Advising Graduate Students

• The Graduate School encourages all UMN faculty who advise graduate students to have a formal advising statement to share with advisees. Sample statements:
  • Department of Psychology sample advising statements
  • U-wide list of sample advising statements
• New faculty complete steps to become a primary advisor as part of their onboarding.
• Training and support resources for all faculty mentoring graduate students:
  • Art of Advising video series, UMN Graduate School.
  • Mentor training from the Clinical and Translational Science Institute. Psychology faculty are encouraged to complete the following asynchronous online sessions:
    • Optimizing the Practice of Mentoring 101: For Research Mentors of Graduate Students, Fellows, and Early-Career Faculty
    • Enhancing Motivation Using the CARES Mentoring Model 
  • Mental Health Advocate training. 
  • Guide to Advising and Mentoring International Graduate Students.
  • Graduate Student Advising Guide and other resources from the Dignity Project, Student Counseling Services (SCS).
  • Best and Worst Practices in Graduate Advising, SCS Dignity Project.
• Many UMN policies govern graduate education. For assistance with interpreting policy or finding relevant policies for a specific scenario, contact the ADGS.

• Individual Development Plan - encourage doctoral students to set and pursue short and long-term goals.
• Transferrable Skills Checklist - helps doctoral students assess current skills and identify areas for development.
• CLA Graduate Career Services - refer doctoral students for career exploration and job search support.

Policies

Graduate students are expected to meet the following progress standards to maintain good standing in their program. Faculty concerned about a student’s progress are encouraged to consult with the Area Director, DGS, and/or ADGS, as appropriate to the situation, to identify appropriate next steps. 

• The Department's Good Standing Policy is provided in the Graduate Student Handbook
• Doctoral: Performance Standards and Academic Progress: Policy and FAQ
• Master’s: Performance Standards and Academic Progress: Policy and FAQ

Annual Progress Report (APR)

Policy requires that all UMN master’s and PhD students be reviewed annually and notified of their progress. The “Satisfactory Progress and Annual Review” section of the Graduate Student Handbook provides an overview of the timing and scope of the review, outcomes, follow-up procedures, and probation policies.

The Graduate School plans to transition the APR workflow to a new online platform for Spring 2025. Details and functionality are forthcoming, but should include similar content requirements to prior years. Updated guidance will be shared by email and added here when available.

Resources from Spring 2024 reporting can be consulted for insight into the general scope and structure of Psychology's APR process, although the specifics are subject to change:

• Annual Progress Report - Draft Answers Template: Questions are likely similar to what you may encounter in the 2025 process.  
• Spring 2024 APR Instructions and Deadlines: We hope to maintain a comparable timeline for 2025, barring delays in central implementation of the new system.

Consult with the DGS and ADGS if you have questions or concerns about a student's progress and how it should be documented on the APR or handled outside the annual APR window. Please especially note the following:

• Annual Progress Reports can be stressful for students, even when they are making excellent progress. Please watch for and respond quickly to red flags such as non-responsiveness and disengagement, which may signal student distress. 
• Only students continuing in the program past June are required to submit a report. 
• Faculty are encouraged to address delays to area/department degree progression steps in comments.
• APRs formally document a student's status in the program and inform whether/how additional disciplinary steps proceed, if appropriate. 
  • Students on probation should receive an unsatisfactory determination unless the APR is serving as supporting documentation for a return to good standing. 
  • If you have significant concerns about a student's progress, it may be appropriate to give an unsatisfactory rating, which could result in further action, including remediation plans that provide clarity on expectations and can refer students to supportive resources. 
  • It becomes more difficult to implement consequences if a student has received a satisfactory report despite significant concerns.
• The DGS determines whether a department warning, performance plan, and/or probation are appropriate responses to unsatisfactory progress.

Access

Advisors can access GPAS via two paths:

• MyU>Advisor Center (Key Links dropdown menu).
• MyU>My Advisees (left navigation bar).

Once you are in the system, to see the courses from enrollment being applied to degree requirements: 

1. Select the student's record from your advisee list.
2. Select "academic requirements" in the Other Academic Information dropdown menu on the left side of the Student Center tab. 
3. Click "expand all" to see fulfilled requirements.

To see the courses from enrollment plus any future coursework the student has planned in GPAS: 

1. Click the GPAS link on the left side of the Student Center tab
2. Click "Plan by My Requirements." 
3. Click "expand all" to see fulfilled requirements.

Exceptions

Exceptions are used to modify the requirements and/or the courses meeting specific requirements for an individual student. This creates flexibility within the articulated curriculum (PhD and MA). Detailed instructions for student steps and approval requirements are documented in the Graduate Student Handbook. Student requests and faculty approval steps are handled via email, only the ADGS has access to process exceptions in GPAS. 

Note: Certain courses are always manually applied to requirements. These will be processed by the ADGS without prior approval or notification to align with documented requirements. Example: Requirements to take specific topics in PSY 8960 must be manually processed. 

Planning & Monitoring Coursework Progress

GPAS tracks students’ progress toward coursework requirements but does not automatically support the planning of future courses. Students are expected to review their GPAS each semester to confirm they are on track for timely completion of coursework requirements as communicated by the area and established in consultation with their advisor(s).

We encourage advisors to support this process by reviewing their advisees’ GPAS and discussing plans for unfulfilled coursework requirements using these step-by-step GPAS review instructions.

GPAS Review

The primary advisor is responsible for reviewing and approving the student’s coursework in the Graduate Planning and Audit System (GPAS). This is typically done in the spring of a student’s third year in the program. 

• Step-by-step GPAS approval instructions for advisors in Psychology
• Zoom GPAS walkthroughs are also available upon request; email the ADGS to set up an appointment. 
   

Resources for Faculty

• The Red Folder: Identify and respond to signs of distress in your students.
• Missing or Unresponsive Student: Template language for outreach and guidance on procedures from the Office for Student Affairs.
• Student Affairs Mental Health Resources: Quick access to Boynton Mental Health, Student Counseling Services, and additional resources.
• Curated resources for Psychology PhD students: In the Mental Health section of the Student Support Resources page.

Mental Health Advocates (MHA)

MHAs are trained staff and faculty volunteers who serve as resources to students and colleagues about the mental health resources available on campus. MHAs take active steps each month to make positive changes impacting student mental health within their sphere of influence. See the "Mental Health" section on the Student Support Resources page for a list MHAs in the Department of Psychology. 

Faculty and staff can complete Boynton's Mental Health Training to become a certified Mental Health Advocate.