Enhancing Academic Learning Advising in Globally-engaged Universities – A Personal Odyssey

Abstract

The global mobility of students is a key contributor to demographic diversity in higher education in the 21^st century, particularly in the West. In recent times, its quantitative and qualitative impact has shifted somewhat from “market” to the “well-being” of international students. Effectively, the need to consider academic learning advising issues relating to supporting international students is not only a compelling idea, but also a high-stake accountability issue. By incorporating the author’s own experience in academic learning advising with underlying theoretical literature, this paper proposes a multi-level/phase and multiculturally-infused academic learning advising conceptual organiser which views student learning along a generic, prescriptive to developmental advising continuum. The proposed conceptual organiser is learner (advisee)-centred, holistic, and flexible. It further suggests that in a globally-engaged university, high-impact academic learning advising is multicultural. Academic learning advising that engages student differences can potentially close the “troublesome space” as commonly exemplified in the East versus West divide.