Academic Affairs and Student Affairs Professionals: Assembling Your Personal Team of Advisors

Hi everyone! Throughout my years in academic affairs and student affairs, I've discovered that you  have to have your own team. For example, our students have athletic advisors, student financial aid advisors, and academic advisors. All of these team players can help a student make progress towards success. 

Just like our students, we need to have our own tenure and student affairs teams to prepare us for success. For example, my team consists of the following: 

1 - One or Two Faculty Team Advisors (You never know when you will need research to help you answer questions.)

2 - One or Two Staff Team Advisors (You never know when you will need help with processes at your institution or to help locate resources.

3 - One or Two Student Team Advisors (You never know when you will need the pulse of campus or to have a student's perspective of a workshop or administrative decision.

4 - One or Two Community Team Advisors (You never know when you will have a need to complete service). Which should be often. ;)

5 - One or Two Family Team Advisors (These are for your moral support. These should be family members who have NO IDEA what you do on a daily basis.)

6 - One or Two Health Team Advisors (These are for your health support. These individuals can include your doctor, your wellness coach, and your workout partners.)

7 - One or Two Financial Mentor Advisors (These are for your financial stability for the current time and also for the future. These individuals can include your friends, your family members or formal advisors.)

Your team will be dynamic and it will change over time, but I strongly success reassessing your team every six months. See if your interests align with their interests. If they do not, make a professional exit strategy and write a thank you note.

So, assemble your team. Get started - now!

Interested in a specific student success topic or do you need a speaker for an upcoming conference? Contact me via direct message on Twitter or join our Student Success Communication and Technology Institute on Facebook!

Thanks for visiting! 

Sincerely,

Dr. Jennifer T. Edwards
Higher Education Speaker and Researcher

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