Student perception of academic advising in a school of pharmacy

Abstract

Objectives: Literature assessing the optimal means of providing academic advisement in pharmacy education is limited. The objective of this study was to describe students' perception of advising within a school of pharmacy. Methods: A 27-question survey was developed utilizing Qualtrics and sent to all students at one school of pharmacy. Baseline descriptive data regarding frequency and format of meeting with the assigned advisor were collected, as well as students' opinions of these meetings. Key findings: Of 282 students who were sent the survey, 90 responded (31.9%). The majority of students preferred to meet with their faculty advisor in a group as compared with one-on-one (59 versus 29, 67%). Most students found the advisor/advisee relationship beneficial (n = 77, 85%). Conclusions: There was no statistically significant difference in student perception of the quality or value of advisor/advisee meetings between students who met in a group or one-on-one with their advisors.