Revisiting Academic Advising: Potential Role and Implications in Undergraduate Medical Training in India

Academic advising is developmental advising process in which the students receive guidance from faculty advisor regarding their academic, career, and personal goals, so that the students are able to achieve their maximum potential. It is a dynamic, interactive, and collaborative relationship between a student and academic advisor [Box 1]. An academic advisor counsel, informs, coaches, mentors, suggests, and teaches the students in this process.[5]

Box 1.

Definitions of academic advising

According to the NACADA, Academic advising is “a series of intentional interactions with a curriculum, a pedagogy and a set of student learning outcomes”[1]

“Advising is a process in which advisor and advisee enter a dynamic relationship respectful of the student’s concerns. Ideally, the advisor serves as teacher and guide in an interactive partnership aimed at enhancing the student’s self-awareness and fulfillment”[2]

“.Developmental counseling or advising is concerned not only with a specific personal or vocational decision but also with facilitating the student’s rational processes, environmental and interpersonal interactions, behavior awareness, and problem-solving, decision-making, and evaluation skills”[3]

“Developmental Advising - A Definition”. A systematic process based on a close student-advisor relationship intended to aid students in achieving educational, career, and personal goals through the use of the full range of institutional and community resources[4]

NACADA: National Academic Advising Association

Unlike traditional counseling, which usually involves only solving students’ queries and guiding the students, academic advising is longitudinal, ongoing, and multifaceted process involving both the student and advisor in each stage. Academic advisor acts as a facilitator, coordinator, and referral agent throughout the tenure and career of student. Meaningful interactions of student with advisor encourage the students to take responsibility, think critically, explore options, make decisions, plan actions, and perform to their full potential. Every academic advising is an intentional process having purpose, content, and specified outcomes.

Advising and mentoring are two different approaches to guide the students.

Mentor is assigned or selected according to resources and need of students, while advisor is assigned to guide the students throughout their professional journey. While an academic advisor assists students in their academic and training programs leading to their further professional development, a mentor guides, supports, and encourages the students to develop their personal as well as professional well-being.

Mentoring focuses more on character development and socialization into the field,[6] unlike advisors who focus more on achievement of career-related goals. There can be multiple mentors according to the need of students and expertise of the mentors; however, advisors are usually one. Some roles are common to both advisor and mentor like listener, facilitator, role model, and encourager.

History of Academic Advising

As cited in Harrison,[7] the term “academic advising” can be traced to 1841 at Kenyon College, when students were required to select a faculty as their academic advisor for helping them to select courses for graduation.

Later, in 1877, a system of faculty advisors was established in The John Hopkins University.[8] In 1889, a board of advisors was established at Harvard as it was observed that extensive curriculum required guidance to undergraduate students. In 1902, The Ohio State University gave first written reference in university catalog, in which students were invited to apply to the professor for consultation and information regarding work or guidance in any class.

As the number of career options increased for students, there was a need for primary-role advisors, especially as students opted for increasing opportunities for electives. However, their roles were confined to clerical tasks and information providers only. One of the profound changes to advising practices was the advent of increasingly sophisticated advances in technology. As demand for faculty advisors increased, advisors were encouraged to develop skills and competencies in the area of advising. Gradually, many institutes, formally, created academic advisor position for the development of students. Academic advisors were given task of academic advising, mentoring, monitoring career progress, and providing support for persistence and academic progression.

In Indian Medical Colleges, stress has been to implement mentorship programs. As envisaged in the revised Graduate Medical Education Regulations – “The overall goal of undergraduate medical education program is to create Indian Medical Graduate (IMG) possessing requisite knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and responsiveness so that she or he may function appropriately and effectively as a physician of first contact of the community while being globally relevant.” To fulfill this goal, role modeling and mentoring have been suggested as a method for guiding students toward the goal of competent IMG. National Medical Commission (NMC) has proposed mentorship program for all undergraduate medical students for overall development of students.[9]

Need and Benefits

Students face a lot of challenges when they enter college from schools. These challenges include financial issues, accommodation, limited support at colleges having poor infrastructural resources, and sudden transition leading to stress. Leaving the students to take care of themselves amidst this turmoil can be hazardous for them as well as institute. Trying to make college education as holistic and cohesive experience for the students is beneficial for both students and organization. The very first thing that can be done is to communicate to the students the goals and mission of the institution, so that the students get opportunity for holistic, meaningful curricular experience. Academic advising is all about empowering the students, so that they become autonomous intellectual agents, beyond just acquiring knowledge.

