Here are a few ways to find out who your advisor is:

  • Log into your Banner Web account, and under Student Services and Financial Aid, there is a link to your Student Success Profile. Your advisor and all information can be found there. Additional instructions on how to access this page can be found .
  • Staff at the One Stop located in the Taubman Student  Services Building will have an alphabetical roster.
  • Visit, email, call: 
           Director of Academic Advising, Leslie Michalik or Associate Director Colette Sherfey
           Location – C205 (right behind the laptop helpdesk)
           
           248.204.2408

You may see your academic advisor any time for guidance and direction during the semester however, you are required to see your advisor at least twice per year, once in the fall and spring to be cleared for Advanced Registration.

Most advisors respond well using email. Once you get to know your advisor, they may express additional methods of communication perhaps by appointment, through Facebook or through scheduled office hours posted on their office door.

Your advisor may choose to set up appointments in many different ways, some of the more common ways are:

  • Via an appointment scheduler, your advisor will provide a link for you to select an open appointment time slot
  • Email
  • Phone call

If for some reason you do not hear from your advisor is a reasonable timeframe, please contact the Director of Academic Advising, Leslie Michalik or Associate Director Colette Sherfey, at advisor@v6pu.com. There may be a valid explanation that you are unaware of. What happens next is the UAC staff will send an email to the advisor, copy the student on the email so you are in the loop, and let the advisor know that the student is attempting to communicate without success. This usually does the trick.

Yes, advisors have a wealth of knowledge and experience that can assist you through your academic career and perhaps into future career opportunities. Drop in on your advisor informally when their office doors are open, it only takes a second to say ‘hello’. At some point you may need a reference letter from a faculty member and it’s a lot easier to say good things about you when the advisor knows you personally.

Higher education surveys report that students who connect with a faculty member or their academic advisor have higher graduation rates and a better overall college experience. Get you know your advisor.

No matter where you go or who you are, you will always run into people that you have difficulty connecting with. Be polite, be kind, be considerate, be professional and your advisor will provide you the same courtesy. Remember, ‘fake it ‘till you make it’ and who knows, you may end up creating a long lasting professional relationship with someone you never thought was possible to get along with.

Advisors are assigned by college, major and the last two digits of the student ID. This process has been automated and streamlined to create the most effective advisor/advisee relationship that will most benefit the advisee.

Most likely the answer to this is yes. Advisors are aligned with advisees in like-minded colleges and by major to provide the most accurate guidance in navigating the challenging curricula. For example, an engineering advisor may have no knowledge of the requirements for English majors and would not be able to guide you through the curriculum nor help you in preparing for future career opportunities when they have minimal subject matter experience in that area. The goal for advising is to assist in establishing connections between subject matter experts and those who are seeking experiences in that particular field.

It is imperative that dual degree seeking students meet with the assigned advisors from each major to ensure advisees have the most accurate information possible about which courses are the most critical to the advancement within the curriculum. The curriculum for dual degree seeking students is usually in the ball park of 165+ credits. It’s easy to make an error in class selection that may actually stop you from moving forward and then being forced to wait for the course to be offered again. Proper course selection becomes critical to ensure you are graduating in a time frame that works for you. Jot down notes with your advisor so that you can share the advising strategies with your second advisor.

Advisors can change for a number of reasons. It is the goal of the advising office to keep the advisees with their advisor without interruption; however, sometimes it’s not possible. Faculty retire, perhaps need medical time off and also take sabbaticals for research that can keep them off campus for a semester. Often time there is growth in the department or within the major and new faculty need to be added to the advising mix which then causes an advising shift to fill the new advisor spot. These are a few of the main reasons students see advisor changes, otherwise, the ideal situation is to remain with the same advisor through the end of your academic career.

If you are unsure of your advisor’s advice, it’s easy enough to seek further guidance from additional faculty within your college. Just like second opinions with doctors, it’s not wrong to seek advice from others. Perhaps a Department Chair from your major can offer additional solutions, none of which are wrong, perhaps just another option. Lastly, you can always seek help in the University Advising Center, located in C205, just behind the laptop help desk.

An academic advisor assists students with any curriculum issue, grade issues, homework issues, testing issue or to sum up, any issue involved in the classroom. This is a formal program set up and all undergraduate students must participate by seeing their academic advisor at least one time prior to Advanced Registration.

Mentoring is an informal program where students can choose to participate. A mentor is assigned to any student who wishes to participate and communicates, meets regularly if necessary, and assists students with joining organizations, meeting friends and any informal issues the student may have. This program is not mandatory.

Just a few of the benefits of advising are:

  • Take advantage of Advanced Registration
  • Develop an educational plan that leads to the timely completion of your educational goals
  • Assistance with University academic and student support services
  • Learn how to navigate academic and administrative policies and procedures
  • Develop critical and independent thinking and decision making skills to make and accept responsibility for your own academic decisions.
  • Discover extra-curricular activities and competitions that broaden and enhance your college experience.

When in doubt, contact Director of University Advising, Leslie Michalik, or Associate Director Colette Sherfey, by phone, email, or stopping in the office. Contact information is: advisor@v6pu.com, 248-204-2408, office location is C205, right behind the laptop help desk.