NACADA has formed a new interest group specifically about Academic Coaching!
The following information was taken from the website:
Coaching has been found to be an integral part of life success for several years. Today, coaching is becoming a viable addition to student success in the academic world. Coaching does not have to be an alternative to advising; coaching and advising can be intertwined to increase the chances for students to be successful – in college and in life! Ultimately, the advisor/coach should have the skills to:
- Identify what the student wants to achieve;
- Encourage the student to look within to learn more about self;
- Allow/support the student to generate solutions and strategies to problems; and,
- Teach the student to be responsible and accountable for his for her actions/inaction and decisions.
The key to this process is to help students take their lives to a higher level!
Academic coaching is an interactive process that focuses on the personal relationship created between the student and the coach. The coach challenges the student to think about his or her personal and/or professional goals in order to relate them to his or her academic/educational goals. In this learning process, it is important for the coach to encourage the student to become more self-aware by understanding his or her strengths, values, interests, purpose, and passion. This process should also focus on the student developing necessary skills to be responsible for his or her actions and decisions. Through this learning and growing process, the coach should provide the student with resources to enhance academic success and personal development, as well as developing action plans that holds him or her accountable for the results. Academic coaching is designed to help students produce fulfilling results, improve their performance, and enhance the quality of their lives! As coaching becomes a viable skills in advising, the Academic Coach should have the following characteristics:
- Develops a personal, collaborative relationship with the student.
- Provides support to help students relate academic/educational goals to life (personal/professional) goals.
- Encourages the student to achieve self-awareness, such as identifying strengths, values, interests, purpose, and passions.
- Assists the student in becoming more responsible and developing decision-making skills.
- Identifies resources to enhance both academic success and personal development.
- Assists in developing plans of action - and holds them accountable - to achieve substantial results.
If you have a desire to enhance your advising skills as well as potentially make changes in your own life, consider becoming a part of the Advising and Academic Coaching Interest Group.
