professional context can be used, where relevant, to develop both academic and professional communication, and other graduate attributes. The presentation explores the issues related to employability skills from an academic language and learning perspective, and from the perspective of students, academics and the University. It outlines the current debate on the subject, and describes a professional development course run for academics by the RMIT Study and Learning Centre on ‘Integrating academic and professional communication into tertiary teaching.’

Colleges and universities in Japan, professional advising does not exist. Functions of academic advising, however, are needed. At Soka University, Student Performance Acceleration Center (SPACe) acts as an advising center to support faculty advisors and other units at the institution. Among first and second year students, about 20% of students get put on probation. Faculty advisors, who are first-year experience class instructors, are required to meet with them, and other student affairs units’ staffs assist from financial aid, registration, and personal issues. These university staffs, however, are not trained as academic advisors as NACADA defines. In this presentation, the presenter introduces how SPACe staff gets trained as academic advisors and peer advisors (undergraduate students) and collaborates with academic departments and other student affairs units.

Developing innovative, accurate and efficient methods of multicultural competency assessment is a necessity for colleges globally. Colleges search for appropriate accountability measures to assess multicultural competence with academic advisors. Sadly, there are few cultural competency assessment tools available for academic advisors to assess their own cultural skills. This program describes the multicultural advising portfolio, a practical multicultural assessment tool for advisors in a variety of college settings, including distance learning. Its utility for assessing advisor cultural competency is highlighted in this program. Participants will learn strategies for using the multicultural advising portfolio for their own professional self-assessment and will discuss its application for program assessment for advising offices and departments.

Biases, we all have them. However, unconscious biases can impede our interactions with learners. In this presentation we will review the definition of unconscious bias, the ways in which biases form and examples of manifestations of unconscious bias. Additionally, we will explore effects of unconscious bias on our interactions with learners and discuss strategies to help identify and manage these biases.

Encouraging Australian Indigenous people to undertake higher education is challenging. Indigenous secondary students’ retention and completion rates are lower than the average so, tertiary eligible students are significantly few in number. This conversation with an Aboriginal student explores the learnt life and study skills and coping mechanisms they have used to achieve their first year completion of tertiary study. This engaging and genuine conversation will illustrate the student’s and RMIT’s aspiration to embed Indigenous knowledge into RMIT’s foundation, to realise a program of quality tertiary experiences for Indigenous students. It will also reveal ideas in building Indigenous people’s capacity to grow future Indigenous academics, researchers and agile members of Australian society.

First year students often enter college having chosen a major before getting the opportunity to see if it really fits. Once on campus, they start to doubt if their major is “really the one” and seek other options. Come to this session to learn how University Exploration at Ohio State works with “re-deciding” students and how you can help them most effectively in your own interactions. Our session is designed for anyone who interacts with students who are (or need to be) considering a new major but are “stuck in an unhealthy relationship.” We will present data about re-deciding students at Ohio State and share tips for attendees to take back to their own institutions.

American institutions are facing increasing concerns over the rising costs of financing higher education, decreasing government funding, and diminishing donations. However, a solution may lie in attracting international students, who, with their dependents, contribute billions of dollars to the United States’ economy each year. Seen as the new cash cow, institutions are competing locally and abroad to attract foreign nationals to attend their institutions of higher education. This presentation will examine how international students and their dependents are contributing to the economy and how institutions are benefiting from increasing and retaining their international student population.

As advisers, we strive to teach so that learning can occur. Often, however, students simply want to be told rather than taught. So, what can advisers do to address this mismatch? We address this question by introducing a successful model of academic advising developed at the University of Melbourne. We believe this model has wider applicability for reflective practice and improved student learning throughout the range of student services. Our interactive presentation will explain the development of the model. Participants will then work together to apply the model, based on a range of common advising scenarios. We will also address challenges in developing such a model and maintaining it across a range of advising contexts.

Co-curricular programs not only enhance student retention, they also help build confidence, community and employability skills leading to well-rounded, successful graduates. This presentation will take you on a tour of how to build an effective co-curricular program in just three years.

