How you advise should be dependent on your personal style. However, strive to become familiar with techniques that are particularly effective at assisting college students and specific populations of students.
In addition to the resources here, contact Academic Advising, International Student Affairs, Intercultural Affairs, the Center for Religion, Spirituality, and Social Justice, and other staff partners on campus to consult.
Adviser, Sponsor, Mentor
Faculty advisers play an important role in the personal and professional development of Grinnell College students. While course selection is the most obvious and practical function of the student/adviser relationship, faculty advisers may take on the role of mentor or sponsor depending upon the needs of the student and the openness of the faculty member to play those roles.
Where the work of the mentor/sponsor diverges from the role of the adviser is in the faculty member’s willingness to use their experience to guide the student and demystify the process required to actualize the goal. Sponsors leverage their cultural capital and professional networks to directly connect students to opportunities that are widely publicized, as well as opportunities known to a select few. Both mentors and sponsors keep an eye out for opportunities that will help students advance in their pursuit of particular aspirations but the latter is willing to take direct action (e.g., make a phone call, send an email) to advocate on behalf of the student.
In many cases, faculty do the work of mentors and sponsors with the students with whom they feel most invested. Defining these unique categories, categories that are part of many advising relationships, will hopefully help faculty identify ways to mentor and/or sponsor students who show promise but may not be from their particular affinity group. Extending yourself to a student, especially those from underrepresented groups (who are statistically less likely to assert themselves and pursue relationships or research opportunities), may provide them with opportunities for growth that would otherwise be missing from the standard adviser/advisee relationship. Explaining to a student how to build a personal mentoring network is always a great idea, but it cannot take the place of showing a student the power of networks formed by a strong sponsor.
No faculty member can be all things to all students. But when faculty leverage cross-campus connections, personal relationships, or professional networks to put students into direct contact with opportunities, we are providing the individualized educational experience – grounded in our core values of social justice – that Grinnell is known for and proud of.
Approaches to Inclusive Advising
Every adviser will rely on their own interpersonal style in the advising relationship. However, basic skills such as establishing rapport, effective listening, and assessing readiness for change, are extremely important to continue to develop.
NACADA, the national association for advising college students, provides online resources to assist with the development of these skills and strategies: approaches to advising.
The staff in Academic Advising has other tools and welcomes discussion with you.
Advising Students with Disabilities
As the adviser of a student with a disability, you have an important role to play in supporting that student.
All students seeking academic accommodations for a disability must contact Student Disability Resources to have a meeting, review supporting documentation, and make decisions about appropriate accommodations. This is the procedure the College has adopted to allow for consistent practice and thorough review of each student's request.
Advisers are brought into a very small circle of people who are aware of the student's disability and are expected to maintain the student's privacy, making every effort not to disclose this information to other students or faculty except with the student's express permission.
With the student’s permission, the student's tutorial adviser is invited to an initial meeting with the student and with disability resources. This meeting can serve as valuable practice for the student to discuss their needs with faculty and can set the tone for the student’s future interactions with faculty. Even if the adviser is not present at this meeting, advisers are made aware of a student’s accommodations because they are included on all academic accommodation letters.
It is recommended that you discuss the following topics with your advisee:
- Clarify what role you feel comfortable playing in terms of advocacy for that student — for example, helping the student navigate a difficulty in one of their other courses with receiving a required accommodation. By talking with the instructor of that course — with the student's permission — sometimes a difficulty can be easily resolved. Disability resource staff plays this role also, but students often like to have faculty talking with faculty.
- Explain the variety of resources on campus that may functionally serve as an accommodation although are not listed on the student’s Academic Accommodations form. Examples of these resources include:
- writing coaching at the Writing, Reading, and Speaking Center;
- subject-specific tutoring at the Math Lab, Science Learning Center, or other resource centers;
- visits to an instructor's office hours; or
- the use of helpful technologies.
- The student and adviser should discuss how the disability might impact the “big picture” of a student's time at Grinnell. For example, some students need to take an average of 12–13 credits each semester due to a disability and will need to use summers to transfer in credits to reach 124 credits by graduation. Other students need to select courses based on the student's strengths and weaknesses to strike a good balance. This is a conversation that will continue over time as the student progresses through Grinnell.
Additional resources for faculty advisers are available on the Disability Resources GrinnellShare site. Faculty are encouraged to call Disability Resources at 641-269-3089 with any questions about supporting students with disabilities in the advising relationship or the classroom.
