M.A.P.: My Academic Pathway Newsletter

Student Spotlight

Students' success is an important indicator of MAP's success. Business instructor and advisor Amber Thomas interviewed two of her students about their experience with MAP.

Q&A with Kaitlyn Barbour

Business Administration, Fourth Semester Student at CCCC

Advisor: Amber Thomas

• What are your career goals?

  Answer: As of right now I want to obtain my bachelor's degree in Business Management focusing on economics or international relations. I might go further and get my master's, but I want to help my dad start a few new businesses and work as CEO or COO for those companies.

• What has been your experience with your Academic Advisor, the QEP, and how have they helped you with your program major and overall with steering you career-wise?

  Answer: My advisor, Mrs. Thomas, from my very first semester sat down with me, talked to me and asked me questions so that she knew what my goals were and what path I was wanting to go down. I'm a very ambitious go-getter, so Mrs. Thomas helped me plan out all four of my semesters at CCCC in one sitting. From my very first semester I had a game plan, and to execute it I needed special permission to take extra classes. Mrs. Thomas got me cleared to take more classes so that I could graduate when I wanted and transfer. She also didn't let it stop there, though. She did weekly check-ins with me to make sure that I wasn't taking on too much so that I could get the most out of my classes and do well.
  
  Mrs. Thomas was also really involved in helping me find colleges I was interested in transferring to and making sure that they would benefit and be a good fit for me, and then she helped me get in touch with them. I think that without my advising sessions, I would be a lot more stressed out about these bigger life decisions and would be further behind in my education instead of pushing myself to do more than what is "easy."

• What made you choose Business Administration as a major?

  Answer: I grew in in a family where many people own their own businesses, and I have always been interested. Business is also so involved in every aspect of our lives, so it is very useful but still versatile.

• Where do you see yourself in the next five years?

  Answer: In the next five years I would like to be graduated with at least my bachelor's degree and making progress on the family business and helping that continue to grow. I want the company to be doing well enough that I can have a somewhat flexible schedule that will allow me to enjoy living life and traveling.

• What do you feel that CCCC could have done or what changes have you seen that you could have benefited from when you first began?

  Answer: I think one of the things that I see other students struggling with is not seeing a long-term plan. Having that first semester game plan meeting helped me know where I was headed and how to go about it. It made it easier to stay on track and reach my goals in the time frame I wanted. I also think that a mandatory advising session would be a good idea. Knowing that I had an advisor that was willing to help me out whenever or could send me to someone that could was a major stress reliever and made me feel less intimidated by my course load.

• When do you feel that this advising method should be offered to new students?

  Answer: I think that at registration, students should meet with their advisor if possible so that their advisor can get to know them and their goals and they should have a game plan set by the end of their first semester.

Q&A with Rebecca Rios

Accounting, Lee Early College

Advisor: Nick Testa

• What are your career goals?

  Answer: I plan to receive an Accounting degree in May. After receiving my Accounting degree, I plan to continue school, if God permits, and receive a bachelor's degree.

• How long have you been at CCCC?

  Answer: I attend Lee Early College but started taking CCCC classes in 2015.

• What has been your experience with you Academic Advisor, the QEP, and how have they helped you with your program major and overall with steering you career-wise?

  Answer: My experience with Mr. Testa has been amazing. I could not ask for a better advisor. Whenever I have questions or need help, he is the first person I go to because of the advice he gives me. He knows exactly what to say and guide you to the correct path.

• What made you choose Accounting as a major?

  Answer: I chose Accounting as a major because my family owns a business, and I would like to help them with the numbers section.

• When did you change your major? How many semesters were you in before you changed?

  Answer: I decided to change my major around 2017. I was in my junior or senior year of high school and due to personal issues I had to choose a "short career" to complete with my high school diploma.

• Have you been happy since you made the change?

  Answer: I knew it was going to be hard but I have been managing all of my credentials and I have been happy.

• Do you feel like your current major fits you more?

  Answer: Yes.

• Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?

  Answer: I see myself working at an accounting firm or tax firm while helping my family's business.

• When you initially came to CCCC why did you choose the major you chose?

  Answer: I had always wanted to become a designer because I love to express myself through clothes and feel comfortable in my skin.

• What do you feel CCCC could have done or what changes have you seen that you could have benefited from when you first began?