According to the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA), academic advising is necessary to fulfill the teaching–learning mission and goal of higher education. Students are encouraged to think critically about their roles and responsibilities as students, so that they become accountable citizens of future. The importance of academic advising should be conveyed to the student and other stakeholders through institutional mission and goals.[1]

Academic advising acts as a guide for students who are unsure about how to proceed with their goals or have no idea about the college functioning and processes involved.[10] Academic advising provides the students with much needed support for coping unknown territories in college education and beyond. Students lack knowledge about institute’s educational programs, process, resources, and infrastructure. Information about course and program information, resources, and guidance on navigating college issues is provided by advisors. Advisors help students to stay focused on their personal and professional goals and excel.

Tinto’s theory states that students who are engaged and guided in the campus are likely to complete their education.[11] Academic advisors have a crucial role to help students engaged and motivated. It has been reported that advisor accountability and advisor empowerment are crucial predictors of student success in addition to study skills and perceived support.[12] Students get assistance in planning for the future goals and career and get genuine advice regarding their academic choices.

Academic advising helps promote self-directed learning in the students. Because advisors direct and mold students to think and analyze critically and develop solutions to different issues and problems that students might face in their academic career; students become self-reliant, confident, and ready to face challenges by facilitatory action of academic advisors. Faculty members play a critical role in academic advising programs. Since faculty are committed to being actively involved in students planning, it promotes stronger educational community and collaborations between students, faculty, and staff.

Structure and Process

Since academic advising is multidimensional, various models of advising have been proposed – developmental advising, prescriptive advising, and intrusive advising [Table 1].

Table 1.

Models of academic advising

Developmental advising	Prescriptive advising	Intrusive advising
This model is based on pedagogical principles of advisor-student relationship	It is traditional advising model, initiated by student	Intrusive advising is initiated by advisor
It is focused on developing critical and problem-solving skills of students for exploring academic, career goals	It is focused only on providing information to students related to their academic and course	It persists throughout student’s academic career
It is collaborative and process oriented advising	Main goal is to address student’s immediate academic issues	This type of advising has found to be more effective and is more preferred by the students

According to NACADA, the global community for academic advising (2006), academic advising has three components [Figure 1].[1]

Figure 1.

Components of academic advising

Curriculum

It includes the institution’s mission, goals, expectations, and culture. It also includes academic programs and courses, development of life and career goals, resources, and policies of institute.

Pedagogy

It is a teaching–learning process that requires pedagogy which includes preparation, facilitation, documentation, and assessment of advising interactions between student and advisor. Relationship between student and advisor is fundamental and bound by ethics, trust, and respect.

Students learning outcomes

These depend on institutes goals and mission. They include what students will know, demonstrate, and value as a result of academic advising and should be assessable.

Faculty–student interactions are crucial for students’ success and extend beyond pure academics to social and overall satisfaction with college experience.[13] Faculty advising should be embedded as a part of teaching–learning process. It should include satisfaction, advising content, process, and outcomes aligning with institutional values, future career plans of students, and exploring further career options as an ongoing practice and responsibility.[14] Students are encouraged to take ownership of their academic career and goals, while advisor facilitates the process. Advising is a negotiation between expectations of the current/prospective organization and needs of the student.[15]

The process of academic advising includes five steps, according to ‘Academic Advising Model’[16] – Exploration of life goals; Exploration of vocational goals; Program choice; Course choice; and Scheduling courses. Academic advisors should have required knowledge, skills, and attitudes for facilitating all the five steps of academic advising.

Features of Academic Advisors

As far as academic advisors are concerned, Crookston[17] urged advisors to look beyond their academic work, schedule, and planning and go for developmental academic advising rather than prescriptive advising. Academic advising can be one-to-one session or in groups or online. It is desirable for academic advisors to have qualities [Figure 2], congruent to Dalton State College academic advising.[18]

Figure 2.

Qualities of academic advisors

Core values for advising are very important as they are reflected in the process of advising by the advisors.[19] NACADA’s professional development committee has developed core competencies of academic advising[20] to convey roles of academic advisors. These core competencies are supposed to guide the institutes for training and assessment programs for primary-role advisors, faculty advisors, and administrators. These core competencies have been divided into relational skills, understanding of conceptual areas, and informational knowledge [Table 2]. Academic advisors are supposed to develop these core competencies.

Table 2.