We will explore the development of the FedUni Leadership Program taking into account emerging trends and the student voice. We demonstrate how leadership programs provide opportunities for students in regional areas that come as standard at traditional Universities, providing a blueprint for participants to work with.

Our aim is to spark collaboration as we invite you to join us in discussing recommendations to keep up with current trends and technology in the total student experience, and as we start a conversation on how to build a network of Leadership Professionals across the University sector.

Ever wonder if there is something else you can do to advise the students on academic probation or who are struggling academically? Since 2002, the Academic Support Office (ASO) at a large undergraduate institution has been using an Academic Improvement Plan (AIP) and the Academic Obstacles Survey. The data suggests those students who work with their academic advisors in discussing and filling out these surveys do better academically than those students who do not. Academic advisors from a variety of academic departments on campus and ASO advisors will share not only the AIP and Obstacles sheet but discuss and demonstrate how they utilize these instruments to help students understand their concerns and issues and set goals to academic success.

The use of technology is prevalent in higher education in general and more specifically in the field of advising and personal tutoring. This session will present a panel conversation centered on two articles that focus on academic advising and the impact of technology: Lowenstein’s article, Envisioning the Future, and Steele’s article, Five Possible Future Work Profiles for Full-time Academic Advisors. The panel will review the articles then address current issues such as: 1) If advising is teaching, how will technology assist in its delivery? 2) How will technology shape the role of advising as a profession? 3) How will current trends such as “big data,” “predictive/learning analytics,” and financial support in higher education impact advising? Participant participation will be encouraged.

Student Connect, The University of Melbourne’s centralised advising program, offers proactive developmental advising to all students. With a particular focus on first year students it takes a holistic strengths-based approach to advising. A framework of “Connection, Direction, Reflection, Action” encourages students to take control of their education and develop skills in decision making, goal setting and effective action. In this session we will share a range of advising tools and techniques, discuss measures of effectiveness and demonstrate the impact on individual student success; for ‘at-risk’ through to ‘honours’ students. Participants will be introduced to an advising ‘toolbox’ which draws from established approaches; including motivational interviewing, coaching, goal setting and positive psychology. Attendees will be encouraged, via group activities, to find practical applications for their own advising.

Higher education providers are increasingly recognising the changing expectations of tertiary students regarding their learning experience. The issues are made more complex for institutions recruiting international students with a variety of cultural, academic and technological backgrounds. This session will explore these challenges drawing on two case studies. A model of learning support, based on the student life-cycle, will be presented, taking into account key stages of learning that students require throughout their studies. Examples of different learning technologies that create a more engaging learning experience both in and outside the classroom will also be introduced. The success of this holistic model is largely built on the deep collaboration between academic advisers and academic teaching staff.

In 2009 the University of Adelaide embarked on a radical new approach to student space design, engaging students directly in decision making about Hub Central, a 20,000 sqm new learning, service, social and support space in the heart of the campus. Over 8,000 hours of student involvement across a range of channels resulted in an award winning outcome, and a fundamental transformation of the University's ongoing involvement of students in critical decisions about the student experience. This session will provide an overview of the strategic partnerships necessary to build an environment in which students choose to engage and be successful.

Are you looking for strategies to support students’ success and improve student retention? This presentation will demonstrate how Holistic Advising has been contextualized and applied at RMIT University, Vietnam campus, which has brought positive results in partnering with students’ progress. This is a multi-perspective model integrated by different advising theories to facilitate professional student advisors (PSA) in supporting at risk students with several challenges, e.g.: adapting to an international learning and teaching style, acquiring new learning skills, self management, self motivating, adapting to a new living culture and so on. Participating in this session you will be engaged in discussion and case analysis activities. You will be shown the advising manual and tools that PSA have been using.

This active learning-infused session will use clips from the film 'Finding Joe'.' Campbell's 'Hero's Journey' has three phases: separation, initiation, and the return. Life is a series of journeys/adventures and this knowledge can help advisors prepare students and themselves for the challenges that they will face throughout their careers. Participants will have the opportunity to watch segments of the 'Finding Joe' movie that feature the 'Hero's Journey' and then engage with other participants to discuss the implications of Campbell's work for themselves and their students.

