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WHO CAN HELP ME TO BECOME THE PERSON I WANT TO BE?
Table of Contents
» The Academic Advisee's Bill of Rights
» Responsibilities Of Academic Advisors And Their Advisees
» Characteristics Of Successful Mentors
» Advice To Job-Seeking Psychology Majors
The Academic Advisee's Bill of Rights
As an educational consumer, each student has a right to the best academic advising his tuition can provide. Specifically, each student has:
The Right to Know who his advisor is, where his advisor's office is located, and when his advisor is available.
The Right to Expect his advisor to establish and adhere to reasonable office hours.
The Right to Expect his advisor to be knowledgeable of the different interests and challenges of both traditional and non-traditional students and to adapt the advising accordingly.
The Right to Expect his advisor to thoroughly understand the institution?s structure and its academic policies on such things as requirements, drop/add procedures, academic honesty, scholarships, internships, and academic grievances.
The Right to Expect his advisor to be familiar with the variety of degree offerings, the procedure for referral to and the types of support services for academic units (e.g. Academic Advancement Center, Career Planning and Placement, etc.), and counseling services on campus.
The Right to Expect his advisor to be aware, not only of specific requirements in the major, but also General Education requirements.
The Right to Expect his advisor to help him plan a complete course study, designed through personal interaction between the student and the advisor, utilizing career interests and academic records, as well as available information on the frequency of course offerings and possible scheduling conflicts.
The Right to Expect his advisor to help him revise his course of study in the event that career interests or requirements change.
The Right to Expect his advisor to suggest methods for improving study skills.
The Right to Expect his advisor to share information about available extra-curricular activities that may directly enhance his learning experiences.
The Right to Expect his advisor to be interested in his academic and personal welfare.
This bill of rights is a modified version of the one created and passed by the Ohio University Student Senate.
R E S P O N S I B I L I T I E S
OF ACADEMIC ADVISORS AND THEIR ADVISEES
Advisor Responsibilities
Learn your advisee?s names and interests.
Post office hours, and be available to your advisees during these hours.
Become familiar with your advisee?s academic abilities from their entrance and assessment data, and use this information to place your advisees into appropriate classes and programs.
Create a sample four-year plan of classes, and distribute a copy to each of your advisees.
Schedule at least one formal advising meeting with each of your advisees every semester.
Be able and willing to help your advisees:
a. to clarify their career goals;
b. to identify the knowledge, skills, and characteristics they will need to attain these goals; and
c. to discover methods by which they can acquire this knowledge and these skills and characteristics.
Serve as an accurate source of information about academic requirements, policies, and procedures.
Maintain an accurate and confidential file of each of your advisees? academic progress.
Inform your advisees of opportunities to learn about their academic and/or career futures (e.g., alumni panel, developmental advising sessions, and job fairs).
Have an accurate and up-to-date knowledge of the college resources available to your advisees, and make appropriate referrals to meet your advisees? needs and interests.
Provide information and guidance to your advisees concerning career and graduate school opportunities.
Provide advice to your advisees (i.e., do not tell them what to do), and help them to understand that they are responsible for the academic decisions they make.
Advisee Responsibilities
Learn your advisor?s name, office location, office hours, and telephone number.
Meet with your advisor at least once every semester to plan your next semester?s schedule and to discuss your future plans and your strategies for accomplishing them.
Be prepared for registration sessions with your advisor by becoming aware of :
a. the courses you are required to take (both general education and in your major),
b. the courses you have already completed,
c. the courses offered during the next semester, and
d. a tentative schedule of classes for the next semester.
Be willing and able to discuss your career goal(s) with your advisor, and be willing to take responsibility for achieving them.
Consult with your advisor when you:
a. are in academic difficulty,
b. want to change your schedule (i.e., drop or add classes),
c. want to change your major, and/or
d. decide to withdraw from school or transfer to another college or university.
Accept responsibility for the academic decisions you make.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SUCCESSFUL MENTORS
Mature and Wise
Has attained a stage of advanced personal, social, and professional development.
Has a reputation for giving accurate and useful advice.
Qualified and Competent
Possesses the necessary experiences or credentials.
Performs her/his professional role in a capable and effective manner.
Empathic and Concerned
Displays compassionate and nonjudgmental understanding of proteges.
Helps proteges understand that they are valued.
Friendly and Optimistic
Appears to genuinely like her/his proteges and the process of mentoring them.
Maintains a positive outlook on life for her/himself and for her/his proteges.
Experienced and Seasoned
Has successfully traveled the path that her/his proteges are now traveling.
Willing to share personal/professional experiences and mistakes with proteges.
Promoting and Sponsoring
Communicates positive aspects of proteges to others.
Can "open doors" to career and graduate school opportunities for proteges.
Admired and Respected
Possesses characteristics that proteges aspire to attain.
Is held in high regard by her/his colleagues.
Knowledgeable and Informative
Possesses accurate and up-to-date information that can benefit proteges.
Is able and willing to communicate this information to proteges.
Supporting and Protecting
Serves as a source of emotional support for proteges during difficult times.
Is able and willing to defend proteges if the need arises.
Trustworthy and Dependable
Possesses ethical and moral integrity and expects the same of others.
Is willing to provide assistance to proteges even under difficult conditions.
Professionally Involved and Active
Is actively involved in her/his professional or academic organizations.
Continues to learn and develop within her/his profession.
Challenging and Demanding
Motivates proteges to attempt new tasks that stretch their current abilities.
Is unwilling to accept less-than-optimal performance from proteges.
ADVICE TO JOB-SEEKING PSYCHOLOGY MAJORS
FROM ALUMNI WHO ARE SUCCESSFULLY EMPLOYED
Don't wait until you are a senior to think about what you will put on your resume. Start this process when you are a freshman.
Do things that will make it easy for people to write good letters of recommendation for you in the future.
Don't be a loner. Develop a network of people who can help you to learn about and obtain the job you want.
Try to personalize your education to fit your specific career goals.
Develop specific career goals as early in your education as possible and then do everything you can to achieve these goals.
Do some volunteer work or participate in a practicum, internship, or Co-op program to gain experience and to make contacts.
Develop interpersonal skills. If you are shy, do everything you can to overcome your shyness.
Develop computer and statistical skills.
Don't just learn things to pass tests. Learn things so that you can apply the knowledge that you learn in the job you want to obtain.
Learn to become an articulate and persuasive writer and speaker.
Get involved in extracurricular activities and assume leadership roles in these activities.
Learn how to deal with stress and how to manage your time.
Demonstrate to people that you are enthusiastic and motivated by actively seeking opportunities to become involved in activities that will broaden your experience and increase your network of people who can help you to increase your future career possibilities.
Don't expect a good job to fall into your lap after graduation. Good jobs are a result of hard work, persistence, and planning.
Realize that the world is full of people who are very different from you, and that you must learn to deal successfully with different kinds of people if you are to be successful.
Become familiar with the Career Services Office when you are a freshman, and continue to use its services throughout your college career.
Don't choose electives just because they are easy or offered at a convenient time. Choose electives that will increase your strengths and strengthen your weaknesses.
Find out what skills, knowledge, and personal characteristics you must have to obtain and succeed in the job you want, and then take advantage of your college opportunities to develop them.
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