Murray State University receives recognition from AASCU for dual advising practices

Murray State University began offering its first-year students with two advisors during the most recent academic year, a practice that earned the university recognition via a report from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. The dual advising model was implemented by the university in order to improve the experience of its students and provide more thorough support throughout their first year of postsecondary education.

According to an article on Murray State University’s website, Dr. Bob Jackson, who is the university’s president, said of the new dual advising model and its recognition from the AASCU, “The implementation of the first-year dual advising program is a paradigm shift in academic advising and promises to significantly enhance student persistence and retention. This intentional and holistic model is tailored to meet students’ individual needs and goals to support their success and overall well-being. Thank you to all of our administrators, faculty and staff for their great work over the past several years to develop this new program and assist our students through this enhanced advising model and retention initiative. We are appreciative of this recognition by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.”

The dual advising model provides first-year students with two advisors for the academic year: one advisor who focuses on providing support regarding their major and minor, and one advisor who gives students a hand navigating scheduling, the registration process, and the various support services provided by the university. The school implemented this new method in order to help students more seamlessly transfer into their first year of college.

Dr. Don Robertson, the Vice President of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management at Murray State University, said of the process, “Our new first-year dual advising program aligns with and supports Murray State University’s history and ongoing mission as a student-centered, student-first institution. We really want students here to feel that they are cared for and that they matter because that’s very important.”

The American Association of State Colleges and Universities, which, according to its website, is an organization that “shapes public policy and strengthens state college and university leaders as they expand student access and success,” published a report entitled “Enhancing Retention Through Dual-Advising Model” that explores Murray State University’s new system and recognizes it as one that makes a positive impact.

In the AASCU’s report, the organization states of the new dual advising model, “Murray State’s model ensures that student needs related to navigating higher education are met as well as their career readiness and career planning needs. Professional and faculty advisors engage students in critical conversations beyond the courses they may need by asking the students questions such as: ‘How are you doing with financial aid? How are you doing with your transition to Murray State? Are you a first-generation student? How is your family dealing with you being in college?’ Through these efforts, Murray State University is dedicated to providing enhanced postsecondary value for its students.”

The effort to implement the new advising model was borne from a campus-wide effort, including students, department chairs, and faculty from across the university lending a hand in both conceiving of and carrying out the model. The university formed a Commission on Academic Advising to study academic advising practices and come up with solutions to barriers and ways to improve the process. At the end of a one-year period, the Commission on Academic Advising submitted its recommendation to start offering dual advising for first-year students to improve retention rates and provide a more holistic support network for new students.

The report dug into the impacts of the new system. It says, “The No. 1 success indicator of the dual advising model at Murray State University is the persistence rate of first-year students from the fall to spring semesters. Students who participated in the dual-advising model had a 94.2% persistence rate from fall 2023 to spring 2024 semesters, according to university data. These students had at least one meeting with a first-year professional advisor versus a 70.4% persistence rate for students with zero meetings with a first-year professional advisor.”

The report went on to say that students were benefitting from the system as well: “Student surveys revealed that large numbers of respondents received sufficient notice of scholarship and registration deadlines—among other university policies and procedures—and advice on long-term career goals earlier in their academic careers. Furthermore, fewer students reported taking redundant classes,” the AASCU reported.

Quoted in the report is Leanna McClure, who serves as a dual advising coordinator at Murray State University. McClure said, “We have truly collaborated and worked with one another, and I’m so proud of that. It’s easy to become disheartened in the university landscape sometimes because there is so much that you have to make sure you get done. But keeping that human component at the forefront has really helped us collaborate with one another because this is a model that’s not only beneficial to students, it’s beneficial to staff and faculty. And that’s one of the things that I’ve said continuously—that we’re helping one another as much as we’re helping students. Establishing trust was vital.”

For more information about Murray State University, visit the school’s website.