The proliferation of distance education programs on college campuses have dictated the need for distance advising. However, little is known about how to build rapport between distance students and their advisors. Conventional methods of rapport building, such as eye contact or open body language, are rendered ineffective with the lack of face-to-face opportunities. Results from a qualitative study of 21 online/hybrid education majors’ perceptions of their distance advising suggest students want the three Es of distance advising: 1) Efficiency, 2) Engagement, and 3) Evolution of Support. Implications and strategies for applying the 3Es to other higher education settings will be discussed.

More and more Chinese parents are sending their children abroad for higher education. And the number of undergraduate students has increased significantly. As teenagers or young adults, they come to a new country alone and are exposed to a new culture and school system. Their experiences and reactions can be challenging for their school advisors. The authors will introduce the Chinese culture of collective thinking and its impact; the different educational system in China; parents’ understanding of and attitude toward the foreign university; and the changing relationship between students and parents. Suggestions will be proposed, including examples of pre-departure international orientation programs, ideas for communicating general information to parents, and methods of contacting families or guardians in times of crisis.

Narrative—storytelling—is a crucial component of all advising interactions. Advising well—that is, transcending the mere conveyance of information—requires narrative skill, which can be taught. Being advised well requires that the student also be skilled in narrative. The presenter will suggest possible ways in which advisors can focus on the narrative skills they already possess, how they can foster narrative competence in the student, and how they might become more skilled overall in the use of narrative in advising.

A closed loop approach for student success employs a simple four step process; 1st identification of each unique at risk student and what factors are contributing to their risk, 2nd engagement delivering meaningful contextual information to the student to support success, 3rd empowering the student to act and succeed and 4th intervening when the student is off course. The workshop will focus on using data discovery and analytics to identify students at risk and the factors that are contributing their risk profile. These factors may be academic, co-curricular, administrative and/or social. This information is presented contextually to each student to engage and empower them, to their advisor to develop drive interventions and to managers and executives to monitor and enhance at risk programs. Additionally the workshop will cover tools and capabilities to collaborate and coordinate intervention activities and mange the unique cases of each individual student.

As the connection between academic advisors/faculty and students continues to play a significant role in the persistence of students to graduation, the importance of effective and timely communication has become even more crucial in the academic environment. As technology has advanced, the preferred method of communication for students in the Millennial generation has shifted towards mobile technology. This presentation will discuss the findings of a study that included surveying academic advisors, faculty and students at a federal university in the UAE on their preferred methods of communication. A discussion of best practices for utilizing various communication tools to connect across campuses will be included.

Student Connect and the Centre for Positive Psychology at the University of Melbourne have formed a partnership in which Masters of Applied Positive Psychology students gained real-world experience of coaching, advising and mentoring through participation in the Student Connect Program. Masters students not only apply their learnings, but the undergraduate students who are advised reap the benefit of being coached by other students specialising in a positive psychology methodology. In addition, the staff of Student Connect benefit by training the Masters students and receiving their recommendations as part of an assessment piece. For all participants, this reciprocal partnership enables successful application of knowledge, research and practice methods. This session will encourage you to create dynamic partnerships on campus, and to build opportunities for student interaction, coaching and success, as well as staff and student development.

The Mānoa Sophomore Experience (MSE) is a program at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa aimed at improving the experiences and retention of first to second year students. The program offers various support services including a second year course, panel series, peer mentoring, scholarships, and more to assist students in making a successful transition to the second year and beyond. Come learn about this program and take away ideas and strategies to apply similar programming at your institution.

In this session, Dean Debbie Mercer of the College of Education at Kansas State and Charlie Nutt, NACADA Executive Director, will discuss the growing population of first generation college/university students globally and how academic advising is key to their success. The presenters will use as a basis for the presentation an acclaimed documentary filmed by the College of Education at Kansas State University, A Walk in My Shoes: First Generation College Students." Key strategies will be provided as well as an open dialogue with participants on the successful programs and strategies they are utilizing on their campuses.

