Training Sessions for Advisors

Advisor Training Sessions

The Office of Student Academic Excellence (OAE) works through Transition & Academic Growth (TAG) with partners across campus to provide advisors in-person training on topics central to advising; sessions that complement the training advising units provide to their new and experienced advisors.

Our sessions, which are listed below, are scheduled at least 4 times per year during a dedicated month so our campus partners and those who set training schedules can plan ahead. Most of the sessions are offered synchronously online to allow our colleagues on regional campuses and with remote advising duties to join. All advisors are welcome to attend.

Please contact the Central Suport for Academic Advising (CSAA) team in TAG as new advisors are hired for updates on the training series. The cadence of this training series is early February, May before Orientation, early August before Autumn semester & mid-October. If the need arises, an abbreviated/asynchronous series can be arranged for winter break (early to mid-December) or at other times of the year if a high volume of new advisors have been hired.

  • These sessions do not require system accesses; much of the training is demonstration or discussion of how policies apply to the various tasks and workflows for the various technology systems.

Experienced advisors are always welcome!

OSU Advising and Resources

This session introduces new advsiors to the Ohio State advising community. We cover the training framework and helpful resources. We discuss the structure of advising at Ohio State, key tasks, and the variety of approaches to advising employed by our various offices and units.

OSU Majors, Degrees and GEs

This session answers the question "Whta makes an OSU degree?" We review where to find informatino about various majors, including Associate degrees, minors, and certificates. We introduce policies for double majors and dual degrees. We review the GEs - both Legacy and New.

Advising Reports and Degree Audits

This session reviews key advising tools and how to read/interpret them. We take time to practice and review where to find help guides. Discussion of when each tool is most useful to advisors.

Introduction to SIS (the Student Information System)

This session provides a high-level overview of Ohio State's instance of PeopleSoft. We review where key information is, tips and tricks.

Enrollment Transactions and Registration at OSU

This session covers enrollment appts, what waitlists are and how they work, differences at orientation, reserved seats, etc. We demonstrate adding/dropping courses, common overrides, normal maintenance. We also review the course catalog and Schedule Planner.

Schedule Planning and Pre-Professional Advising

This session covers planning schedules for new students incorporating course sequences. Information about graduate/professional pre-requisites, test prep, crafting well-rounded applications, OSU resources to support pursuit of further education.

OnCourse for Advisors

This session discusses how advisors can leverage OnCourse to support their work more efficiently.

OnCourse availability, student lists, notes, searches, communications. We will review how to use OnCourse to help support proactive communications and provide students a more supportive and tailored experience.

Prerequisites in BuckeyeLearn -

  • OnCourse: Learning the Basics (Staff)
  • OnCourse: Appointments with Students
SIS CPP stack training

This session reviews records maintenance tasks in SIS. We address adding major/minor, numbering sequence, put on leave, return from leave, and updating campuses. We integrate advising policies into these discussions and demonstrations. We return to the discussion of second majors and dual degrees.

Advanced OnCourse training

This session reviews frequently used reports, analytics, & campaigns. Measuring your impact and identifying students in need of support.

Continued development available via BuckeyeLearn -

  • OnCourse: Lunch and Learns
Transfer Credit and GPA Calculation

This sessions provides an overview of the process for transfer credit, through TCC, when is a syllabus and department review needed. Online resources. What K, EM, G, S, T, D etc. mean. Combined GPA calculations and deficiency points. We discuss resources for returning to good academic standing.

Undecided Advising

This session discusses the types of undecided students, the decision making process and challenges to this, What Can I Do With This Major series, how to think about undecided advising, and more.

Training Calendar

The calendar below is intended to help advisors and departments plan for training and professional development opportunities. It includes information about trainings offered by other closely related offices and profesional groups in the context of Ohio State's major deadlines. Dates are subject to change, so check back regularly.