Educational Support Programs & Services
Counselor vs Advisor
What is the difference between a Counselor and an Advisor?
Counselors are
professionally trained to address personal issues, resolve academic
anxieties, assist students in choosing career fields and majors,
and problem solve other academic difficulties. With students
on restricted academic or financial aid status, counselors work
to develop individual success plans, which address the specific
issues inhibiting academic success. |
Advisors specialize
in matters pertaining to your educational program: college policies,
placement/assessment test interpretation, degree requirements,
transferability, schedule planning, and graduation checks. Faculty
performs ongoing advising. Every effort is made to match degree
seeking students with faculty from areas of particular interest
to the individual advisee. |
Within Stensland Hall, we have both counselors and advisors available
to assist you. Although counselors often advise students, advisors
are not trained to counsel. Please be sure to make clear what kind
of assistance you need when requesting an appointment. If you're
not sure, someone will be happy to help you decide.
Advisors and Counselors can help you with the following
issues
Counselors
- Provide short term personal counseling for issues that
may interfere with studies
- Facilitate decision making on educational and career goals
- Facilitate college adjustment for in-coming freshmen (homesickness,
time management, depression, anxiety)
- Facilitate college adjustment for returning adult students
(balancing roles of student, parent, spouse, and/or employee).
- Mediate conflicts in student housing
- Teach coping skills and stress management
- Provide crisis counseling
- Develop individualized retention interventions
- Interpret career inventories
- Teach Human Development Classes
|
Advisors
- Help you pick your classes
- Facilitate educational transactions; e.g., schedules, drop/adds,
withdrawals, change of major, waivers, graduation requirements,
etc.
- Clarify instructional policies, procedures and requirements
- Provide general information on special services including
academic remediation, admission, placement testing, courses
of study, and registration
- Explain course transfer differences between institutions
- Interpret placement scores and recommend appropriate
classes.
|
Questions!Who do I turn to?
Advisor
Which classes are recommended based on my placement test results?
Could someone look at my transcript and see if I'm selecting
the right courses?
How many classes should I take if I work part-time?
Which courses at Southwestern are transferable to the university
I plan to attend?
What is the difference between an Associate's degree and
a Baccalaureate degree?
Is there a book that gives information about colleges throughout
the United States? |
Counselor
Are there tests I can take that will help me select a major
or career?
Is there a way for me to manage my home and school obligations
more efficiently?
How can I prevent getting so stressed out before taking tests?
What should I do? I'm having problems at home that interfere
with my studies.
What can I do? I can't concentrate and I can't seem to sleep
at night.
What should I do? Nothing seems to go right and no one really
cares. |
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