Awareness of Academic Advisory Roles of Lecturers by Education Undergraduates in University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigated awareness of academic advisory roles of lecturers by education undergraduates in University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria. The design of the study was descriptive survey, while the population was 1,460 regular final year undergraduates of the university 2018/2019 academic session. The sample was 500 students who were composed through proportionate random sampling technique from seven departments of Faculty of Education that had final year students. Relevant data were collected from the sample through personal contact method of administration of copies of researchers' made Academic Advisory Awareness Questionnaire (AAAQ). The reliability was established through the Pearson Product Moment formula and for the three sections of the instrument it was 0.71, 0.76 and 0.72 while the overall reliability co-efficient was 0.73. Data were analyzed with mean and standard deviation statistics. The results show that the respondents have faint knowledge of the roles of an academic advisor, their assessment of the effectiveness of the academic advisers is poor and their perceived impediments to effective academic advising is also slightly poor. The results were discussed and some recommendations were also made. One of the recommendations is that counsellor educators, counsellors in the counselling unit in the student affairs department and the director of counselling services in the university should sensitize/enlighten the students on the roles of their academic advisers to them.

Navigating Educational Success: The Role of Sustainable Student Advisory Processes in Fostering University Excellence

“…Advisors may also lack adequate training and knowledge to cater to the diverse needs of students or be unaware of evolving educational landscapes. Agbakwuru et al (2020) observe that many students are oblivious to their academic advisors' roles. The presumed ignorance regarding the full extent of their academic advisors' duties appears to hinder them from fully exploiting the benefits of academic advising.…”

“…Tatiana (2023) underscored that academic advising is an essential aspect of higher education experience as it provides students with guidance and assistance while navigating their academic paths. According to Agbakwuru et al (2020), efficient academic guidance in Nigeria's current university system cannot be overemphasized due to deteriorating quality of university education, lack of academic motivation among significant numbers of students, significant underperformance by some highly capable students, rising involvement in criminal activities among students, amongst other factors.…”