Advising in the Liberal Arts context in Asia involves a distinct interpersonal relationship that helps develop our students for academic excellence and civic engagement. Below is a list of resources you can consult to learn about evidence-based best practice in our context at Yale-NUS College.

Foundational Works:

•  A Developmental View of Academic Advising as Teaching (1994) by Burns B. Crookston.
  This article discusses two types of relationships in academic advising: prescriptive, whereby the relationship is founded on the advisor’s authority to “give answers”, and developmental, whereby both parties engage developmental tasks that result in varying degrees of learning. The article enumerates 10 dimensions of the relationship between the academic advisor and the student, contrasting prescriptive and developmental approaches to advising for each dimension.
• An Academic Advising Model (1972) by Terry O’Banion
  This article proposes a model with a logical sequence to be followed in the academic advising process.

General Advice:

• Teaching in Transnational Higher Education: Enhancing Learning for Offshore International Students (2008) by Lee Dunn and Michelle Wallace.
  This book provides theoretical perspectives and practical guidelines for professionals involved in the delivery of programs for transnational students. It focuses on the current and emerging issues in transnational teaching and learning, discussing the implications for learners in transnational higher education.
•  Academic Advising: A Comprehensive Handbook (2008) by Virginia Gordon, Wesley R. Habley, and Thomas J. Grites.
  This book provides comprehensive overviews of key concepts in academic advising with more than thirty experts sharing their wisdom and experience from the field.
• Beyond Foundations: Developing as a Master Academic Advisor (2016) by Thomas J. Grites, Marsha A. Miller, and Julie Givans Voller.
  This book is a core resource that gives practitioners insight into important issues affecting academic advising. It synthesizes the most recent knowledge and attitudes about the rapidly changing world of higher education and shares case studies that illustrate the various roles advisors should play in order to be successful.
• Successful Research Supervision: Advising students doing research (2011) by Anne Lee.
  This book is a guide on research supervision, full of exercises to identify supervisors’ individual strengths and weaknesses. This book also provides theoretically-sound advice and examples of best practices from established scientists, social scientists and humanities supervisors from the UK and the USA
• Academic advising: does it really impact student success? (2013) by Adena D. Young-Jones, Tracie D. Burt, Stephanie Dixon and Melissa J. Hawthorne.
  This article gives six factors that are crucial to academic advising – advisor accountability, advisor empowerment, student responsibility, student self-efficacy, student study skills, and perceived support.

Liberal Arts

• Adaptation in the Ivory Tower: Deciphering the Implementation of Institutional Academic Advising Policy (2007) by Clapp, Marlene.
  This article compares academic advising culture in a “State U” and a liberal arts “Communal College”.
• Advising and the liberal arts: it takes a college (2008) by Margaret Freijie.
  This article discusses how academic advising is executed in the College of the Holy Cross, as a case study for best practice.

‘Asian’ Context:

• Evaluating student satisfaction of quality at international branch campuses (2015) by Syed Z. Ahmad
  This article reports that counselling and academic advising support is one of 7 key dimensions and service factors for student satisfaction, based on robust data collection among 6 international branch campuses located in Malaysia.
• Student Satisfaction through academic advising: How effective is the advisor? (2015) by Salina Hamed and Faridah Hussin
  This article reports findings from a study done in a Malaysian university to determine students’ preferred advising style and their satisfaction with academic advising. The researchers found that the majority of the students preferred developmental advising. Moreover, a positive relationship with students’ assigned academic advisor was associated with greater satisfaction with their education experience and perceived positive development as a student.
• Supporting off-shore students: a preliminary study (2007) by Virginia Hussin.
  This article provides recommendations on advising students that do not speak English as their first language.
• Students’ Expectations and Perceptions of Service Quality Performance: University student advisors in Australia, Malaysia, and Singapore (2013) by Wee Ming Ong.
  This study compares the expectations and perceptions of university service quality across universities in Australia, Malaysia and Singapore. It offers insightful comparisons and recommendations on providing service within the sphere of higher education.
• Enhancing academic learning advising in globally-engaged universities – A personal odyssey (2012) by David Pang.
  This article discusses how academic advising can evolve with changes in student demographics (rise in international students) and student expectations. The researcher proposes that academic advising be learner (advisee)-centred, holistic, and flexible. In globally-engaged universities, high-impact academic advising is multicultural and should engage student differences to close the perceived East vs. West divide.