Advisors will often work with students who encounter an obstacle or problem they do not know how to overcome. Students will want advice and therefore approach an advisor because they are perceived as experts. Sometimes, though, it is more important for students to discover their own solutions rather than be told what to do. This interactive session will introduce participants to solution-focused counseling and techniques that can be implemented in advising. Advisors will learn how intentional questions oriented toward students' strengths and steps to improve their situations can foster confidence in students to overcome their obstacles in the best ways that work for them. Topics covered will be the background of solution-focused counseling, its main stages, asking 'the miracle question,' and ways to apply it in practice.

This presentation will explore how two professional advisors at Virginia Tech developed a holistic first-year advising program that actively promotes a culture of positive advising and faculty mentoring to support student development, advancement, and success. We will discuss ways to build relationships throughout campus; manage the time required to provide quality advising to all students; and implement new technologies to increase the overall efficiency of an advising program. The combination of these efforts has allowed us to provide students with the information they need in a multitude of ways which has led to better conversations in our one-on-one meetings with students. Topics covered will include: orientation preparation and procedures, plan of study resources, and advising technologies.

The US National Institutes of Health suggest that a possible 30 % of college students are depressed with suicide being the third leading cause of death amongst the 15-24 age groups. Advisors are often the first professionals on college campuses to meet and work with such students. This interactive session will provide ideas and best practices for recognizing the differences of depression in men and women, how depression may impact academic performance or an advisement session, ideas on referrals and how to ask the most difficult of questions.

Peer review of assessments and peer writing support have become an important aspect of students’ learning at many higher education institutions. Research suggests that such programs can have a number of benefits for the students involved, including improved writing skills, increased motivation and confidence; however, there is inconsistent evidence and researchers are trying to establish which settings and designs achieve the best outcomes. This presentations reports on a peer mentoring program at The University of Melbourne in which graduate students give feedback to undergraduate students on their assignment drafts. Online surveys and individual interviews were used to assess the benefits for students seeking feedback as well as the student mentors.

As advisors, how do we motivate students coming from extremely conservative institutions and societies like those from the Middle East? When and how do we initiate student-advisor partnership if both advisor and advisee are culturally restricted? Empathetic Dialogue (ED) is a motivational advising approach designed to empower learners belonging from similar environment. In this session, the presenters will discuss ED as Al Watania Poultry Institute of Technology’s response to the prevailing challenges in career advising caused by cultural complexities and extremities. Attending this session will help advisors of parallel backgrounds to learn the principles, benefits, relevance, practical application and incorporation of ED in their own advisory system and practices.

Effectively managing the student experience is essential to successful higher education. Students and education have changed in the 21st century, and institutions need to understand and do different things. This presentation reports on a national project being conducted to build capacity of higher education by developing new perspectives and approaches for enhancing the student experience. The research steps ahead in substantive and methodological ways. Through literature/context reviews and fieldwork the research builds new conceptualisations of undergraduate students which go beyond stereotypes, generalities and dated assumptions. Through a scan of institutional practices the research identifies new and under-utilised empirical options for understanding and enhancing the 21st century student experience. The presentation reports on how the research is synthesizing these developments into a model and enhancement framework.

Advisors are at the front line of education with a unique view of our impact on students. Where we go from here as a profession in large part depends on a dynamic and growing research base. Participants in this interactive session will further examine the new document, “Critical Questions in Advising from a Global Perspective” which was generated during a pre-conference workshop this week. We’ll discuss how to collaborate with research projects generally, how to get started with ideas relevant to your work with students, how NACADA can help, and most importantly, consider the reciprocal benefits of scholarly inquiry across international and interdisciplinary contexts.

Why do some students succeed in graduating from university and other students fail? Theorists from Astin to Tinto have researched this question for decades. Over the years quality academic advising has been listed as having a role in helping students persist towards degree completion, but often there is little empirical evidence to back up that claim. This engaging presentation will present a case study of how one university combined academic advising, technology and educational interventions to help students persist towards academic success and graduation. By taking a proactive approach grounded in theory, research and best practices the university was able to provide students support to help them be successful. Results, challenges and successes will be shared with the audience.

