Underestimating the Relationship Between Academic Advising and Attainment: A Case Study in Practice

Abstract

The Higher Education Academy (2015) highlighted attainment alongside access, retention and progression as key areas of foci in order to fulfill the aspiration to provide all students with the opportunities and support required to succeed in Higher Education (HE). Although previous research into academic advising has focused on the impact upon student satisfaction and retention, the impact upon attainment is underexplored. This research aims to explore the extent of the relationship between advising and attainment and answers the call by bodies such as Advance HE (formerly the Higher Education Academy) to recognize that academic advising is vital to student success. This research provides a contribution to the body of knowledge around academic advising, in the form of a case study undertaken to identify the impact of academic advising on student attainment at Sheffield Hallam University. A focus group and questionnaire were employed to gather data from final year undergraduate students at Sheffield Hallam University. Findings indicate that the impact of academic advising on attainment is both explicit and implicit, with support in areas beyond academic studies having a significant impact on student experiences. In addition this research also questions the perceived meanings of attainment in HE and proposes that attainment should be viewed as holistic attainment whereby students are developed as a whole, better enabling them to deal with the HE environment and beyond rather than being limited to academic numerical attainment.

Students’ satisfaction with the service quality of academic advising systems

“…Between these elements, the developmental approach focuses on the development of students, helping them foster personalised and rewarding relationships with their advisors. As a result, the developmental approach is highly preferred by students [15]. This approach views the student-advisor partnership as a shared responsibility in educational discovery [16].…”

Tutores sobresalientes y sus prácticas de tutoría académica en una universidad mexicana

“…También hay estudios que subrayan logros y lo apremiante que se hace el rol tutorial en modelos educativos diseñados para contar con esta figura. Venegas y Garaín (2020) y Holland, et al, (2020) identifican varias dificultades resueltas por los estudiantes gracias a la intervención de un tutor; describen a las tutorías como una estrategia en favor de los estudiantes, como un servicio que la universidad les brinda de manera individualizada para enfrentar las vicisitudes de la carrera universitaria.…”

“…Los modelos destacados merecen ser observados dado que se sustentan en situaciones reales, brindan referentes empíricos; se convierten en un método para sistematizar, preservar y transmitir los aciertos a las nuevas generaciones (Guzmán, 2018;Veselý), y sientan bases para propiciar la tan buscada calidad en los procesos educativos. El vínculo que varias investigaciones han establecido entre la efectividad de los tutores y el éxito académico de los estudiantes (Barrón y Díaz, 2016;Holland, et al, 2020, Soria y Bultmann, 2014 es otro aliciente para saber qué elementos contribuyen al logro de tutorías efectivas. En esta investigación nos hemos propuesto documentar la experiencia de los profesores mejor evaluados sobre sus prácticas tutoriales en una universidad mexicana.…”

“…En este escenario, las políticas de educación superior afianzaron la necesidad de consolidar la figura del tutor para un acompañamiento personal y para incidir positivamente en la retención y la eficiencia terminal (Artistimuño y Parodi, 2017;Holland, et al, 2020, Martínez y Elue, 2020. También se intentó compensar los posibles déficits formativos, contribuir a que los estudiantes hicieran frente a las adversidades que pudieran presentarse en su tránsito escolar, y guiar la estructuración de las rutas curriculares según el perfil específico deseado.…”

Academic Advisors in the Completion of Undergraduate Study: The Role of Arabic Language Lecturers

“…Moreover, academic advising affects students' learning achievement (Holland, Westwood, and Hanif, 2020)and has a positive value as an effort to assist and advise students (Drake, 2011). A student's success can be attributed to his personal and situational contribution, as well as to a number of external factors, such as his motivation and success patterns (Bandura, 1986).…”