Content provided in partnership with

Advising the Undergraduate Student Organization: This Worked for Us!1

NACTA Journal, Mar 2007 by Whittington, M Susie, Cano, Jamie

<< Page 1 Continued from page 3. Previous | Next

The "publish or parish" mentality can drive, and potentially frustrate, faculty members. Promotion and tenure certainly must be considered when setting priorities concerning workloads and departmental responsibilities. Yes, advising a student organization takes a considerable amount of time. However, for many faculty members, advising the student organization provides a welcomed emotional release from other aspects of the professional day. Faculty members, in close consultation with the department head and tenured colleagues will make prioritizing decisions regarding the balance between promotion and tenure and advisorship.

Most Popular Articles in Business: Research and Markets : Tesco Plc - SWOT Framework Analysis; Do Us a Flavor - Ben & Jerry's Issues a Call for Euphoric New Flavors; eBay made easy: ready to start an eBay business? These 5 simple steps will ...; Katrina's lawsuit surge: a legal battle to force insurers to pay for flood ...; Wal-Mart's newest distribution center opened last month near the southwest ...; More »

Suggestions for finding balance include: consider the opportunities that exist for tying outreach and service activities (advising) to scholarly activities. Is there research that can be aligned with the advising role? Are there course content, such as leadership or professional development topics, naturally embedded into the advisor role that can be used as real-life examples in teaching? Can advising an undergraduate organization be substituted for credit hours in the expected course load? Can a work-study student help with logistics associated with the advisorship? Creative management may be a key to balancing the formal and non-formal expectations of faculty members in today's promotion and tenure culture.

Summary

The first year of advising an undergraduate student organization is the most difficult. Not only is one charged with advising the organization, which in itself is challenging, but one is also transitioning an entire body of students, called an organization, from the former to the current advisor. Working together for the benefit of the students will be critical.

During this inaugural year, with promotion and tenure looming in the background, the new advisor must focus on the personal and professional benefits of advising an undergraduate student organization, while simultaneously exploring opportunities to balance the time commitment with other scholarly endeavors. Very few faculty members, other than undergraduate student organization advisors, will work beside their students in non-formal settings and enjoy the personal relationship that develops as a result. Likewise few faculty members, with the exception of those that advise undergraduate student organizations, will participate fully in the emotional maturity that lies at the heart of the undergraduate student organization's mission in the university system. Enjoy the experience.

1 Adapted from a NACTA conference presentation by the authors. Acknowledgment: This work is partially funded through the Price Endowed Chair in Teaching, Advising, and Learning.

Literature Cited

Dee, K.C. 1999. Advising student organizations: Penance or privilege? Proceedings of the 1999 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference and Exposition.

Hughes, M.K. 1992. Synthesis and future prospects. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.

Rosovsky H. 1990. The university: An owner's manual. New York: Bantam Books.

Advising the Undergraduate Student Organization: This Worked for Us!1

NACTA Journal, Mar 2007 by Whittington, M Susie, Cano, Jamie

Find Research Guides for:

Find Featured Titles for: Home & Garden

Most Popular Articles in Business

Most Popular Publications in Business