The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) provides both professional advisors (also known as academic advisors) and faculty mentors to help students successfully complete their degree requirements and prepare for their careers and graduate study.

Both can address questions about major/minor and graduation requirements. However, you can think of the difference between these two as a difference in perspective and scope.

Professional advisors are wayfinders who offer a broader perspective on your undergraduate experience. A professional advisor's expertise is in helping you successfully fulfill major/minor and graduation requirements and navigate through the process of getting an undergraduate degree. Professional advisors have in-depth knowledge of college and university policies and procedures, your myPath degree evaluation and transcripts, and the wide range of resources and extra- and co-curricular experiences available to students. Professional advisors can also connect you to campus resources, especially those related to helping you be academically successful at GVSU, and can begin conversations about how to prepare for a career and/or graduate study.

Faculty mentors are experts in your major field and use this in-depth understanding to addressing your questions and concerns about the work you're doing in your major. They know the wide variety of careers available to majors, what specific courses will be best for you, and how to most effectively chose and prepare for specific graduate programs and careers. They can provide information on high-impact experiences within your major like internships, research opportunities, and faculty-led study abroad trips. They can also help you evaluate how well your skills and abilities fit with the field and your goals. In addition, they have extensive contacts in the field and can foster your professional development in your academic area of interest. 

If you have already declared your major in one of the departments within the College, you have been assigned a faculty mentor (also known as Major 1 Advisor) and a professional advisor. There are two ways to find out who they are:

1. Log into MyBanner, Select Student > Student Records > View Major & Advisor Information

2. Log into Navigate360; you will see your Success Team on the bottom right, which includes your faculty mentor (Major 1 Advisor) and your professional advisor. 

Professional Advisors:
The CLAS Academic Advising Center is staffed by professional advisors familiar with the requirements for all CLAS majors and minors, professional school admissions, teacher certification, and graduation. These professional advisors work with students in conjunction with faculty mentors. 

You are encouraged to meet with an advisor in the CLAS Academic Advising Center to discuss your major, graduate or professional interests, review degree requirements, and set up an academic plan whether you are exploring or have declared a CLAS major/minor, or are a pre-professional major and have been assigned to a professional advisor in the CLAS Academic Advising Center.

To schedule an appointment with a professional advisor in the CLAS Academic Advising Center please call us at (616) 331-8585, stop into our office in C-1-140 or C-1-120 MAK, or use Navigate360. Please note that we are not able to schedule appointments via email.

Faculty Mentor:

Once you know the name of your assigned faculty mentor, you can find their office, email address and phone number by using the GVSU People Finder. Email is usually the best way to begin to connect with faculty mentors, but we also encourage you to visit them during their scheduled office hours!

All faculty members hold open office hours to meet with students. You can contact faculty mentor directly using information from the People Finder, or contact the department where your major is housed to ask for your mentor's office hours. If you are not available during your faculty mentor's office hours, you can often arrange another time to meet with them by reaching out over email.