After a student senator brought up concerns about students being underserved by Wichita State’s academic advising, the Student Senate passed a bill asking the university to look into the concerns.
Sen. Josh Mallard said he had difficulties getting an advising appointment as a student in the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. He said other students have voiced similar frustrations. Specifically, Mallard said he had been put on a two-month waitlist for an advising appointment.
“A lot of departments have this problem where you cannot sign up for classes in a timely manner,” Mallard said.
He said advising, particularly for the liberal arts and sciences and the College of Engineering, may be understaffed compared to the ratio of students, leading to these issues.
The resolution, passed unanimously by the Senate Wednesday night, addressed several alleged shortfalls with WSU’s advising:
- Students having difficulty scheduling appointments in a timely manner with OneStop, college and departmental advisers
- Insufficient numbers of advisers during enrollment time, leading to delays for students enrolling in classes
- Students not feeling sufficiently supported by their advisers
- When advisers leave, students may be transferred to another adviser who is not as aware of that student’s degree requirements
The resolution asks advising offices to send out a student survey, similar to course evaluation surveys that students fill out. Some offices currently practice this, but Mallard said many students say they don’t receive this survey and that it is not thorough enough.
It also asks that the university look into the student-adviser ratio and that advisers become knowledgeable about all programs within their college.
Mallard said the bill was written in collaboration with other senators in SGA’s Academic Affairs committee.
“It just ensures that academic advising gets a lot more information and will be able to enhance their processes,” he said.
Because the legislation is a resolution, academic advising and the university are not obligated to comply with the suggestions.
Editor’s note: The Sunflower is currently reaching out to the advising offices to discuss the situation.