How to improve students' learning motivation is always a hot topic in academic advising. Nowadays with the expansion of China’s higher education and the trend for Chinese students to study abroad, more and more academic advisors are dealing with Chinese elite undergraduates. Knowing their learning motivation is the very first and necessary step for advisors in and out of China. Therefore, it is very important to investigate and explore an advising strategy to promote the Chinese elite undergraduates’ learning motivation (CEULM). Based on a high quality Behavior Events Interview (BEI) collected from 16 senior undergraduates of Tsinghua University, this study describes the different characters of CEULM; investigates the main factors affect CEULM by a qualitative analysis. Implications and practical applications for academic advisors will be discussed.

Employability or Work Readiness involves the attributes, skills and knowledge required to gain and maintain employment. With an increased requirement of universities around the world to prepare their graduates for the workplace, there is an emerging urgency to establish effective internal processes to meet that need. Furthermore, our globally mobile workforce encourages the consolidation of a universally useful tool. This presentation will introduce the Core Skills for Work-Self Assessment tool and workshop the potential usefulness of the tool in two ways. Firstly, how useful is the tool to meet the current and life-long employability needs of students wishing to enter the workplace and secondly, how much could the tool contribute to the effectiveness of student services. This workshop will involve attendees completing the self-assessment of one of the 10 Core Skills (eg communication, decision-making, creativity, self-management) in small groups and then providing feedback as to how valuable they feel the tool would be for a student to understand their current employability status and for an advisor to use as a basis for follow up consultations, workshops and/or coursework.

Astin’s theory of student involvement, Cross’theory of nigrescence, Glennen’s theory of intrusive/proactive advising and Tinto's theory of dimensions of institutional action highlight the benefits of participation in special programs which include advising and mentoring activities. Advisors have been charged with facilitating programs and services for underrepresented Life Science students to assist with retention as well as the student experience at a four-year institution. Through this workshop, staff will learn successful practices that help African American students succeed in college. This information may inspire others to think globally and collaboratively about ways to address current issues at their institutions regarding retention and student success.

With the globalization of higher education, institutions need to begin looking into establishing international partnerships beyond semester- or year-long study abroad programs. One American institution recognized this need and created a 3+2 program with high-ranking Chinese institutions. Through this program, Chinese undergraduates will spend three undergraduate years in China and two years of combined undergraduate and graduate study in America, thus completing two degree levels in five years, which is two years shorter than the traditional educational track in China. This presentation will introduce attendees to the conception, development, and launch of the 3+2 program and offer a five-step process for creating one in their own institutions.

This presentation will showcase a successful tutor support program at Zayed University in the United Arab Emirates. The presentation will provide an overview of the program, as well as, discussing the benefits that peer tutors derive from being involved in this tutoring support program. The elements of academic achievement, career preparation and interpersonal skill development will be discussed in detail, in addition to, providing practical examples of how these skills are nurtured in our peer tutors. This presentation is ideal for interested stakeholders in tertiary peer support programs to review the benefits available for peer tutors involved in a viable, dynamic tutor support program, especially in a Middle Eastern environment. Finally, this presentation seeks to encourage discussion and feedback from other comparable international university settings.

Diverse academic literacy practices pose challenges to literacy teaching professionals. While some tertiary contexts place more importance on developing the generic academic literacy, others emphasise the impracticalities of using this skills model; thus, the embedded approach is introduced. Credit-bearing literacy courses also provide resourceful and interactive learning environments. This paper discusses strengths and challenges of the three approaches including pedagogies and assessment procedures. The paper argues that a circular process of critical reading, and writing associated with teachers’ feedback and students’ responding to feedback is an essential element in students’ learning. The paper also identifies the challenges in course design and delivery. It provides implications of literacy based epistemological models that foregrounds power, identity and, agency in the role of language in the ecology of writing.