Core competencies for academic advisors

Attribute	Core competencies
Relational skills/competencies	Articulate a personal philosophy of academic advising
	Create rapport and build academic advising relationships
	Communicate in an inclusive and respectful manner
	Plan and conduct successful advising interactions
	Promote student understanding of the logic and purpose of the curriculum
	Facilitate problem solving, decision-making, meaning-making, planning, and goal setting; and
	Engage in on-going assessment and development of the advising practice
Conceptual areas knowledge	The history and role of academic advising in higher education
	Understands core values of academic advising
	Theory, approaches and strategies relevant to academic advising
	Expected outcomes of academic advising; and
	Knowledge about creating and maintain equitable and inclusive environments
Informational knowledge	Institution specific history, mission, vision, values, and culture
	Curriculum, degree programs, and other academic requirements and options
	Institution specific policies, procedures, rules, and regulations
	Legal guidelines of advising practice, including privacy regulations and confidentiality
	The characteristics, needs, and experience of major and emerging student populations
	Campus and community resources that support student success; and
	Information technology applicable to relevant advising roles

Advisors are also required to take care of ethics and professionalism. Ethics and professionalism constitute core of academic advising. It involves integrity, accountability, confidentiality, autonomy, respecting rights of students, advisors, and institute.

Role in Undergraduate Medical Training

As stated earlier, mentorship programs have been preferably introduced in medical colleges in India, both independently and under NMC mandate, and till date, they have given satisfactory results. According to a mentorship program introduced in a medical college, the mentees felt confident and supported regarding their personal development and this motivated them to improve their academic performance too.[21] According to a study by Sonawane et al.,[22] mentorship reduces stress and anxiety among medical students. Purpose of majority of mentorship programs is providing more of emotional support to students away from homes, more of providing feedback to students on current curriculum, and compiling their academic performance.

However, there is increasing need of more frequent student–teacher interactions for advising students on academics due to paradigm shifts in medical training and expectations of stakeholders, particularly shifting focus to undergraduate research[23] and on electives,[24] in Indian medical colleges. For every other need at the undergraduate level, most of the students move with the class – they don’t have any decision-making power for themselves. However, for choosing electives and research areas, they need advising; the role hardly played by mentors under current mentorship programs being operational.

Here comes the role of formal academic advising. Academic advising not only has a component of mentorship, it is also formal multifaceted structured advising program for achievement of specific outcomes of students, advisors, as well as institute. It must be noted here that University Grants Commission advocates the appointments of specific academic advisors for all students in higher education institutes, supported by advisory committees at different tiers – departmental advisory committee, institutional advisory committee, university advisory committee, and doctoral advisory committee. Such multiple tier advisory committee setup ensures constant monitoring and support, faculty capacity building, and scaffolding. With changing focus and paradigm shift in medical undergraduate training in India, the approach of appointing academic advisors at specific time-periods seems worth consideration.

Challenges in Academic Advising

Increase in faculty workloads

If dedicated and protected time is not provided to faculty for advising, it can take a heavy toll on the faculty. Since at many institutes, students’ load is too large, it can diminish opportunities for student-advisor one-to-one contact. Furthermore, without dedicated time and reward, faculty interest can diminish. This issue can be addressed by training more number of faculty advisors and providing incentives to them in the form of promotions, salary increase, or any other tangible reward.

Lack of advisor training

It has been reported that faculty are not provided faculty development training, which can help them to advise students effectively.[25] In fact, such roles are not even mentioned to faculty members during their recruitment. Efforts should be made by institutes to arrange regular Continuous Medical Educations, Faculty Development Programs, and conferences to keep faculty trained and updated regarding various aspects of academic advising.

Legal concerns

Since academic advising is a formal relationship between student and advisor, the advisors need to have detailed information and understanding of contract law, ethics and professionalism, privacy and confidentiality clause, accountability act, and other regional laws and regulations.

Way Forward

According to Rhodes,[26] successful university will be knowledge based, student centered giving due importance to research but learning focused. Moreover, for achieving this, institutes, including medical institutes, need to give due importance to academic advising. There should be appropriate advising material for faculty for reference, adequate preparation, and planning with regular one-to-one collaborative meetings between student and advisors. Academic advising has picked up and academic advisors can now have various affiliations with national and international associations dedicated to advancement of academic advancing on global scale.[26] Academic advising has reached the stage where it is considered to be more than just teaching, counseling, coaching, or mentoring.[27] Holistic and developmental academic advising requires academic advisors to acquire and update their knowledge and skills related to various aspects of advising.

Various faculty development programs should be conducted regularly to overcome the obstacles and empower the faculty advisors for achieving core competencies related to process of academic advising. Furthermore, regular assessment and evaluation of academic advising program should be carried out by using appropriate tools like surveys, portfolios, rubrics, and other standardized benchmarks for improving the process of advising.