Academic Services

The mission of academic advising and the advisors who administrate the advising process follows the general mission of the University and the founding Brothers of Christian Instruction. The advising process serves in multiple areas of students’ academic life by serving all students, especially the underserved. Advisors act as both repositories of university information and conduits for student success in classes taken and goals developed while at Walsh University and preparation for life beyond college.

The purpose of academic advising at Walsh University is threefold: to assist students in the development of their academic programs; to explain and develop the students’ rights and options in the advising process; and to point out to students their responsibilities as advisees.

First Year Academic Advisors are assigned to all freshman at the start of the freshman year, to any student transferring into Walsh University, and to any student declaring a major or changing a major.  Any freshman entering with 30 or more transferred/earned college credit hours will directly receive a faculty advisor as their primary advisor except for Pre-Nursing and Undeclared majors.  Transfer students will receive a first year academic advisor or faculty advisor as their primary advisor depending on their major or number of transfer credit hours.

The advisor is the guide through the Walsh experience. This association is one of the most important that students will have especially early in their academic careers and in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree. The advisors will answer questions and present options to students that may impact their success as Walsh students. Advisors do not tell students what to do but rather assist them in making thoughtful, reasoned decisions, explaining the benefits and consequences of potential decisions or directions students wish to pursue. It is to students’ advantage to develop a good working relationship with their advisors as soon as possible. All advisors have regular office hours.

The Associate Vice President of Academic Administration is responsible for overseeing academic advising.

The Academic Support Center (ASC) serves the student body, beginning with the students in transition to college from secondary school and proceeding all the way to graduation. The ASC includes tutoring,  Accessibility Services, the Academic Achievement Program, and the Cavs CORE Learning Community. These services are located in Farrell Hall 209, which allows for one central place to find a variety of academic support.

The Academic Support Center (ASC) provides free tutoring to Walsh students in selected subject areas such as math, chemistry, biology and foreign language, along with tutoring in writing for any subject area. Tutoring is usually on a one-to-one basis, arranged in half-hour or one-hour sessions, and tutoring hours are posted around campus each semester and are available in the ASC. In addition to providing help in specific content areas, the tutors are available to assist with any area of the writing process: brainstorming, developing ideas and organizing them, understanding research and documentation, and reviewing individual points of grammar. Reference works, such as dictionaries, thesauri, style manuals and manuals on writing for various fields, along with textbooks for selected subject areas, are available in the Center, as are numerous computers with network access.  Students can access tutor schedules and appointments online at https://walsh.mywconline.com.

Walsh University is committed to fostering an institutional climate in which qualified students with disabilities have full access to the academic environment. Housed in Farrell Hall, Accessibility Services verifies students’ disability status and determines eligibility for specific accommodations. Academic accommodations, such as tape recorders, electronic textbooks, and extended test time, are coordinated through this office, as are physical accommodations, including disability-appropriate housing and physical changes to classrooms or labs. Students must register with Accessibility Services in order to receive these services. Per federal law, Accessibility Services can provide these accommodations only to students with verified disabilities and not to the general student population..

The Academic Achievement Program coordinates peer tutoring along with counseling and addresses time management and study skills for students on academic probation. The faculty work with freshmen and sophomores as one group, and juniors and seniors as a second group in addressing academic needs. Walsh University provides this program to assist students in achieving their academic goals while working toward graduation. The faculty and staff meet with each student to identify their needs in subject areas and skill training. They provide assistance, as needed, to help each student be successful.

The Cavs CORE Learning Community is designed to offer incoming freshmen who test into Walsh’s beginning-level English and math courses additional structured assistance over their first years. Students are enrolled in this learning community based on their placement test results. Cavs CORE students have ongoing access to tutors and a variety of experiential learning activities. Students in this learning community will take FYE 110 and a collegiate literacy course during both terms of their first fall semester at Walsh.

Walsh University’s regional accrediting agency, The Higher Learning Commission, requires documentation of student academic achievement in general education studies (Walsh’s core curriculum) and in the major. Walsh University requires students to take various assessment tests, as deemed necessary and appropriate by the School Dean and division/department/program chairs. At present, critical thinking, placement, and proficiency testing are done as a matter of course.

The Spectator, the official student newspaper, reports current events on campus and voices the opinions and attitudes of the student body regarding various aspects of life at the University. The campus literary society publishes a magazine, Raison d’ Être, and conducts various events. Walsh offers video production and podcasting facilities.