Faculty Perceptions of Academic Advising at Small, Christian Universities

As student retention, persistence, and degree completion become important to the survival of Christian higher education, research on the influence of academic advising continues to emerge. Little research exists, however, on faculty perceptions of faculty advising models, specifically at small, Christian institutions where employing professional advising personnel might not be affordable or feasible. Such information is valuable, as it highlights the strengths and challenges of faculty advising models and gives insight to the resources or tools that faculty might need to perform this increasingly demanding job function. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore faculty perceptions of faculty advising at small, Christian universities. Conducted at three Christian institutions, this case study research resulted in both comparative and individual institutional findings. The commonalities across these cases were that faculty knew and enjoyed their students, but did not feel like they had time to adequately advise them. At the individual institutional level, faculty at the first institution saw the function and process of academic advising as different from enrollment. The faculty also seemed to be disengaged from their general education courses. The second institutional findings were that faculty accessibility and service were vital to academic advising, as personal interactions were believed to contribute to student success. However, significant misunderstandings of FERPA seemed to delay these processes, which likely hurt students in their efforts to complete their undergraduate degrees. Finally, faculty at the third institution felt limited by time and technology in their ability to appropriately advise their students.