Introduction:

Academic Advising is one of the most important inputs of the university education system, being an important link towards guiding and advising students towards the best academic performance during the teaching and learning processes to ensure the best educational outputs and academic achievement possible. Added to that, the academic advising process helps the students adapt to the university environment and seize the available opportunities by equipping them with the needed academic skills to improve their level of academic achievement . ​​

Objectives of the Academic Advising Process in the College:

• Offering academic information to students and edifying them on the university's rules and regulations.
• Orienting students to become well acquainted with and able to adapt to university life and reduce the chances of academic faltering.
• Advising students to choose the appropriate courses according to the academic plan of their respective colleges, and overcome difficulties in the educational process to successfully obtain an academic degree.
• Helping students make appropriate decisions related to their academic and professional future, and benefit from the courses and programs offered by the university.
• Encouraging and supporting talented and outstanding students, and helping those who are struggling to raise and improve their academic achievement.
• Developing students' individual capacities to solve their problems and fulfill their academic careers.
• Encouraging students to play a positive role in the educational process and to participate in extra-curricular activities.
• Regular monitoring and evaluation of student progress in the educational field.
• Ensuring that students communicate with their respective academic advisor who should demonstrate the highest levels of care and respect.
• Helping students develop positive attitudes and approaches towards lifelong learning.
• Enhancing students' academic achievement, harnessing their abilities, and overcoming any obstacles that hinder their academic achievement.
• Providing advising and assistance to students who face academic problems.

Mechanism of the Academic Advising:

1. The students of the various academic years shall be divided into small groups commensurate with the number of academic staff members at the college.
2. Each group of students is assigned an academic staff member to be their academic advisor.
3. The table of the student groups will be announced on the college's notification dashboard.
4. The academic staff members will be informed of their academic advising groups.
5. The academic advising hours will be included in the schedules of the academic staff members, and students will be informed of such hours.
6. Academic advising sessions will be held, with a minimum of two sessions each semester or according to the needs of the students.
7. All academic advising sessions will be documented according to the models and form of the college’s Academic Advising Committee.
8. An academic advising file will be created for each academic staff member (academic advisor) and each student separately, which will include the following information:

• the student’s academic record and a recent photograph if any,
• the student's data form,
• a recent copy of the academic record for each academic year (transcript),
• a record of any absences and warnings,
• a copy of the student's certificates, such as certificates of attendance for conferences, workshops, and training courses, and letters of thanks.
• a copy of the student's achievement file.

1. Some of the academic problems facing the student shall be discussed with the academic advisor, with the course coordinator, and then with the department supervisor, if required.
2. The student’s problem shall be referred to the college’s academic advisor if it cannot be resolved during the academic advising meetings.
3. The matter referred to the college's academic advisor shall be referred to his Excellency the Vice Dean for Educational Affairs if the problem cannot be resolved.
4. The academic advisor shall be informed of the solution reached by His Excellency the Vice Dean for Educational Affairs and it shall be documented in the student's file.
5. A periodic report for each student at the end of the semester shall be submitted to Her Excellency the college's academic advisor.
6. Duties of the College's Academic Advisor:

1. Receiving a list of new students and distributing them among the academic staff members of the college.
2. Addressing academic advisors when distributing the academic advising lists among them to organize their advising work, provided that they hold an orientation meeting with their students to edify them on the dates of periodic meetings and the office hours designated for students for their benefit, and drawing their attention to the importance of referring to the academic advisor when they need advice or face academic problems or difficulties.
3. Directing the academic advisors at the college to hold regular meetings (once a month at least) for the students in their academic advising groups, to monitor the students' progress, help them solve the problems that may encounter, record their cases in the information record, and discover the cases that need help.
4. Directing the college's academic advisors to get to know the students in their advising groups, encourage and motivate them, and inform them of the available advantages that they will obtain according to the mechanism prepared for that purpose.
5. Directing the college's academic advisors to identify failing students, and those who suffer from social, health, or psychological problems, to provide them with the needed care and help in solving their problems.
6. Directing the college's academic advisors to hold one-on-one meetings to provide the needed advising for the failing students.
7. Receiving the academic advisors' suggestions and opinions regarding the development of the academic advising process in the college.
8. Coordinating with the Vice Deanship for Student Affairs at the college regarding the proposal of seminars, lectures, and courses that students need.
9. Organizing a periodic meeting with the academic advisors to follow up on the progress of the academic advising process in the college.
10. Preparing quarterly reports on the college's academic advising process.
11. Supervising the process of deletion and addition of courses in the college, taking into account the following points:

