George D. Kuh NACADA National Conference October 18, 2006

1. Thinking DEEPly about Academic Advising and Student Engagement • George D. Kuh • NACADA National Conference • October 18, 2006

2. We all want the same thing—an undergraduate experience that results in high levels of learning and personal development for all students.

3. Overview • What matters to student success • The role of engagement • What students say about advising • Lessons for advisors from high-performing institutions

4. Advance Organizers • To what extent do your students engage in productive learning activities, inside and outside the classroom? • How do you know? • What mighty you do differently -- or better -- to foster student success?

5. Student Success in College Academic achievement, engagement in educationally purposeful activities, satisfaction, acquisition of desired knowledge, skills and competencies, persistence, attainment of educational objectives, and post-college performance

6. Academic preparation Ability and college-level skills Family education and support Financial wherewithal Pre-college Characteristics Associated with Student Success

7. Goal realization Psycho-social fit Credit hours completed Academic and social support Involvement in the “right” kinds of activities Early College Indicators of Persistence and Success

8. What Really Matters in College: Student Engagement Because individual effort and involvement are the critical determinants of impact, institutions should focus on the ways they can shape their academic, interpersonal, and extracurricular offerings to encourage student engagement. Pascarella & Terenzini, How College Affects Students, 2005, p. 602

9. Student Engagement Trinity • What students do -- time and energy devoted to educationally purposeful activities • What institutions do -- using effective educational practices to induce students to do the right things • Educationally effective institutions channel student energy toward the right activities

10. Good Practices in Undergraduate Education(Chickering & Gamson, 1987; Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005) • Student-faculty contact • Active learning • Prompt feedback • Time on task • High expectations • Respect for diverse learning styles • Cooperation among students

11. National Survey of Student Engagement(pronounced “nessie”)Community College Survey of Student Engagement(pronounced “cessie”) College student surveys that assess the extent to which students engage in educational practices associated with high levels of learning and development

12. NSSE Survey Student Behaviors Student Learning & Development Institutional Actions & Requirements Reactions to People & Environment Student Background Information

13. In your experience at your institution during the current school year, about how often have you done each of the following? 1

17. Effective Educational Practices Level of Academic Challenge Active & Collaborative Learning Student- Faculty Interaction Supportive Campus Environment Enriching Educational Experiences

18. Grades, persistence, student satisfaction, and engagement go hand in hand

19. Behold the compensatory effects of engagement

23. Student Success Quiz What is the best predictor of satisfaction with the campus climate for learning? (a) high school rank (b) college gpa (c) credit hours completed (d) quality of academic advising (e) none of the above d. academic advising

28. Accurate and current information from advisors

29. Primary source of academic advising

30. First-Year Student Use of Campus Services

31. What do “engaging”colleges look like?And what do advisors there do?!?

32. What We Learned from Project DEEPJossey-Bass 2005

33. DEEP Guiding Questions • What do strong-performing institutions do to promote student success? • What campus features -- policies, programs, and practices – are related to higher-than-predicted graduation rates and student engagement?

34. DEEP Selection Criteria • Controlling for student and institutional characteristics (i.e., selectivity, diversity, institutional type), DEEP schools have: • Higher-than-predicted graduation rates • Higher-than-predicted NSSE scores • Region, institutional type, special mission

35. Research Approach Case study method • Team of 24 researchers review institutional documents and conduct multiple-day site visits • Observe individuals, classes, group meetings, activities, events 2,700+ people, 60 classes, 30 events • Discover and describe effective practices and programs, campus culture

36. Project DEEP Schools Liberal Arts California State, Monterey Bay Macalester College Sweet Briar College The Evergreen State College Sewanee: University of the South Ursinus College Wabash College Wheaton College (MA) Wofford College Baccalaureate General Alverno College University of Maine at Farmington Winston-Salem State University Doctoral Extensives University of Kansas University of Michigan Doctoral Intensives George Mason University Miami University (Ohio) University of Texas El Paso Master’s Granting Fayetteville State University Gonzaga University Longwood University

37. Six Common Conditions • “Living” Mission and “Lived” Educational Philosophy • Unshakeable Focus on Student Learning • Environments Adapted for Educational Enrichment • Clearly Marked Pathways to Student Success • Improvement-Oriented Ethos • Shared Responsibility for Educational Quality

38. Five DEEP Lessons for Academic Advisors We can’t leave serendipity to chance

39. Points to Ponder • To what extent do these ideas characterize your work and your institution? • What are the implications for: • You? • For faculty members? • For academic administrators • For student affairs staff? • For others (e.g., librarians, info tech personnel, etc.)?

40. 1. Adopt a talent development approach to advising • “Know” your students • Who are they? • What are they telling us?

41. Student Success Quiz What percent of high school seniors have college-level reading skills? (a) 51% (b) 59% (c) 68% (d) 77% (e) none of the above a. 51%(ACT, 2006)

42. Student Success Quiz True or false: 25% of first-year first-time frosh at two-year colleges are required to take one or more remedial courses in college. False. 60%

43. Student Success Quiz What percent of students who take at least one remedial course in reading do not earn a certificate or degree within 8 years of first enrollment? (a) 18% (b) 33% (c) 43% (d) 61% (e) 70% e. 70%

44. Student Success Quiz About what percent of community college students return for the second year? (a) 29% (b) 33% (c) 50% (d) 61% (e) 77% c. 50% 15% do not complete one academic term

45. Students Today • An entitlement mentality

46. Trends in High School Grades

47. Students Today • An entitlement mentality • Cumulative deficit re: attitudes, study habits, academic skills

48. Students Today • More diverse than previous cohorts • Techno-savvy “NetGens”

49. Factors That Threaten Persistence and Graduation from College • academically underprepared for college-level work • gap between high school and college • part-time enrollment • single parent • financially independent • children at home • 30+ hours working per week • first-generation college student

50. 1. Adopt a talent development approach to advising • “Know” your students • Meet students “where they are” – academically, socially, psychologically.