Advising International Students
Twenty percent of Grinnell’s student body comes from outside the U.S. As a faculty adviser, you will, at some point, teach or advise international students who bring diverse cultural perspectives and personal goals to the advising conversation. Learn about the 6 most common academic challenges international students face by reading International Students in the U.S. Classroom (PDF, GrinnellShare).
In addition, because of U.S. government regulations, international students have immigration-related considerations, even constraints, which impact their academic decisions and options. As an adviser, you should know the basics. Read F-1 Status and Academic Decisions (PDF, GrinnellShare) to familiarize yourself with 10 key issues, and feel free to post this welcoming sign (PDF, GrinnellShare) in your office to invite discussion.
Refer students to the Office of International Student Affairs (OISA) for regulatory advice and/or cultural adjustment support. You may also call the OISA for clarification.
First-Generation College Students
Generally speaking, a student is a first-generation college student (first-gen) when neither parent has completed a four-year bachelor’s degree. It may be that older siblings have attended college and that one or more parents have attended college and perhaps even achieved an associate’s degree. Your advisee may or may not share this with you, but the admission application provides some information about the student’s family background.
As a group, first-gen students have specific strengths, challenges, and a community they can join at Grinnell. Know that each student is their own person, of course, so, as their adviser, get to know them and try not to make assumptions about their needs.
As a student who is the first in their family to attend college, they may not be as aware of strategies and resources that will assist them in navigating college. As an adviser it’s helpful to be proactive in telling these students — and in fact, all students — about expectations of college students, challenges they may encounter, and resources for support at Grinnell.
Many (but not all) first-gen students come from families that are low-income. This can add specific pressure to earn money to pay their tuition bill or even work additional hours to send money home. These students are likely to weigh the pros and cons of expensive textbooks versus paying for other needs. The CRSSJ Lending Library is an excellent resource, as is this online guide.
First-gen students are more likely to have navigated the complex task of applying to college and financial aid largely on their own, and thus may possess helpful traits such as tenacity and persistence that could help them as they encounter the kinds of challenges every student faces. However, as people who have survived often by simply doing everything for themselves, first-gen students may not be in the habit of seeking assistance and should be encouraged to utilize all available resources at Grinnell (that they have already paid for!).
The CRSSJ and Intercultural Affairs coordinate a program for first-gen students, bringing interested students together for social programs and matching them with faculty and staff mentors. Other offices such as Student Support and Advocacy, are eager to help any student with a range of individual challenges.
Additional information about advising first-gen students can be found within the NACADA clearinghouse.
Transfer Students
The cohorts of new transfer students are quite small. Get to know your new transfer student and be sensitive to their situations as they make the transition to our campus.
Transfer students are unique in that they come to Grinnell with at least one semester of (post-high school) college experience. This experience can be beneficial in terms of maturity, sense of direction, and confidence in navigating college life, especially compared to traditionally-aged first-year students.
Transferring to Grinnell can present challenges, especially academically, as the students adjust to different academic expectations and rigors. They also have fewer semesters at Grinnell to meet major requirements and achieve their academic goals. There are sometimes social challenges being new to campus but not to college. Transfers arriving in the fall may not feel they want or need to attend new student orientation for a second time. Your advising can support all of these transitions to campus, simply by making inquiries with your student.
The Academic Advising Office works directly with transfers to determine their academic interests and potential major(s). Following these conversations, Academic Advising will reach out to department chairs to seek assistance in identifying an appropriate adviser in their department. Because of the aforementioned academic constraints that transfers often face, it’s very helpful to initially assign an experienced adviser. Advisers of transfer students should contact Academic Advising to partner in resolving any concerns or challenges they see their student having. Belinda Backous is the contact person.
Challenges You May Encounter
If a challenge that a student is facing feels too big or goes beyond your comfort level, the Academic Advising Office welcomes inquiries of support for both you and your student.
Here is a starting point for common dilemmas:
- Academic difficulties
- If a student is experiencing academic difficulties first have them talk with the instructor. This is a logical thing for the student to do, but many do not. Students (especially first-years) who are apprehensive about discussing difficulties with a professor need to be encouraged to do so.
- Look into the possibility of a tutor.
- Try to identify the source of the difficulty. Is the student underprepared for the course? Is time management a problem? Is the student attending class regularly? Are personal problems interfering with academic progress? Does the student need to be referred to Academic Advising Office or Student Health and Wellness?
- A last resort is to drop the course if deadlines allow. First-year students may overlook this possibility, which at times provides the best way for a student to manage the rest of their courses. Remember that students must remain enrolled for 12 credits unless they get permission. With careful planning, students can make up the credits to graduate on time.