  Answer: Offer study rooms to LEC students and "punish" those who do not follow the rules instead of "punishing" all.

• During your initial advising conversations would you have prefer a different advising approach, or do you feel that you benefit more from your experiences with learning that your previous major needed to change?

  Answer: I would have not preferred a different advising approach.

• When do you feel this new advising you received should be offered to new students?

  Answer: The advising I received should be offered to new students when they have their first one-on-one meeting.

By the Numbers

85% Of first-time, full-time students enrolled in ACA during their first two terms in 2018-19.

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71% Of first-time, full-time students earned a C or better in ACA 122 in Fall 2018.

M.A.P. Tools for Faculty & Staff

The foundation of My Academic Pathway is formed via Admissions, ACA 122, and Advising. Here are the tools faculty and staff can use at each step of the M.A.P. process:

• Step 1: Admissions' Embark Career Inventory & Career Discussion Referrals
  • New first-time, full-time students take an online MAP: Embark Assessment and the scores are available via Administrator login page.
  • Admissions Counselors review Embark results with new students and document their discussion in the Admissions Entry Form.
  • Uncertain students are placed with Developmental Faulty Advisors (DFA) or a Career Counselor for further exploration.
• Step 2: ACA 122's Aviso Planning Guide
  • Students complete an academic plan as one of their ACA 122 assignments. Here's an example of the AVISO Planning Guide:
    
• Step 3: Advising's Foundations of Advising Course
  • Advisors can further develop their advising skills and philosophy by enrolling in the Foundations of Advising Course. Contact Scott Byington (sbyington@cccc.edu) to enroll.

MAP Team Reports

ACA Team

The ACA Team implemented a newly revised ACA 122 course in Spring 2019. It integrated aspects of ACA 115 and instructor feedback to help improve the course. ACA 122 is being further refined for Fall 2019 by a small committee.

Admissions Team

The Admissions Team consolidated the Admissions Spring 2019 Entry Form and the individual Embark results into one webpage. This will help Admissions staff to quickly capture each student's Embark results and their initial conversation. At a recent meeting, Admissions staff reviewed the Embark process, how to discuss results with students, and when to refer students to Developmental Faculty Advisors or a Career Counselor.

Advising Team

The Advising Team is creating a definition of advising at CCCC and reviewing advising job duties. The goal is to create a baseline standard for University Transfer and Career and Technical Education advising. They are also revising the Foundations of Advising course based on advisor feedback. The current course will be split into one course for new advisors and a second course for established advisors. The revised advising courses will be piloted in Fall 2019 and go live in Spring 2019.

Assessment Team

The Assessment Team met in Spring 2019 and reviewed 2018-19 data, updated baselines, and reported their insights to the MAP Leadership Team. Based on their feedback, the assessment methodology for Outcome 2.3D, which tracks how many students use faculty advising, was revised. The new Advising Survey, which is available in AVISO, will better determine how many students use faculty advising and what is discussed at each meeting.

Success Council

The QEP Success Council's Spring meeting will focus on reviewing a new Intake Survey for the QEP Admissions Committee. The survey will be used to identify potential barriers for student success and to connect students with CCCC resources. The Success Council is comprised of students, staff, and faculty. The Success Council discusses students' experiences and provides support to other QEP committees that need student insights.

Trivia Contest

Fall 2018 M.A.P. Trivia Contest Results

Fall 2018's newsletter offered a M.A.P. trivia contest. Those who correctly answered the questions would be put into a drawing and three lucky winners would win a M.A.P. T-shirt! The winners of the contest were Brenda Keller, Karen Minter, and Nick Testa. The photos below show each winner holding their fresh new shirt. They've also shared their answer to, "Why do you think the MAP QEP is important to CCCC?":

Trivia Contest Answers:

1. What's a QEP?
   • Quality Enhancement Plan
2. What are the three main goals of M.A.P.: My Academic Pathway?
   • Goals: Enable each student to select an appropriate academic program
   • Progress: Consistently enhance each student's pathway to goal completion
   • Success: Facilitate timely completion of each student's academic goals
3. Name two M.A.P. outcomes.
   • Each student will make an informed program selection upon enrollment.
   • Each student will create a complete academic plan for his or her program of study.