Two Bachelor programs of the University of Twente, the Netherlands, faced some changes the last couple of years what made it necessary to reform the policy and practice of Study Advisers, with regards to successful guidance of students with a disability. Changes involved are an increasing amount of students with a disability; national laws and regulations regarding inclusive education, financing and quality assurance; more emphasis on 21st century skills; implementation of a new educational system; developments in the chain of academic counselling. In this presentation the approach developed will serve as an example for possibilities in guiding students with a disability in a new academic setting and to foster academic success for those students in a changing world.

Achieving student success is a vital goal of all Higher Education Institutions. Research intensive Universities attract high achieving students who arrive with high expectations of not only their institutions but also themselves. Evidence indicates that higher levels of anxiety and psychological distress are seen in students compared to similar aged groups who are not engaged in tertiary study. Underpinning student success, but often unnoticed and frequently unacknowledged is the provision of exemplary and comprehensive student support services. This session will explore how an integrated and collaborative in-house model of wellbeing support contributes to securing success for students and the whole of the university community. Case studies will be utilized; through discussion, participants will have the opportunity to share their experiences.

With the rapid evolution of technology usage in educational institutions, our students should be at the top of their academic tracking game. Why is it though, that some students still seem to be a little lost when accessing these technological tools? We may have adapted to the use of advising technology, but have we also adopted the learning techniques that should accompany it as well? The purpose of this presentation is to elaborate on the importance of combining advising teaching strategies with innovative technology, such as the technological tools included in the Graduation Success Initiative at Florida International University, in order to better serve our students.

Student populations of many tertiary institutions include cohorts distinguished by titles that reflect elite levels of academic performance – Honors Students, Chancellor’s Scholars, among others. We challenge them academically and offer a range of opportunities and enriched academic experiences to extend them and broaden their growth as individuals and scholars. An international comparison of our programs will focus on a range of issues common to both. Do we advise these students well and maximize their individual growth? Do we offer more than institutions can actually deliver? Do we expect too much of these cohorts? Should other students have the same opportunities? Interested in student advising, equity, careers, wellbeing, research or academic development? There will be something in it for you!

In Australian Higher Education today there are three disruptive waves that are threatening to impact on established ways of teaching and learning. They are reduced government funding, uncapped student enrolments, and the increasing use of technology and how this can improve the student experience. The non-traditional student is the new 'norm' in higher education and with increasing costs there is a need for universities to clearly explain their value proposition for students who are the consumers of their services. This presentation will cover the academic life cycle of a typical student from enrolment through their study to graduation and, importantly, work readiness and linkages to employers and how the various Blackboard products and services can positively impact on this journey.

Retention through Research! A Successful Partnership between a 4-Year Institution and a Community College that inspired First Generation/Low Income students to consider research a viable academic avenue. For most first generation/low-income students, the concept of doing research is not even on their academic radar. “Do What?” “What is that?” These are some of the many common questions students ask when faced with the question: “How would you like to do research next summer?” Since 2004, research has become a mechanism for the retention of 101 Community College students who participated in a summer research program. This presentation will cover best practices and how this model can be replicated offering students the opportunity to enhance their academic portfolio. The importance of a research program will be evident through the discussion of outcomes of the 101 students.

Partnering to create conditions for student success and retention is essential but easier said than done, particularly when collaborating across divisional lines where philosophies differ on defining student success. Student success on any campus is everyone’s job, ironically making responsibility for it unclear and challenging to intentionally organize. This presentation is based on the presenter’s experience as an administrator overseeing student retention and academic advisement, who utilized her multidimensional position to integrate the two, among other programs she oversees. This discussion will have broad appeal as it will include recommendations for creating positions or restructuring divisions that oversee student retention, accessing and utilizing data to determine retention needs, assessment, theories that inform philosophies on student success, and ideas for integrated programming across divisional lines.

The traditional view of graduate research training has been one of an apprenticeship, with the experiences of the supervisor setting the key parameters. However in modern universities, graduate training is not simply aimed at replacing the academic workforce, but has much more diverse requirements. In this talk we discuss the key aims of graduate research education, the pragmatic and ethical issues as well as the interpersonal questions that frequently arise within the supervisory relationship. We also suggest some practices that provide opportunities for reflection on one’s own values and experiences.

