ACADEMIC

COACHING
TASMIA MOOSANI
SEATTLE UNIVERSITY

"IF WE CAN SHARE OUR STORY WITH

SOMEONE WHO RESPONDS WITH
EMPATHY& UNDERSTADNING, SHAME
CAN'T SURVIVE."
- BRENÉ BROWN
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ACADEMIC
COACHING
Defined by the National “cademic “dvising
“ssociation (N“C“D“) (“bout Us, n.d.): 

“cademic coaching is an interactive process

that focuses on the personal relationship
created between the student and the coach.
The coach challenges the student to think
about his or her personal and/or professional
goals in order to relate them to his or her
academic/educational goals. In this learning
process, it is important for the coach to
encourage the student to become more self-
aware by understanding his or her strengths,
values, interests, purpose, and passion.

ABOUT SEATTLE
UNIVERSITY
ACADEMIC COACHING
“cademic success coaching was created in
hopes to help students at Seattle
University in the College of “rts and
Sciences with marginalized identities on
academic probation. The individualized
coaching is geared towards helping
students navigate the university and reach
their academic goals. Throughout the 3-6
sessions, the coach assists students who
might be stressed, unmotivated, worried
about their grades, and/or have external
roadblocks preventing them from reaching
their full potential. The program aims to
help meet both academic and non-
academic needs of students.
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MISSION
To support Seattle University students reach their academic goals and remind these
students that they belong here and can succeed. 

Like the Seattle University mission, this program is dedicated to educating the
whole person, to professional formation, and to empowering leaders for a just
and humane world on an individual coaching level.

Every student and every situation is different.

The goal is success but each path will look different.

VISION
To provide students quality support by doing the following: 
- Listening to the student’s story and their aspirations 
- Helping students assess their needs
- ”uilding an individual plan with specific steps and timelines
- Connecting students with campus resources

My hopes and dreams would be that this program expands with the collaboration of academic
and student affairs and supports “LL students from marginalized backgrounds. “nyone can
walk in to this space to receive one on one coaching to work on roadblocks that may be
preventing them to do their very best. It would be a program required for students on
“cademic Probation but would still be an available resource for those that would like to utilize
the resource. Coaches could be graduate students or students at Junior or Senior standing.
Coaches would under go training to develop skills necessary to work with students.
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MEETING WITH STUDENTS

BEFORE A STUDENT
MEETING
Review the student's program evaluation and
the academic probation self assessment
Highlight anything that you would like to hear
more about: examples may be "feeling isolated
or lonely often", "working 20 hours a week",
"missing class often"
Do not make any assumptions and go into the
appointment with an open mind!

DURING A STUDENT
MEETING
Focus on building rapport with student with
open ended questions and listening.
Explain what an “cademic Success Coach and
let them know what your role in all of this is
Identify roadblocks and areas of needs together
Come up with a short term goal for the student
to work on until your next meeting ( this could
be sleeping one hour earlier, taking to a close
friend, watching a ted talk, journaling, making
time for lunch, etc...). Nothing too
overwhelming. Starting small!
Schedule the follow up appointment right
there and then.
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DISCUSSING
IMPORTANT
TOPICS
Grades are important but we want to focus on the
root that may be causing the student to not do
well. The following are just some topics that have
come up during coaching appointments:

Relationships Physical Health Sense of belonging

Finances Concentration Lack of Mentors
Transitioning Prioritizing Tutoring
Sleep Saying "No" Family
Stress “sking for help Note Taking
“nxiety Navigating SU “ttending Class
Mental Health Motivation Roommates
”alance

Remember to listen to students before inserting

yourself in directly. Validate their story, remind
them they are not alone, and then proceed with a
referral if needed.

AFTER A STUDENT
MEETING
Keep an excel sheet of all students that you
will be coaching
In the notes sections, include the date and
session number. Write any notes you think are
important such as concerns, struggles, what
was talked about, any goals discussed, etc..
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UNIVERSITY
COLLABORATION
During the one on one coaching sessions, it is important to think about other resources on
campus the student can benefit from. The goal is to connect students to resources on
campus to help them find community. The following are on campus departments that I
connect students too:

Office of Multicultural “ffairs Campus Ministry

The Outreach Center: First
Generation Students & Veteran
Students
C“PS
Disability Services
Learning “ssistance Programs
Wellness and Health Promotion
Seattle University Food Pantry
The Collegia Program
Gender Justice Center
Student Persistence
Finding organizations on ConnectSU

COMMON QUESTIONS/STATMENTS
TO ASK
How are things going?
Tell me a little bit about last
quarter
What do you do outside of school?
Hobbies? Things you enjoy.
How has your transition at SU
been?
What was challenging for you last
quarter? Is this something you
have struggled with in the past?
How often do you attend/miss
class?
How do you use your daytime
hours? In between classes?
When you study for a test, what
does that normally look like?
Do you have a place to study?
Is there anything that I have not
mentioned that you would like to
work on or need support from me
on?
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ACTIVITES TO DO IN APPOINTMENTS
High 5 Test : Free strengths test to
discover your top 5 strengths
Organize Classes: Listing assignments
for all classes
Goal Setting: Set realistic goals with the
students and follow up on them in your
meetings. Examples of this may look
like: goals around time management,
creating a planner, study skills, finding
a place to study, practicing self-care,
being transparent with family, reaching
out to a professor, sleep schedule etc..
Talk about what they need: Sit down
with the student and connect them to
campus resources as you see fit
Create a vision board
Talk about failure: Ted Talk called
Learning to Fail
How to practice asking for help: Have
students begin practicing that with you
Major/Career Exploration: ”egin
creating a 4 year-plan with students
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RECOMMENDATIONS

The following are 3 recommendations I think would help

marginalized students on academic probation:

- Training for staff, faculty, and cabinet members

including the President
- Collaboration among departments to bridge “cademic &
Student “ffairs
Ideally, I could see one person from academic affairs and
one person from student affairs working together to
ensure a program that supports students academically but
also ensures we are creating community for students
-“ll academic advisors should be trained on how to
support and advise probation students

Enough action is not being taken. If Seattle University

really wants to take action around supporting
marginalized students and on retention efforts, this
program is one opportunity to do so.
 "THE FLOWER THAT BLOOMS IN
ADVERSITY IS THE MOST RARE AND
BEAUTIFUL OF ALL."- MULAN