Faculty Advising Survey: A Summary

In the fall of 2004, Ohio University Student Senate conducted a faculty advising survey to gauge as accurately as possible the faculty’s perspective on advising and its capacity for improvement. The success of this survey can be measured by its response rate (25% of faculty), the percentage of respondents who replied to the final open-ended question with suggested topics such as the best means for evaluating and rewarding advising (60%), and the wide range of departments and schools represented among the respondents. The survey revealed that only 3% of tenured faculty report that performance as an advisor was heavily taken into consideration for evaluation and approval of tenure, whereas 52% report that it was either of little consequence or not taken into consideration at all. Of respondents, 79% report having received either no training whatsoever or only minimal informal training. Coinciding with that data, 74% of respondents did not feel adequately prepared for advising. Among the open-ended responses, the majority of faculty surveyed support the idea of increased advisor training, greater evaluation of advising, and the recognition of good advising through merit raises. The survey has served to further the resolve of Student Senate that the culture of advising at Ohio University must be altered to place increased value and recognition on advising performance, as well as an emphasis on the perception that successful advising is a shared responsibility of both advisee and advisor.    

— Patrick Heery, Student Senate

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