International Students:

• Advising and Acculturation Variables as Predictors of Satisfaction, Sense of Belonging, and Persistence among International Undergraduates (2013) by Lisa Mataczynski.
  “…advising relationship and acculturation were significant predictors of international students’ satisfaction with academic advising.”
• An Overlooked Population in Community College: International Students’ (In)Validation Experiences With Academic Advising (2016) by Zhang Yi.
  “…there is evidence that these students feel invalidated in large part due to advisors’ limited knowledge about international students, lack of collaboration between advisors and other professionals on campus, and inaccurate or delayed course selection information received from the advisors. The findings also indicate that academic advisors with a better understanding of cultural diversity establish stronger relationships with international community college students.”

Technology and Academic Advising:

• Technology and Academic Advising: Student Usage and Preferences (2014) by Trudi Gaines.
  Based on a survey done among 162 students, the study provides insights on students’ preferences on technology-based engagement with academic advising. Note that the findings of the study may not be applicable to Yale-NUS as majority of the study’s sample size were enrolled in an online certification program.
• Technology in Academic Advising: Perceptions and Practices in Higher Education (2016) by Laura Pasquani.

Others:

• International Cooperation in Higher Education: Theory and Practice (2004) by Wendy Chan.
  “Appointment of academic advisors who have comprehensive knowledge of course requirements across the faculty and authority to make decisions in relation to student exchange and recruitment of international students. Recognition of international initiatives and contributions in promotion and appointment procedures. Professional development programmes including cross-cultural training, attendance of international conferences, and international attachments and assignments.
• Characteristics of Academic Advising That Contribute to Racial and Ethnic Minority Student Success at Predominantly White Institutions (2010) by Museus, Samuel D., and Joanna N. Ravello.
  As the title suggests, this is for an American/European context but is useful for studying the approaches that may work in Yale-NUS.
• Essential Functions of Academic Advising: What Students Want and Get (2006) by Cathleen Smith and Allen Janine.
  This is done in an American context, nevertheless this large number of American students in Yale-NUS warrants attention for this article.
• Student Satisfaction with Information Provided by Academic Advisors (2011) by Kyra Sutton and Chetan Sankar.
  This deals with academic advising in engineering colleges but can be used to garner common expectations that students have of academic advisors.

Current Practices of Singaporean Universities and other Asian Liberal Arts Colleges

• National University of Singapore. “A Guide to Advising Students.” Accessed February 26, 2018, from http://www.usp.nus.edu.sg/images/resources/content/curriculum/academic-advising/advisor-guide-2017.pdf.
• Nanyang Technological University. “Undergraduate Policies.” Accessed February 26, 2018, from http://www.adm.ntu.edu.sg/Programmes/Undergraduate/UndergraduateProgrammes/undergraduatepolicies/Pages/Home.aspx. See also http://www.ntu.edu.sg/cao/StudentsCareerServices/careercoaching/Pages/index.aspx
• Singapore Management University. “Student Information.” Accessed February 26, 2018, from https://www.smu.edu.sg/career-services/career-counselling. See also https://business.smu.edu.sg/business/programmes/bachelor-business-management/academic-advisors.
• Seoul National University. “Services for students.” Accessed February 26, 2018, from http://www.useoul.edu/students/counseling.
• The Chinese University of Hong Kong. “Academic Advisory System.” Accessed February 26, 2018, from http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/english/teaching/academic-advisory-system.html.
• University of Tokyo. “International Offices by Faculty and Graduate School.” Accessed February 26, 2018, from http://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/current-students/international_offices.html.

Last updated: 30 December 2020.