A Study on the Challenges and Improvement Strategies of Academic Advising for University Freshmen in Dual-Campus University System

This study aims to analyze academic advising needs of university freshmen and examine differences according to background variables to suggest directions for counseling programs that effectively support freshman adaptation to university life. Particularly, it seeks to explore systematic academic advising measures to address dramatic changes in academic, psychological, and social environments that freshmen experience and support successful college adaptation. The study surveyed 484 freshmen at a university in K region regarding their academic advising needs and college adaptation levels. Research methods included multiple response analysis for counseling topic preferences, cross-analysis according to background variables, and difference verification for college adaptation levels. The results showed that: First, freshmen expressed highest needs for career planning (13.4%), inter-campus movement (12.2%), and study methods (10.3%), with increasing interest in career planning and exam preparation over time. Second, among background variables, future career aspirations significantly influenced the selection of counseling topics (χ ²=48.58, p.05), with students having clear career goals preferring career planning-focused counseling and those without preferring environmental adaptation-focused counseling. Third, significant differences in college adaptation were found in academic (F=1.702, p.05), career (F=3.282, p.001), and environmental (F=1.602, p.05) domains according to selected counseling topics, with groups selecting career planning showing overall higher adaptation levels. Based on these findings, it is recommended that universities implement targeted academic advising programs that cater to freshmen's specific needs, fostering a more effective and supportive transition to college life. This study suggests the need to establish a step-by-step customized academic advising system tailored to freshmen's needs, develop an integrated academic advising model, and build a data-driven academic advising system.