Full-time UWG faculty/staff members can serve as a student organization advisor. Part-time faculty/staff members, teaching assistants, graduate assistants, or retirees are not able to serve as student organization advisors.

You can:

• Accept an invitation to serve as an advisor when approached by a student organization leader
• Provide your contact information and interest to the Center for Student Involvement and Inclusion via our online advisor interest form to be matched with a student organization in need
• Have a position that requires you to serve as an advisor to a specific organization

Depending on the need of the student organization, an advisor could serve in multiple roles, such as the role of supervisor, mentor, facilitator, historian, and educator.

Our organizations could not exist and would not be successful without the help of wonderful advisors. Serving as a student organization advisor gives you the opportunity to: 

• Contribute to student success and student engagement outside of the classroom
• Build relationships with students and develop community in co-curricular experiences
• Share knowledge, experience, and skills with students while working towards a common goal
• Grow professionally through our continued education and training opportunities designed to enhance advising skills and institutional knowledge

Expectations vary based on the student organization and their purpose/activities, but at the very least, advisors should:

• Maintain institutional and organizational knowledge to help organization leaders understand and navigate university policies and procedures
• Maintain regular communication with organization and leaders to:
  • Ensure the growth and maintenance of the organization
  • Educate students on policies, best practices, and campus resources
  • Encourage community building, networking, and collaboration in and outside of the organization
• Report concerning behaviors that may impact the community via UWGCares.
• Submit appropriate forms/communication to the Center for Student Involvement and Inclusion upon agreeing to serve as an advisor or resigning from position as advisor

Additional expectations may be set by the advisor and organization members.

Time commitment will vary based on the expectations, activities, and needs of the student organization. It’s helpful to identify your responsibilities and availability and compare them to the activities and needs of the student organization(s) you advisor to determine how much time might be required. While not required, it is encouraged that an advisor attend meetings and events as they are available. Some on-campus space reservations require the advisor to be present at the meeting/event for the student organization to use the space. 

After you have agreed to be the student organization advisor, the student organization will need to list you as the advisor in their WolfConnect portal. After they have submitted your name. You will be receive an email from WolfConnect with "New Forms to Submit." The link in this email will take you to your advisor forms. Please fill out all 4 forms and submit your position. A Center for Student Involvement and Inclusion staff member will review the forms and approve your position upon confirmation that you are eligible to serve as an advisor. You will then be added to our student organization advisor listserv that we use to share important announcements, updates, and opportunities. 

If you did not receive the email from WolfConnect with "New Forms to Submit," follow these instructions to access your advisor forms. 

• Login to WolfConnect using your UWG username/password
• Click on your name or profile picture in the top right corner of the screen
• Select "Activity" from the black sidebar that will pop out from the right
• Select "Position Requests" and select the position for the appropriate organization
• Fill out all four forms and submit your position

If you do not see a position listed after you select "Position Requests", the organization may not have added you to their portal yet. Please contact CSII at csii@westga.edu if you need additional assistance.

There is no limit to the amount of student organizations you can advise. We appreciate faculty/staff members who serve as the advisor for multiple groups, but we encourage them to limit the number of organizations they advise to no more than three to ensure each organization is getting the time and attention they might need to be successful.  

Yes, you will need to submit the advisor forms for each organization you advise. Though they will be the same forms, this action acknowledges that you understand the appropriate policies and procedures as it pertains to that specific organization as each organization has different values, goals, activities, etc.

Yes, but we ask the organization to identify one main advisor to receive official communication from the Center for Student Involvement and Inclusion. All advisors must be listed in the organization’s WolfConnect portal and submit the appropriate Advisor Forms. There are additional ways faculty/staff can support a student organization other than serving as an advisor. 

Please email csii@westga.edu to resign from your position as an organization advisor. We will help remove you from the organization’s portal and our advisor communication list. In addition to communicating your resignation with the Center for Student Involvement and Inclusion, please also communicate with the organization. While you are under no obligation to find a replacement advisor for the organization, and assistance you can provide is appreciated.

A student organization will have 30 days from the time of your resignation to submit the information for a new advisor and remain active with no disruption to their ability to reserve space, post flyers, and fund raise. After 30 days, the organization will be removed from the registered list until the information for a new advisor is submitted.

We suggest reaching out to the organization’s advisor to find out how best you can support that specific organization. Support could look like attending organization events, helping to promote organization events/activities, or assisting in other ways as the advisor sees fit.

After the organization has registered for the academic year, you can find contact information for the organization on their WolfConnect portal:

• Login to WolfConnect using your UWG username/password
• Select Organizations on the homepage and use the search tools to filter the list of student organizations
• Select the organization you are looking for to go to the organization’s portal
• On the profile tab of the organization’s portal, you can find the organizational email address
• Officers and advisors will be listed on the right side of the organization’s portal