Thank you to our Student Organization Advisors!
We highly value the work that our faculty and staff do with our many registered student organizations (RSO), and we want to take some time to celebrate them and recognize how important they are.
All of our RSO’s must have an advisor who is a full-time faculty/staff member at Michigan Technological University – meaning we have faculty and staff helping to support all 240+ of our organizations!
The role of the advisor may or may not be spelled out in the organization’s constitution (and it does vary from organization to organization), but there are some traits and practices which we know are important for our student leaders to be as successful as possible within their organizations. First and foremost, our advisors serve as educators who act in accordance with the goals and values of their student org and Michigan Tech. Advisors must have knowledge and skills which enable them to empower students within the group they advise. Advisors must also role model ethical behavior and, when appropriate, provide direction to organizations to assist them in their successes.
Advising a student organization can be a rewarding experience, but can also be nerve-wracking. Enthusiastic new advisors can easily fall into the trap of over-advising, or micromanaging, a student group. Conversely, well-meaning advisors can adopt a “hands-off” attitude which can significantly lower the morale and productivity of a student group. As advisors, we often search for balance: we struggle to balance the demands of our “job” with the demands of this “outside” influence. It is our hope that our office can help support you balance that task.
At the end of the day, our students are blessed to have the support and guidance of our talented faculty and staff. Because of your support, our students accomplish great things, challenge each other, build networks, meet friends, create memories, and gain skills long after they leave Tech. We appreciate you and hope that you get just as much out of the advising experience as our students do.
Being an advisor provides a multitude of benefits for faculty and staff:
- A unique opportunity to get to know and work with students outside of the classroom or office
- The reward of watching the group develop to its fullest potential
- The reward of watching students develop their individual skills and talents
- The chance to informally share your knowledge and expertise on relevant topics
- An opportunity to feel satisfaction and accomplishment through making a special contribution to a particular group of students
- The chance for service to students, the University, and the larger community
If you are not currently an advisor and you’d like to volunteer, please feel free to check out our list of organizations on Involvement Link and send an email to rso@mtu.edu.
The Student Leadership & Involvement office is here to serve as a resource to you and to answer your questions or concerns. Contact us with questions, and be sure to look at the resources available on our website.
Thank you for all you do with our student organizations!