Advising Expectations

Your Advising Appointment

This page details reasons you might make an advising appointment, how to prepare for an advising appointment, what you can expect from your advisor and what your advisor needs from you. If you have any questions about advising, feel free to contact our office at LAS.Advisor@wichita.edu.

To make an appointment, contact us at 316-978-3700, option 2.  Current students can schedule an appointment with a Liberal Arts and Sciences Advising Center advisor by using the links below:

What Your Advisor Can Do for You

Our highly knowledgable team can help you to:

• understand the purposes of higher education
• define and develop unique abilities, goals and aspirations
• clarify values and educational and life goals
• define realistic academic and professional goals
• create an individual academic plan of study for major

Our staff will also:

• answer questions about General Education and transfer credit
• identify campus resources if you encounter challenges
• answer questions about WSU Policies and Procedures
• help you choose courses leading to a timely completion of degree requirements
• collaborate with you in developing realistic academic and professional goals

Advising Resource Materials to Bring

This is a list of possible documents that should be in your advising folder that you bring to each appointment:

• WSU Catalog – available online and in hard copy from the Bookstore
• Schedule of Classes if you are registering for classes
• Blockout – informal copy of your transcript provided by your advisor
• Checksheet of major requirements
• Checksheet for General Education
• Semester Plan / model program
• Individual Plan of Study

In addition, filling out a Pre-Advising Worksheet ahead of time can help you to identify things to discuss with your advisor.

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Advisor Responsibilities

You can expect your advisor to:

• Assist you in understanding the purposes and goals of higher education and its effect on your life and personal goals
• Be accessible for meeting with you via advising appointments, telephone, email and web access
• Assist you in utilizing university resources to maximize your educational and personal potential
• Provide accurate information about general education, graduation requirements, and WSU policies and procedures
• Facilitate your working with faculty, staff, and resources at Wichita State University
• Monitor and/or accurately document your progress toward meeting your chosen academic goals
• Encourage you to develop decision making skills
• Collaborate with you to define and develop realistic academic and professional goals
• Assist you in developing skills to take responsibility for your educational plans and goals
• Collaborate with you to develop an individual academic plan of study for your major
• Assist you as you explore and clarify your values and your educational and life goals
• Maintain confidentiality
• Encourage and guide you in defining and developing your unique abilities, goals and aspirations

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Student Responsibilities

You are expected to:

• Schedule advising appointments or make contact with your advisor each semester
• Arrive on time and be prepared for each appointment
• Be an active learner by participating fully in the advising experience
• Bring questions or material for discussion to your appointment
• Ask questions if you do not understand an issue or have a specific concern
• Organize advising documents and maintain a record of your progress toward your academic goals
• Bring advising documents to each meeting with your advisor
• Clarify personal values and goals
• Provide your advisor with accurate information about your interests and abilities
• Know the requirements of your degree program and make sure that you are taking the courses your program requires for graduation
• Become knowledgeable about college policies, deadlines and procedures
• Follow through with all recommendations from your advisor
• Identify university resources, career opportunities resources
• Accept responsibility for your decisions and be aware of your actions and how they affect you, your academic progress, and your financial aid status

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Expected Learning Outcomes for the Academic Advising Experience

• Students demonstrate how to find information about WSU opportunities, requirements, policies and procedures
• Students demonstrate how to use their catalog, advising worksheets, and degree audit report to identify degree requirements
• Students utilize online technology independently to access university information
• Students demonstrate how to use online technology (CAPP, BlackBoard, Banner Self-Service) to track individual progress toward a degree
• Students use campus resources such as work-based learning, study abroad, and Career Services to assist them in achieving their academic, personal and career goals
• Students demonstrate the ability to make informed decisions about degree and career goals
• Students choose courses that contribute to the completion of the degree requirements
• Students develop a realistic educational graduation within a timeline consistent with student’s life circumstances
• Students make use of referrals to campus resources as needed
• Students articulate and appreciate the purpose of higher education and what it means to be a member of the community of scholars
• Students identify fields of study that are consistent with their interests, abilities, and life goals.
• Identify university resources, major requirements, career opportunities, and campus resources
• Clarify personal values and goals
• Students select and register for appropriate courses using MyWSU

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