
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Publications
Campus Units
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
Spring 2017
Journal or Book Title
The Journal of Technology Studies
Volume
43
Issue
1
First Page
26
Last Page
34
Abstract
The basis of high quality academic advising is a strong relationship between the student and the adviser. Historically, these relationships have been cultivated between faculty advisers and students. Increasingly, the “faculty-only” model is declining, as institutions have chosen to hire non-faculty staff to serve the role of academic advisers. These “professional advisers” focus solely on advising, with limited research, teaching, and governance duties. This article summarizes the research on the use of professional advisers as compared with faculty advisers, and outlines challenges inherent to the professional adviser model in an engineering and technology department at a research-intensive land grant institution. Information on the use of professional advisers in an engineering and technology department may be useful to other engineering and technology-oriented departments, specifically those managing large enrollment increases. Factors considered in measuring advising effectiveness for professional and faculty advisers will also be discussed. As administrators in engineering and technology departments add to the list of tasks required for faculty, the use of professional advisers shifts the faculty mentoring focus toward disciplinary and career pursuits, roles faculty have indicated they are comfortable assuming.
Access
Open
Copyright Owner
Epsilon Pi Tau, Inc.
Copyright Date
2017
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Mosher, Gretchen A., "Professional Advisers in Engineering and Technology Undergraduate Programs: Opportunities and Challenges" (2017). Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Publications. 1129.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/abe_eng_pubs/1129
Included in
Agriculture Commons, Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering Commons, Engineering Education Commons
Comments
This article is published as Mosher, Gretchen A. "Professional Advisers in Engineering and Technology Undergraduate Programs: Opportunities and Challenges." Journal of Technology Studies 43, no. 1 (2017): 26-34. Posted with permission.