The history of academic advising dates back to 17^th century where administrators and faculty members in colleges have acknowledged that students require guidance outside the class, regarding their personal, moral, intellectual issues. Over time, the informal guidance provided in colleges was transformed into a formal campus service offered by experts (Cook, 2009). However, the definition and characteristics of academic advisors and their responsibilities are still debatable issues in college campuses. The conflicting views about the roles and functions of academic advisors may result from various questions such as who is advisor, who is advisee, what kind of training is provided to advisors, what is the delivery type of the advising, and what is theoretical approach being used by the advisor (Robbins, 2012). The theoretical approaches used in academic advising and utilization of faculty members as advisors are related to the mission of the institutions. According to the prescriptive approach, the faculty member is the authority who tells students which courses to take and when to take. The student is rather passive in the process. In developmental advising, on the other hand, the faculty perceives student as an individual who is motivated for the personal and professional development rather than having extrinsic motivation for grades and eager to develop a plan of study with the advisor (Christian & Sprinkle, 2013). In the institution where the study is conducted, advisors who are also faculty members play the role of authority where student participation about the process could be rather limited. Therefore, the current study examines the student and faculty perspectives on academic advising program that could be regarded as prescriptive rather than developmental in theoretical approach.

On the other hand, academic advising is a complex guiding process which involves not only giving advice to students about academic issues such as degree requirements, course selection, campus integration; but also providing help regarding mental or physical health issues (Champlin-Sharff, 2010). There are many academic advising programs and approaches that may vary according to the type of institution, department or the academic advisor; as some of them are mentioned above. However, regardless of the program and approach, all advisors share the same goal: graduation of students with success that also involves equipping students with the tools they will need in life after the graduation (Teasley & Buchanan, 2013). Considering the impact of academic advising on many aspects of college student development especially the student success and retention, this study assessed academic advising program in a large state university by examining both academic advisors’ and students’ perceptions. The students and academic advisors were given an online survey about academic advising program and advisor-student interaction that included questions regarding frequency of face-to-face appointments, duration of appointments, advising activities, advisor interpersonal communication skills, and overall satisfaction from the program. The study also examined the factors (e.g., frequency, duration, advisor characteristics) that contribute to overall student satisfaction of the advising program.

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