Academic Advising

The Registrar’s Office strongly recommends students meet with their advisor prior to registration. You may want to create a tentative schedule before meeting with your advisor to have something to work from. During advising, you can work with your advisor to solidify your plans for the next semester and to help create a plan for your overall college career. You can print a scheduling worksheet (PDF) to record your tentative schedule. If you are not sure who your advisor is, you can check your profile in Self Service.

"Academic Advising at Aquinas College provides students the opportunity to develop their academic, co-curricular and career plan with a caring and informed advisor. Advising strives to create a collaborative experience to help students achieve these goals by best using the many resources at Aquinas College."

Academic Advising Goals

The advising learning outcomes reflect the Aquinas College Mission, Pillars, Institutional Student Learning Outcomes, General Education, and Student Learning Outcomes while allowing the students to graduate on time and be prepared for their chosen vocation.

1. Develop suitable education plan
   1. Identify personal abilities, talents, and interests as they relate to selection of courses, programs of study and future plans 
   2. Select appropriate courses in sequence for degree completion and academic, career, and life goals
2. Develop world ready skills
   1. Articulate the relationship between classroom experiences and academic, career, and life goals
   2. Consider experiential learning opportunities and courses that develop world readiness
3. Demonstrate engagement
   1. Articulate the importance of experiences outside the classroom when building an educational plan
   2. Develop skills in locating and effectively using information and identifying resources to help achieve academic, career, and life goals

What you can expect from your advisor

• Understand and effectively interpret the curriculum, graduation requirements, and college policies and procedures
• Encourage and guide you as you define and develop realistic goals
• Encourage and support you as you develop clear and attainable educational plans
• Be accessible for meeting with you, via office hours, and for advising, one-on-one appointments, telephone, or email
• Maintain a professional relationship, valuing honesty and confidentiality

Your responsibilities as an advisee

• Know who your advisor is
• Clarify personal values and goals
• Formulate academic and social goals in order to reach optimal lifestyle and career choices
• To be familiar with/monitor the course requirements and to schedule courses each semester in accordance with those requirements
• Recognize your responsibility for continuous evaluation of progress toward graduation
• To be aware of and observe academic guidelines
• To follow college procedures for registering for courses and for making adjustments to your class schedule
• To understand academic performance standards, academic probation, academic dismissal, and to know grade point average requirements
• Prepare in advance for every advising session with your advisor and bring with you any materials your advisor may need including college catalog, schedule of classes, curriculum plans, curriculum guides and tentative class, work and extracurricular schedules
• Follow through when there are questions regarding grades, credits (including transfer and advanced placement) waivers or requirements
• Maintain accurate and current academic records

Advisors are always available. Students are responsible for seeking them out.