The academic advising process plays a crucial role in the success of a student’s college experience. It provides guidance and support for students in their academic and career goals and helps them stay on track towards graduation.

However, it is not uncommon for students to face challenges with academic advising, leading to confusion and frustration.

To address this issue, Associated Students Inc. (ASI), the student body’s representation organization, has taken a proactive step by launching an academic advising survey.

Originally set for March 1, ASI has announced that they will extend the deadline for their academic advising survey until Monday, March 6.

The survey, which was launched earlier this month to gather data about students’ experiences with academic advising and identify areas for improvement, was affected by the recent campus network outages that prevented many students from accessing it.

Seth Merrell, a fourth year Business major, expressed his initial interest in the survey that was quickly overshadowed by the disruption.

“Personally, I only had positive things to say,” he said. “But [the survey] became less of a priority when I couldn’t access my Stan State account.”

The email, sent with the subject line “Academic Advising Survey”, emphasized the importance of student involvement in the survey and how their feedback can make a difference in shaping the future of academic advising services.

The academic advising survey was created by the ASI President, Destiny Suarez, and the Vice President of Finance, Adela Gonzalez, along with a team of individuals specialized in different areas concerning academic advising including the Academic Success Center.

This initiative is in response to results from the ASI Elections, which has continuously indicated academic advising as being part of students’ top three issues.

Suarez emphasized the significance of academic advising in the college experience.

“Academic advising is very important for student success,” said Suarez. “The four-year graduation term is very important for this campus, and that can only happen with effective advising.”

To incentivize participation, The survey also includes a chance to win a $50 Target gift card for 10 randomly selected participants.

Gonzalez said that ASI will contact the winners selected by the analytics team after Monday and post them on their social media platforms. This new tactic seems to be working, as reported by Adela Gonzalez to the Academic Senate,

As of Feb. 14, 770 survey’s had been completed, according to Suarez. That number is expected to be much higher as campus networks begin resuming normal connectivity. 

“We are actively promoting the survey by walking around campus to inform students about this opportunity,” she said. 

As the official student body, ASI has encouraged student participation in feedback in the past through various outlets including town halls.

The Student Government town halls are held in three phases in a semester and address different topics on campus, including academic advising.

Suarez states that town halls provide a safe space for students to make their voices heard to the relevant speakers and guests who are able to make a change.

“We want this to really be a safe space,” she said. “We want honesty because that’s the only way we can make the change.”

The academic advising survey is another step by organizations on campus towards improving the college experience for students.

By gathering data and analyzing the experiences of students, ASI hopes to identify areas for improvement in advising and take action to make positive changes.

ASI encourages all students who have not yet completed the survey to do so before Monday, March 6. The survey can be accessed via this link or through students’ csustan.edu email accounts