Findings and recommendations from a Noodle operational audit of an academic advising function
In this white paper, Lauren Dukes, EdD, Senior Managing Director of Student Support & Retention, Ashley Ingelsby, Associate Director of Student Support & Retention, and Brian DiScipio, General Manager of the Partner Success Team, share findings from a structural audit Noodle conducted of an academic advising organization within a mid-sized university’s continuing and professional studies division. The engagement combined structured stakeholder interviews with a review of enrollment, retention, and admissions data to answer a question enrollment and retention leaders keep asking: why does a hard-working, well-supported advising team still fail to move retention numbers?
The audit found two structural problems compounding each other: no systematic, data-driven way to decide which programs and students deserved the most attention, and an advising team too small for its caseload and too consumed by administrative work to operate proactively. Reported caseloads near 700 students per advisor made proactive outreach nearly impossible.
The guide covers what the audit found, the five-priority framework Noodle recommended in response, and how the client organization acted on it.
Download the Why Advising Teams Fall Behind White Paper
