At Drake University, advising and mentoring are central to your academic success. Every student is supported by a dedicated advising team that helps you build relationships, navigate university requirements, and plan for your academic, career, and personal goals.
Drake’s advising and mentoring model combines professional guidance with faculty expertise, ensuring you have a strong support system from your first semester through graduation.
Your Advising Team
All Drake students are assigned:
An Advising Specialist, a professional staff member who works in your primary area of study
A Faculty Mentor, a professor connected to your major(s), minor(s), concentration(s), or other areas of study
Together, they help you:
Build meaningful academic relationships
Create and update your academic plan of study
Understand graduation requirements
Connect with campus resources and technology
You’ll meet members of your advising team during Summer Orientation, with full introductions continuing at Welcome Weekend.
Advising That Supports Every Path
All Drake students complete the same general graduation requirements for a bachelor’s degree, regardless of major. Your Advising Specialist and Faculty Mentor will help you understand these requirements and track your progress throughout your time at Drake.
Advising at Drake is designed to support a wide range of academic interests, including:
Exploring majors if you are undecided
Adding a second major, minor, or concentration
Pursuing pre-professional interests such as law, medicine, engineering, counseling, business, or other graduate programs
Fall Course Registration
Before you can be enrolled in fall classes, you must complete Drake’s Course Registration Survey. This required step allows the advising and mentoring team to create a course schedule that reflects your academic goals and interests.
Planning for the Future
As you begin your first year, you’ll work with your advising team to review and build a long-term academic plan. This includes:
A 4-Year Guide outlining recommended coursework by semester
A Degree Checklist to track requirements for graduation
Over time, you’ll create a personalized Graduation Plan that reflects your academic goals, secondary programs, and pre-professional interests, with ongoing guidance from your Advising Specialist and Faculty Mentor.
Once you have your Drake ID and Password you will be able to access more resources for Advising and Mentoring at Drake through their internal website. For more complete details, timelines, and additional guidance visit the Advising and Mentoring website below: