You and Your Advisor

• Exploratory students are assigned to special advisors who help them determine what course of study they would like to pursue.
• These advisors go through training sessions each summer to help them address the special concerns of exploratory students and to sharpen their skills as good advisors.
• These exploratory students are also responsible for being a good advisee and taking their relationship with their advisor seriously.

Exploratory Advisors
Below is a listing of current advisors (active and inactive) for the Exploratory Program.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

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Outlined below are characteristics which most individuals agree pertain to being a good advisor.  These are reprinted, with permission by the author, from the book, Help! My Kid Wants to go to College.

A Good Advisor...

• Is student-oriented i.e., he/she tries very hard to be available to students and sets up a schedule that allows them to come and meet with him or her.
• Does not hurry through the advising session but listens and hears what the student is saying.
• Makes the student feel comfortable by the arrangement of office, the use of sincere eye contact, and the attempt not to allow anything else interrupt the meeting.
• Conducts the session in private and does not allow his/her colleagues or other students to be present until there is need for others to be involved.
• Always asks the student his/her opinion or solicits suggestions about what he/she would do or want to do about the situation or matter at hand.
• Is not afraid to say, "I don't know," and is willing to help the student find an answer to a question by being knowledgeable about the campus resources.
• Is willing to share the fact that advisors are human being with interests outside campus life.

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Outlined below are characteristics which most individuals agree pertain to being a good advisee. These are reprinted, with permission by the author, from the book, Help! My Kid Wants to go to College.

A Good Advisee...

• Understand his/her reasons for going to college. Thinks about where they are in the process of selecting a major.
• Gets to know Millersville and its academic majors, minors, and various curriculum materials. Also get to know, through the student handbook, the various rules, policies or procedures that pertain to student life at Millersville.
• Makes an appointment with their adviser as soon as possible. Doesn't wait until it is time to sign a registration card for the following term. Gets to know their advisor as an individual. Develops a relationship beyond simply signing a registration card.

• Makes appointments with their advisor when possible. Finds out advisor's office hours and tries to make appointments during those times, or other times when the adviser is available.

• Has an agenda when they meet with adviser. Jots down a lists of items which they would like to go over, such as scheduling various courses, situations where they might need some information, or other areas where they feel they need some help.
• Becomes knowledgeable about all the various services available on campus. Such services include financial aid, career services, counseling center, intramurals, extracurricular activities, and any other services available at Millersville.
• Thinks about their entire academic curriculum, not just the one they are registering for. Keeps in mind that they will be spending a minimum of four years working towards some degree. Thus, the advisee should have an overall plan to fulfill the various degree requirements as they proceed through the curriculum. Doesn't just look at each semester as an isolated semester. Rather looks at each semester and the courses they take, and their relationships to fulfilling the various requirements they will need before they graduate from Millersville University. As an exploratory student, they should be fulfilling their general education requirements.
• If the student has established a good relationship with their adviser and are experiencing problems, they should contact their adviser immediately. They should not depend on their advisor to solve the problem, but should have the adviser steer them to an office or component of the university which can help them solve the problem.

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