2002 Graduate Student Advising Survey

When answering the following questions, please consider your primary advisor, advisor of record, or if you have more than one advisor, the advisor you see most frequently. Respond to each question based on the same advisor, considering one advisor only. Please feel free to add any additional comments in the space provided at the end of the survey.

Expectations about Graduate Student Advising

In the research on advising, some consider advisors to be mentors.
Which of the following mentoring roles for your current advisor
are among the least to most important to you?

	Among the LEAST important	Less important than most	More important than most	Among the MOST important
Advisors, sharing career experience and knowledge.
Supporters, giving emotional and personal encouragement.
Tutors, giving specific feedback on one’s performance.
Supervisors, providing training and apprentice opportunities.
Role Models, displaying the kinds of personal characteristics important to being a successful scholar.

For the following expectations, please try to spread your responses
across the range from those among the LEAST important
to those among the MOST important.

I expect my advisor to:	Among the LEAST important	Less important than most	More important than most	Among the MOST important
know which courses are required
have knowledge of courses offered in the program.
clarify requirements for program exams
clarify requirements for the dissertation
help me understand degree requirements.
help me solve problems meeting requirements in the program
help me develop a timeline to complete my degree
provide help in the process of completing my degree
discuss career options with me
refer me to jobs when I near graduation
inform me about new publications in the field
provide opportunities to do research with him/her
guide me toward research opportunities with others
provide opportunities to coauthor papers with him/her
provide support for writing research grants
provide guidance about the research process in my field
help me find an assistantship
meet with me when I need him/her
meet with me on a regular basis
check in with me even when I do NOT have a question

Did any college faculty or staff provide information about what to expect of your advisor?

No
Yes
Don't remember

Did the program you are in provide you with clearly written guidelines about completing your graduate degree?

No
Yes
Don't remember

Information about Policies & Procedures

Please respond to the following questions based on
your experiences with your current advisor, thus far.

I receive adequate information from my advisor about:	Disagree	Tend to Disagree	Tend to Agree	Agree	Not Applicable
required courses
written exams
oral exams
the dissertation process

Consider the following:	Disagree	Tend to Disagree	Tend to Agree	Agree	Not Applicable
My advisor has clearly stated the program requirements for me.
The advice my advisor has given me on policies and procedures has been accurate.
My advisor has worked with me to develop a timeline to complete my graduate degree.

Communication about Progress & the Future

Please respond to the following questions with respect to
your degree progress and planning for the future.

Consider the following:	Disagree	Tend to Disagree	Tend to Agree	Agree
The assistance my advisor has given me has been helpful to me in meeting my goals.
The information I receive from my advisor is accurate.
The information I receive from my advisor is useful.
My advisor discusses career options with me.
My advisor checks in with me about the completion of my program.

Research Support

Please respond to the following questions with respect to your involvement in research
and research related activities you may or may not have had with your advisor.

Consider the following:	No	Yes
My advisor informs me about new publications in the field.
I have done research with my advisor.
I have written one or more papers with my advisor.
I receive grant writing support from my advisor.

When it comes to my advisor:	Disagree	Tend to Disagree	Tend to Agree	Agree
There is a strong match between our research interests.
I receive guidance to work on other research projects not involving my advisor.
I am satisfied with the advice I receive in the area of research.
I feel comfortable discussing my research interests with my advisor.

I am satisfied with the guidance about the research process I have received from my advisor.

Disagree
Tend to disagree
Tend to agree
Agree
Not applicable

My advisor has helped me find research opportunities that are cross-disciplinary or outside my program area.

Disagree
Tend to disagree
Tend to agree
Agree
Not applicable

General Advising Questions

Finally, we have a few general questions
about your experiences with your current advisor.

How often have you met with your advisor this semester so far?

Have not met yet
Monthly
A couple of times a month
Weekly
A couple of times a week
Daily

How far ahead do you usually have to schedule meetings with your advisor?

Same day
One day ahead
A couple of days ahead
One week ahead
A couple of weeks ahead
One month ahead
More than one month

My advisor has referred me to funding sources including assistantships, fellowships, scholarships or others.

No
Yes
Don't know

It is important that my advisor understands differences in cultural communication styles.

Disagree
Tend to disagree
Tend to agree
Agree

Have you ever changed advisors while in your graduate program?

No --> If No, the program will skip you ahead.
Yes --> If Yes, answer Why in the next question.

IF YES: Why did you change advisors?

Different research interests
Professional differences
Advisor was never available
Advisor left department
Advisor requested the change
Personal differences
I changed programs
Preferred to work with someone else
Other --> Please describe below

IF Other, please describe:

On average, how often do you have contact with your advisor?

once a year
once a semester
once a month
a couple of times a month
once a week
a couple of times a week

Because we care about your input and we could not ask everyone to respond to the many additional questions we had, please use this space to make any final comments about your expectations and experiences related to graduate student advising. We value your input.

Do you have any final comments about your expectations or experiences about advising?

Additional Information

We appreciate your input in the above questions. To help us understand responses from various groups of students and the issues related to student characteristics, we would also appreciate some information about you. Again, this information will not be linked to you in any way and will only be used for comparative purposes.

In what department are you currently enrolled?

Curriculum & Instruction (C&I)
Educational Policy & Administration (EdPA)
Educational Psychology (EdPsy)
Institute of Child Development (ICD)
Kinesiology & Leisure Studies (KLS)
Work, Community, & Family Education (WCFE)

Are you male or female?

Male
Female

Is your advisor male or female?

Male
Female

Have you ever held a graduate teaching, research, or administrative assistantship?

No
Yes

Whether you are at that stage or not, do you expect your dissertation to be primarily qualitative or quantitative?

Primarily qualitative
An equal balance
Primarily quantitative
I have no idea at this point

Are you a non-resident international student?

No
Yes

Which of the following describes your current stage in your program?
[Check all that apply]

beginning coursework
completed more than 50% of coursework
preparing for written exam
preparing for oral exam
preparing dissertation proposal
working on dissertation
preparing dissertation defense

Thank you for completing our survey. Your input is very important to the college. Faculty and staff will carefully review responses and comments provided by you and other students as we continue addressing the needs of advisees. Thank you for your input!