Academic advising: does it really impact student success?
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/09684881311293034 |
| Date | 25 January 2013 |
| Published date | 25 January 2013 |
| Pages | 7-19 |
| Author | Adena D. Young‐Jones,Tracie D. Burt,Stephanie Dixon,Melissa J. Hawthorne |
| Subject Matter | Education |
Academic advising: does it really
impact student success?
Adena D. Young-Jones, Tracie D. Burt, Stephanie Dixon and
Melissa J. Hawthorne
Department of Psychology, Missouri State University,
Springfield, Missouri, USA
Abstract
Purpose – This study was designed to evaluate academic advising in terms of student needs,
expectations, and success rather than through the traditional lens of student satisfaction with the
process.
Design/methodology/approach – Student participants (n¼611) completed a survey exploring
their expectations of and experience with academic advising. Principal axis factor analysis, multiple
regression analyses, and analyses of variance were applied to student responses.
Findings – Six interpretable factors (i.e. advisor accountability, advisor empowerment, student
responsibility, student self-efficacy, student study skills, and perceived support) significantly related
academic advising to student success. Differences emerged with regard to ad visement of
demographically diverse students.
Practical implications – The results suggest improvements in advising practices, particularly
interventions focused on specific demographic populations.
Originality/value – The present study contributes to existing literature by expanding advising
research beyond student satisfaction to explore how it influences student success. Additionally, results
suggest a need for future research that further develops the concept and practice of quality academic
advising.
Keywords Advising,Academic advising, Retention,Matriculation, Studentsuccess, Perceived support,
Self-efficacy,Student expectations, Higher education,Students
Paper type Research paper
What factors best promote student success in higher education? This question has long
been the impetus for assessment and research in colleges and universities, with
institutions seeking to understand contributing factors that are both within and
outside of their control. Tinto (1975) defined student matriculation as an ongoing
process of interactions between the student and the academic and social systems
present in a university. A total of 30 years later, student involvement with academi c
programs and professionals can still either facilitate the journey toward a degree or
lead to disappointment and failure. Habley (2004) asserted that the quality of
interaction between a student and a concerned individual on campus, often through
academic advising, is a key contributor to college retention. However, the influence of
academic advising on student achievement has been largely overshadowed by
attempts to assess student satisfaction with the advising process (e.g. Campbell and
Nutt, 2008; Hemwall and Trachte, 2003; Light, 2001; Propp and Rhodes, 2006).
Tinto’s (1975, 2007) model was one of the first to identify institutional features as
contributors to student attrition. Whereas previous efforts to pinpoint factors affecting
student retention and success focused solely on student characteristics, Tinto
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0968-4883.htm
Academic
advising
7
Received 30 September 2011
Revised 28 October 2012
Accepted 30 October 2012
Quality Assurance in Education
Vol. 21 No. 1, 2013
pp. 7-19
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0968-4883
DOI 10.1108/09684881311293034
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