• The academic advisor should discuss with the student the reasons for the deletion or addition of courses, identifying their justifications, and advising the student of what is most beneficial for them.
• They should direct the student to make up for the deleted course by adding another one according to what is consistent with the applicable system.
• They should ensure that the deletion and addition form is distributed among the students who wish to add or delete courses.
• They should ensure that all the data of the deletion and addition form are complete.
• They should ensure that the student's academic hours conform with the regular hours after deleting or adding courses.
• They should obtain the approval of the deletion or addition form and send it to the registration office.
• They should keep a copy of the deletion and addition form.
• They should inform the student of the need to obtain the approval of the Vice Dean for Educational Affairs, the Admission, and Registration on the deletion and addition of courses.

Duties of the Academic Advisor:

The duties of the Academic Advisor generally vary, but they have some qualitative and professional duties in light of the different specializations of the students. The following are the duties undertaken by the academic advisors in the college:

Duties related to the guidance of the students, including:

1- Preparing student file:

The Academic Advisor prepares a special file for each student he is responsible for in terms of academic guidance. The file shall include the following:

• Student data form.
• List of courses in the student's specialization.
• Registration form.
• Recent copy of the academic record and the transcript.
• Other administrative documents,.. etc.

2- General guidance for the student:

Referring students to those who can respond to their inquiries, and discussing with them the following topics:

A- Courses registration process:

The advisor receives instructions before registering students, he checks the students files and their major, and helps them fill in their own registration forms before the date of registration. The students ask for advice in selecting the courses and learning about the next steps before the academic advisor adds his final signature. After that, students are referred to the Department of Admission and Registration to register the courses on the computer.

B- Course selection:

The academic advisor should take a look at each student’s study plan in order to help the students choose their courses; and he should make sure of the following:

Students have passed all the required courses and the previous requirements with a grade not less than (D), because they will not be allowed to register in any course till they pass its previous requirement. Being aware of the minimum and maximum accredited hours which the students are allowed to register, according to their current status (student’s academic load). )

C- Study schedule:

The student advisor must make sure that the students know where and when the lectures begin, and that there is no conflict in the dates of any student's academic schedule.

3- Guiding students to understand their academic status and how to plan well for their future.

4- Guiding students to benefit from the summer classrooms and how to implement study projects and plans.

Duties related to the scientific and educational aspects of the students, as follows:

1. Coordinating with the course lecturer in overcoming difficulties faced by any student while studying the courses.
2. Personally urging students to take advantage of their potential and inherent capabilities in learning and creativity, in coordination with the course lecturers, supervisors, and academics.
3. Encouraging students to take part in academic activities to improve their academic level and initiate the self-learning process.
4. Identifying stumbling and outstanding students, and setting proper methods for each case to upgrade the stumbling students' educational level and help outstanding students to maintain their excellence.

Duties related to the social and behavioral aspects of students, as follows:

1. Working to achieve positive changes in students behavioral patterns by assisting them in adapting with their social environment and communicating with their peers, through regular meetings with them and by guiding them with regard to the values of group interaction.
2. Providing psychological counseling through the meetings with students in the academic advisor office.
3. Organizing collective meetings with the students through seminars and meetings to consolidate social and human relations among the students and make them closer to each other.
4. Increasing students moral support by facilitating their communication with the administration to present their personal and study problems, and ensuring the organization of effective solutions for the problems.

Role of the Student in Academic Advising:

The student is the main focus of the academic advising process. The role of the student can be detailed in the following points:

1. Getting to know the academic advisor and building a close relationship with him.
2. Attending academic advising sessions regularly, preparing for them beforehand by preparing any papers and necessary forms.
3. Being fully aware of the college and university requirements for graduation in the major selected by the student.
4. Referring to the academic advisor to request for assistance and to receive copies of the study plans and all the academic requirements.
5. Being fully aware of the academic calendar and the dates of registration, deletion, addition, and exams.