- Feelings of inadequacy
- You may find first-year students coming to you after a couple of weeks expressing doubts about their ability to do college-level work. They may feel intimidated by upper-class students or even a fellow first-year student who uses extensive vocabulary or expresses abstract ideas.
- Some students may be experiencing a selective educational institution for the first time. A discussion of this normal, temporary worry is often sufficient. Remind the student that – as someone admitted to Grinnell – the college firmly believes that they can be successful here. They may, however, need to adjust their work habits or seek additional support.
- If students need help with basic academic skills, don't forget the Academic Resource Centers.
- Advanced placement and dropping back
- Students placed in advanced courses based on school records or placement tests sometimes find they were placed too high.
- No stigma is attached to dropping back. The error is ours, not theirs. Make this clear to the student.
- Plan a drop-back option in advance if there is any doubt about the initial placement.
- Finding balance
- A student may become obsessed with grades or use their academic work as a means to escape nonacademic problems.
- Watch and listen for students who spend all their time studying and rarely socializing.
- Students may spend time any way they wish, but we are responsible for assisting students in choosing thoughtfully among the many activities available at Grinnell, and higher ed research shows that involvement in college is a strong predictor of both satisfaction and persistence.
- This problem usually comes to your attention through someone other than the student concerned.
- Staff members best able to assist are the residence life coordinators, who know the daily lives of their students quite well.
- Lack of direction or confusion about future plans
- See “The Undirected Student” section in this handbook.
- Loss of motivation.
- This is a difficult problem to handle. Everyone is motivated by something — the challenge is to find it.
- Sometimes it helps to steer a student to a faculty member with whom they have a good rapport.
- Loss of motivation can also be a symptom of depression, so a referral to a SHAW counselor or one of the Chaplains is good.
- Not all students want a college education; others are not ready at a particular time. Sometimes a leave of absence does wonders for a student's sense of purpose.
- Contact Academic Advising to partner with you on these options or to brainstorm others.
- Personal problems
- An office called Student Support and Advocacy is the one-stop shop for students struggling with any number of personal challenges.
- You may be the first person a student discloses to, so please take the time to listen and not judge. Then do not hesitate to seek assistance.
- Referrals are an indication that the adviser is competent and knowledgeable about the resources at the College. We do not expect faculty members to serve as personal counselors, but we'd like your help in being compassionate adults and in making a strategic handoffs.
- Roommate or other residential living difficulties
- These should be referred to the Director of Residence Life.
- Roommate conversations and mediations are regularly facilitated by the staff in this department in the hopes that difficulties can be resolved.
- If problems persist, or compromise is not possible due to the nature of the concern, the residence life staff will explore alternate room options.
Academic Alerts
Approximately every three weeks the Academic Advising Office reminds all faculty members to submit academic alerts via SAL, an online communication system, to identify students who are not doing satisfactory work in a class (e.g., poor grades on assignments, a significant number of absences).
These alerts are valuable to the Academic Advising Office and to students' advisers, as they enable early interventions before failing grades are inevitable. The notices also provide documentation at the end of the semester when students' grades are considered by the Committee on Academic Standing. These reports help the committee gauge students' performance and effort throughout the semester and serve as a record of the College’s efforts to warn students in a timely manner and to reach out to students experiencing difficulty.
In your role as an adviser ,you will receive email alerts about new academic alerts for your advisees, and then you can review the specific concern online. You can filter by your advisees.
How you act on the information is up to you; it is person-dependent. In most cases, outreach to your advisee is recommended. You can presume that a staff member from academic advising is likely to be checking in with the student. Not every time, but often. A “D” on a quiz (one of 10 quizzes in the semester) is not likely to elicit a response from the Academic Advising office; however, a "D" on an exam, frequent absences, and other missing assignments will cause one of our staff to follow up, as will reports from multiple classes.
Often the Academic Advising staff will check in with the adviser to see what you know about the student's academic strengths and weaknesses, current courses, and the specific situation. Staff members do their best to maintain good communication with advisers about academic progress and behaviors; less information may be shared regarding personal aspects of the difficulty. Feel free to partner with Academic Advising staff to respond to concerns about your advisees. Often a team effort best supports students to make effective choices about approaching their academic work and, simultaneously, dealing with their personal challenges.
Students on Academic Probation
The Committee on Academic Standing meets at the end of each semester to review students’ academic performances that have been flagged for some type of concern related to two broad categories: scholarly progress and GPA.
The committee then uses a set of criteria to decide whether a committee action is warranted:
- warning
- probation
- strict probation
- 1-semester suspension
- 2-semester suspension
- dismissal
Students and faculty advisers are notified of any action before the beginning of the next semester.
