Pastoral Support Training for Academic Advisors; sharing our journey in delivering mandated staff training that aims to support both the staff and student experience of advising, at University of Bath

Jessica Hayball (University of Bath)
Jo Stewart-Cox (University of Bath)

Tuesday, April 8, 2025 10:00 AM - 10:45 AM

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Session Outline

With this year’s UKAT conference looking to celebrate the ways in which tutoring/advising supports both the academic and life experiences of students, and how it can create positive experiences for both staff and students, this presentation will detail the Pastoral Support Training for Academic Advisors and Doctoral Supervisors (AA’s and DS’s) that is delivered at the University of Bath (UoB). The training session, developed within Student Support and Safeguarding, and in collaboration with academic members of staff, is mandatory for AA’s and DS’s, and recommended for all student-facing professional service colleagues. The training aims to improve the student experience of advising on a whole-university scale, to positively impact the wider student experience, and to foster a culture of care within our staff and student community. Student Minds are putting together a ‘Learning Library’, to launch in March 2025, and have selected our Pastoral Support Training as a case study for best practice within the sector.

In terms of the student experience, we are seeing increased engagement with the advising system, across both UG and PG cohorts, emphasising the value of the AA/DS position and highlighting the importance in staff feeling confident to fulfil this support role. Since launching the Pastoral Support Training in 2022, our data shows increased reports from students of positive interactions when discussing support needs with their AA/DS, as well as a high percentage of students who feel they could speak to their AA/DS should they need support.

Staff having completed the training have reported increased confidence levels in relation to providing support to students, alongside a clearer understanding of the boundaries surrounding their responsibilities. With approximately 70% of AA’s/DS’s having completed the session, improving clarity and confidence has enabled staff across the university to experience advising in a way that doesn’t feel overwhelming, emotionally burdening or anxiety inducing, but instead manageable and rewarding.

The main objectives of the presentation would be to talk the audience through the training content, to share the launching process of the training as mandatory, to discuss its impact for both staff and students, and to explain the challenges we’ve experienced, including what challenges remain. The audience will then have the opportunity to experience a section of the training, where we look through and discuss some case studies, considering practical guidance around engaging with pastoral conversations whilst holding boundaries and keeping within the remit of the role. At the time of the conference, we will be able to signpost attendees directly to the Student Minds case study, which will provide further summary of our work.

With academic advising and personal tutoring in higher education being a significant talking point within the sector, including debate around the most appropriate model of delivery (O’Connor & Down, 2024), and focus on how universities can/are supporting these roles (Maxwell & Briggs, 2024), this session would provide insight into how UoB is prioritising the value of the advising system, and supporting the tutor and tutee, both in their connected and individual experiences.

Learning Outcomes

1. The audience will learn what a whole-university training model can look like, and how it can serve to provide support that can be felt within both the staff and student community.
2. The audience will have the opportunity to compare and discuss case studies, engaging with a section of the Pastoral Support Training delivered to staff at Bath. They will then be able to reflect on how this practice, and the overall training session, could provide support for tutors at their institutions.

Bibliography

Maxwell, R., Briggs, S. (2024). 'What an effective personal academic tutor system could look like'. Wonkhe.
Available at: https://wonkhe.com/blogs/what-an-effective-personal-academic-tutor-system-could-look-like/

O'Conner, R., Down, J. (2024). 'Recognising the individual'. HEPI.
Available at: https://www.hepi.ac.uk/2024/02/13/recognising-the-individual-re-thinking-engagement-and-the-staff-student-relationship-in-personal-tutoring/

Competencies
This session addresses the following competencies of the UKAT Professional Framework for Advising and Tutoring