Student success at college is not just achieving high grades The National Forum for Teaching and Learning defines student success as the process by which students fulfil their potential and flourish at college and in society. This is a broader activity than simply achieving high grades. Psychosocial competencies are core to the definition of student success: these are the ‘soft skills’ or ‘non-cognitive skills’ that enable students to cope well with learning challenges, engage deeply in learning, and develop their identities as learners and as active citizens. Transitions are a key issue within this priority area, with transitions such as the move from school to college presenting both challenges and opportunities for students.
Initiative
Academic Advising for Student Success – Developing an Institutional Framework
About this initiative
This initiative is focused on developing an institutional framework for academic advising for student success. The framework will be aligned to UCD’s mission and values and will be developed in partnership with students and in consultation with the wider UCD community. It is envisaged that the framework will be sufficiently flexible to facilitate the development of bespoke academic advising systems in UCD, reflecting different advising contexts, student cohorts and disciplinary needs. Oversight of the initiative is provided by the Academic Advisory Working Group, which was established at the request of the Registrar/Deputy President and chaired by the Dean of Undergraduate Studies. A core team working on the initiative are based in UCD Teaching and Learning. The initiative comprises five work strands: Strand 1: Consultation and research to build a picture of academic advising activities across UCD and to explore models of advising in comparator universities. Strand 2: Piloting different approaches to academic advising through the development of an internal funding call aimed at programmes and schools. The pilots will be time-bound and appropriately resourced, with a strong focus on capturing key learnings. Strand 3: Explore the potential of technology enhanced advising, including the use of existing data and systems in academic advising, flipped and online advising models and leveraging the VLE to support advising. Strand 4: Professional development for those involved in academic advising including clarify on roles and responsibilities and access to resources and short courses. Strand 5: Drafting of policies to enable university-wide implementation of academic advising.
Lead organisations
Affiliated organisations
Linked open educational resources
Initiative details
Funding programmes SATLE
Themes Student Success
Award year
2020Funding amount (€)
575000Contributors
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