What Academic Advisors Can Do To Strengthen The Impact Of Utah Girls And Women

Utah is full of engaged, passionate individuals who frequently ask the question, “What can I personally and/or professionally do to strengthen the impact of Utah girls and women?” To provide specific answers to that question, the Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) hosted a series of “think tank” gatherings to collect best practices for various stakeholders interested in supporting and empowering Utah women. This idea sheet is based on a 2019 gathering of 25 university academic advisors. Female college students in Utah face unique challenges and have lagged their national peers in terms of college completion. Informed academic advisors are well-positioned to help Utah women gain the many lifelong benefits that come from finishing a college degree.

Raising Awareness

Effective college or university advisors will find ways to raise awareness of both the need for and the benefits of higher education. Research has shown that many women in Utah fail to recognize the broad value of a college degree, and/or do not believe they will be engaged in the labor force. As advisors have a clear understanding of why college is so important, they can spread this message at work and in the broader community:

• Be deliberate in conversations about college aspirations with girls and young women (e.g., “when,” not “if,” you go to college; include higher education in conversations about life plans and goals).
• Convey confidence in female students by highlighting possibilities, identifying opportunities, setting goals, and raising aspirations.
• Educate students about women’s labor force participation rates and the high likelihood that Utah women will spend many years in paid employment; reinforce the idea of integration (you can be both a “professional” and a “mom”).

Capacity Building

The college years can be a powerful window for learning and growth. Yet, because girls’ confidence dips during adolescence, many women may not recognize their own talents, gifts, or potential. Academic advisors can provide a new perspective on students’ strengths and suggest avenues for development, as well as draw attention to the growth opportunities available both on campus and elsewhere:

• Assist students in identifying and gaining proficiency in the fundamental skills and abilities that are essential for college success, including setting and reaching goals, time management, problem solving, facing and overcoming challenges, learning by trial and error, accepting failure, and building resilience.
• Become educated about challenges that are more common for women (e.g., body image issues, perfectionism, gender discrimination, sexual harassment/ violence), and provide instruction and tools to help women address them.
• Consider offering life-skills courses focusing on non-academic issues of concern to students, including communication, financial literacy, growth versus fixed mindset, conflict resolution, and career planning.

Family Support

Experienced advisors understand that most students need familial encouragement in order to graduate. Utah has the youngest average marriage age in the nation, meaning that female students will often need the support of spouses, as well as other family members. There are various ways academic advisors can facilitate this type of assistance:

• Welcome engagement from parents and other family members while still emphasizing that the student herself is the key decision maker (e.g., pose questions and ideas directly to her).
• Assess familial concerns from the earliest conversations with students; provide relevant data for students to share, and instruct them on how to initiate difficult conversations that may increase family support.
• Find ways to educate stakeholders about the importance of women’s college education; invite husbands to be advocates for their wives and to prioritize education for both partners.

Professional Development

Advisors recognize that the guidance they give is only as good as their own competency and expertise. Ongoing professional development for advisors is critical in terms of creating the best possible outcomes for their students:

• Support and mentor other advisors; learn from each other’s challenges and successes.
• Serve as role models for students, especially female advisors who can model excelling in a profession but also managing other life priorities.
• Embrace the opportunity to be an advocate and leader; collaborate with other advisors, lobby for needed resources, and elevate the profession overall.

Campus Engagement

Finally, college advisors can engage the entire campus community in their efforts to maximize female students’ success. From enlisting the support of top leaders to identifying specialty programs, advisors can extend their influence as they do the following:

• Push for a strong “tone from the top” by asking department chairs, deans, and top administrators to openly acknowledge the challenges female students face, voice their encouragement, and create and implement effective supports and solutions.
• Work to raise gender awareness among faculty and staff members; offer trainings, identify blind spots, and invite all to commit to improving outcomes for women students.
• Propose the creation of an inclusion committee to devise strategies and facilitate change.

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To learn more about What Academic Advisors Can Do to Strengthen the Impact of Utah Girls and Women read the entire brief.