Are you interested in taking your involvement in NACADA to the next level, but don’t know how? Learn how NACADA's Emerging Leader Program helps increase diversity within NACADA’s leadership. The program pairs new, emerging leaders with mentors to help each participant find individual ways in which s/he can contribute to NACADA’s global advising community. This session will provide an overview of NACADA,the ELP program and its history with details on getting involved. Attendees will learn about the achievements and experiences of mentors and emerging leaders and find out ways to get involved in NACADA. Attendees will learn about the diverse array of achievements, experiences of current and previous mentors and emerging leaders, and they will have a chance to discuss their own individual goals for involvement in NACADA.

The University of Melbourne has invested in the development of a data driven approach to Indigenous program development by modeling, measuring and monitoring Indigenous student outcomes. This work has informed the implementation of a range of outreach, recruitment and enrichment programs for its undergraduate and graduate courses. This presentation will explain the tools and reporting mechanisms utilised to analyse Indigenous student performance outcomes and the ways in which the University has used these data to respond to the challenge of improving the educational outcomes of this priority cohort of students.

In the past 50 years, China university education always take the full-process education, which lacks advising on their academic choice on establishing their own academic and career development consciousness. Compared with the help of academic difficulties students, helping students who in traditional system are thought to be excellent students, has received more and more attention in the present. It includes three important problems: firstly, the traditional "excellent students" lack self-cognition; secondly they are psychologically exposed to utilitarian anxiety and unable to accept defeat or learn to benefit from it; thirdly, they tend to be conservative and dare not innovate. In this paper, a series of studies by Tsinghua University consulting practice attempt to teach students in accordance with their aptitude, which include an individualized leadership program, so as to provide experiences for East Asian Higher education.

The literature shows that not all first year students have developed the skills to be successful and many face academic warning and/or suspension. This session explores how the Office of First Year and Transition Programs at St. Cloud State University (MN, USA) works to retain over 75 conditional admit second semester students who end up on probation after their first semester. Specifically, the focus of the presentation is on how the incorporation of non-cognitive variables in the suspension appeal decision-making process and the use of a Motivational Interviewing model in individualized probation counseling have increased student success and improved retention rates for at-risk first year students.

Collaborative peer learning models in Higher Education have gained momentum as research continues to identify the social, cognitive and academic benefits to student learning development. This presentation looks at a peer learning model built around an online communication tool. The practice of reflective journal writing guides student learning assistants (SLAs) in their developing role and provides a sounding board for the constant challenges of working in a busy learning support drop-in centre. This program, crafted over a four year period has moved from a meet and greet to a peer learning model. Examination of sample journal entries and collaborative online interactions reveal the gaps and growth in this learning space that inform our practice.

What do academics know? The students are the ones that plan their course, sit in lectures, take assessment and experience student life – hence alumni are the untapped resource in advising current students. As a part of our Next Steps Advising Program, we partnered with alumni, the students who have been through it all, to mentor current students. This has encouraged them to think more broadly about their co-curricular enrichment options, course advice and their future graduate schools or career. Come meet the students who have benefitted from this advising partnership program as a student mentor or mentee. Their experiences provide insight into how such a program assists their development both in and out of classrooms in a way academics and administrators simply cannot replicate.

This session will discuss programs and processes implemented at an Intensive English Program (IEP) to promote international student (Saudi, Chinese, Brazilian, Ecuadorian, Paraguay, S. Korean, Japanese, Kuwaiti) engagement and success for new, continuing and transitioning students. The presentation will first outline research on international students as an at-risk group. Then it will discuss in-house programs such as orientation classes, and a special course for reinstated students. The presentation will explain development of extensive partnerships with campus offices to provide seamless student care and avoid duplication of existing campus services. The presenter will allocate time for small-group information sharing for similar ideas and programs. Finally, the floor will open for questions. Participants will receive forms, questionnaires and protocols used by the presenter’s IEP.

Over the past ten years the Learning Community program at the University of Memphis has overcome many obstacles and experienced steady growth. The numerous benefits to students who participate in them are well documented, but there are also tremendous benefits for faculty and staff members who help plan and teach within them. This presentation will focus on the large role that academic advisors play in the planning, promotion, implementation, and evaluation of learning community programs. In addition, methods of increasing and enhancing student engagement will be reviewed.