When a student is placed on academic probation or strict academic probation, they are required to create a plan, with the assistance of their faculty adviser and a staff member in Academic Advising. This plan will be on record with the Registrar’s Office and can result in a registration hold if it is not completed.
Students on probation or strict probation are expected to meet regularly (weekly or bi-weekly) with a staff member in Academic Advising to work on academic skills and receive ongoing support. This probation syllabus is used to guide this work. An ideal partnership also includes ongoing collaboration with the student’s faculty adviser and current course instructors.
This collaboration can occur at multiple points in the semester:
- in-person initial meeting with a student, faculty adviser, and Academic Advising staff member to develop a plan
- ongoing outreach from the faculty adviser and/or current instructors to Academic Advising if/when they have any concerns about academics or other behavior
- ongoing follow-up from Academic Advising to the faculty adviser and/or current instructors regarding actions taken to address concerns, next steps, or referrals made (Coaches can also be helpful partners when the student is also an athlete.)
- outreach from Academic Advising to current instructors (cc adviser), requesting mid-term assessments
If/when a student is removed from probation or strict probation, faculty advisers are notified with a copy of the student’s letter from the Committee on Academic Standing.
Partnering with Colleagues on Campus and Artful Referrals
This handbook is filled with suggestions about situations in which you can refer a student or partner with another office to support your advisee. Below is some general guidance.
If you are unsure where to direct your student or from which office to get information, contact the office called Student Support and Advocacy, a program within Student Affairs.
Don’t forget that tutorials are connected with a CLS adviser, who may know your student well, so you can partner with them.
Getting additional support from the coach, when your advisee is a student-athlete, is often helpful also.
Remember who you are and who you are not.
You’re not a therapist, clergy member, financial planner, or the student’s parent. There are resources on and off campus to fill these roles. However, you do have a very important role to play.
Listen carefully and sympathetically and then refer your advisee or minimally consult with the relevant campus office.
Referrals are not a sign of weakness; they are an indication that the adviser is competent and knowledgeable about the resources the College makes available.
If a problem feels too big or goes beyond your comfort level, encourage support for you and your student.
Make artful referrals and then follow up.
How you refer can make a big difference to your students feeling heard and being truly mentored.
Help them identify appropriate resources as well as the specific use of that resource. Then ask them to follow up with you after they’ve gone; this allows for important reflection.
For example, a student who wants a summer internship can be told to “Go to the CLS,” but the student may not know how to use that office effectively.
Instead, say:
“Your best bet is to talk with someone at the Center for Careers Life and Service, also known as the CLS.
“You should call and make an appointment. I believe they also have some walk-in hours and staff stationed just outside the Grill around the noon hour.
“You are probably first going to need some coaching on how to write a resume. This could take a few visits to get the information and polish your resume — it all won’t be accomplished in one day! So, be patient and don’t wait until the last minute to get started.
“Once you have a few internship leads, come back to me and report what you’ve learned and what you’re thinking about.”
Academic Resources at Grinnell
Learning often requires consultation. Grinnell offers many resources to be academically successful.
- The Academic Advising Office provides individual tutoring for most subjects in humanities and social studies.
- For assistance in language tutoring, stop by the Center for Languages and Intercultural Communication, HSSC, N1154.
- For tutors in the sciences (biology, chemistry, biological chemistry, neuroscience, and physics) work through the Science Learning Center located in Noyce Science Center, Room 2809. Contact Minna Mahlab, director, for more information.
- Individual tutors for psychology can be obtained by contacting Barbara Brown, lab technician, in the psychology department, Noyce Science Center, Room 1517.
- Drop-in, lab-based tutoring is available for mathematics and statistics (MAT 115, 123, 124, 131, 133, and 209) at the math lab. Contact Renee Bourgeois Parsons, director, for more information. The lab is located in Noyce Science Center, Room 2012.
- Tutoring in computer science can be obtained by contacting Sarah Dahlby Albright, coordinator in Noyce Science Center, Room 3826. There is individual tutoring and drop-in, lab-based tutoring for computer science and upper-level statistics.
- Individual assistance with writing assignments can be obtained by contacting the Writing, Reading, and Speaking Center located in HSSC C1410 or contact Tisha Turk, director.
- The Reading Laboratory is available for students wanting to improve reading efficiency and verbal skills. It is located in HSSC N3124.
- The Library Lab and research tutors can provide individual assistance with research questions. They are located in the Burling Library.
- The Data Analysis and Social Inquiry Lab (DASIL) provides lab-based assistance with using data and with statistical and GIS software. The lab is located in HSSC on the first floor.