As student retention becomes an ever-increasing priority for universities world-wide, Academic Advisors are assuming more and more responsibility in improving retention rates. With ubiquitous focus on student assistance and satisfaction, Advisors are being called on to act in both academic and customer-service capacities. While these two focuses can initially seem at odds with each other, academic advising and customer-service skills can be synthesized to work as one. This presentation will overview the changes advising has faced as retention rates have become a major priority in higher education and also highlight advising techniques used at Walden University, an on-line, for-profit school with students based all over the world.

A new partnership between the Career Centre and Alumni Relations staff at the University of Melbourne, has involved Alumni as career advisors with immediate success in the first year. Fostering face-to-face and virtual relationships between alumni and students has led to positive benefits to students including interview coaching opportunities, internship appointments, workplace visits, and the building of networks. Students have developed career awareness, confidence and a stepping stone into employment through the networks and knowledge they acquired. Alumni report feeling rewarded by the experience of re-engaging with the University and with current students. Careers advice embedded in real-world interactions and through the development of relationships is meaningful to students, rewarding to alumni and beneficial to the University in building goodwill and a spirit of giving.

In the Singapore Management University (SMU), the Office of Student Life believes that uncovering your own purpose and values can inspire individuals to become better leaders. The Pathfinder toolkit was developed to aid in the intentional design of student activities to facilitate leadership development. An impact analysis based on Kirkpatrick’s four-levels of evaluation was conducted to determine the effectiveness of the Pathfinder toolkit 'Leading with Purpose' workshop in integrating core values into student leadership experiences. Seventy-five top student university leaders participated in the study, which employed a quasi-experimental design approach using pre and post instruments. Implications and practical applications of the toolkit will be discussed.

Advising is referred to as teaching given the role advisers play in promoting active learning and engagement. Like teachers, advisers understand that students bring a range of strengths and personal learning styles to appointments and encourage them to employ their individual strengths for their success. Generally, advisers apply conversational styles that naturally preference learners with intrapersonal, interpersonal and verbal-linguistic skills. Given our understanding of ‘multiple intelligences’, how can advisers encourage students with visual intelligence to best engage in the advising conversation? This session focuses on three advising tools developed to help visual–spatial learners understand concepts such as time management, goal setting and early career exploration. It will give an overview of Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences and some observations from our experience working with students who preference different learning styles.

The current challenges in higher education – especially those associated with ensuring students’ engagement with their institutions – require a co-ordinated, university-wide approach. The Office of Student Advancement at Swinburne was established in 2013 specifically for this purpose. The structure of the Office, we believe, is unique for bringing together the key functions of academic engagement; ALL and career development within the one organisational unit. In the first years of its operations, the Office has been tasked to address three central themes: retention/progression; enrichment experiences; and employability. In this panel discussion, we describe the experiences of the Office over the two years of its existence, focussing on successes to date, along with the challenges of developing and implementing a multi-disciplinary approach to these issues.

Our students are sharing their lives online with friends, family, and peers. Often times they’re willing to share their lives with us too. But many advisors are hesitant to heed the invitation. Developing your own online persona can help to create an open atmosphere for starting conversations, addressing mental health issues, and growing a network of support. So... go ahead, take that selfie. Post it up and put it online... you may be surprised what comes of it!

An important part of the adviser’s job is to ensure students are motivated. Therefore the adviser should support any institutional initiative which actively works towards this goal. At Zayed University, PALs (Peer Assistance Leaders) is one such initiative, defined by Kerr (2013) as “an established tutoring and mentoring initiative…servicing the academic needs of both female and male students.” The advantages of having students tutored by carefully-selected peers are obvious: familiarity, cultural awareness, willingness of students to ask questions. However, an important resource which exists but has not been overtly acknowledged or deployed, is the use of L1 and translation. The PALs at ZU help their tutees understand by the judicious use of Arabic. A similar strategy could assist all students for whom English is not their L1.