Lansing Community College
Procedure Details

Procedure Title: Academic and Program Advising of Students
Procedure #: AA.033
Revision #: 000

Unit Responsible: Provost's Office
Individual Responsible: Director of Academic Advising

Effective Date: 06/05/2025
Initial Approval Date: 06/05/2025
Last Review/Update Date: 06/5/2025
Next Review Date: 06/01/2028

*Does this procedure support a Board Policy? Yes
If yes, identify: 3.030 - Academic Records

Board policies can be found at: LCC Board of Trustees Policy Page

*Does this procedure support HLC criteria and/or Assumed Practices? Yes
If yes, identify: 3C, 3D

HLC Criteria can be found at: HLC Accreditation Criteria
HLC Assumed Practices can be found at: HLC Assumed Practices

*Does this procedure support a State or Federal Regulation? No
If yes, identify: N/A

*Note: Standard Operating Procedures should be in furtherance of some LCC policy and/or accreditation criteria, even if the relationship is not direct. Assistance in determining this information can be obtained from the Academic Procedure Advisory Committee (APAC) and/or the Accreditation Liaison Officer.

Academic and Program Advising of Students, BP 3.030

1. Purpose

To ensure that the College provides effective academic and program advising for students.


2. Scope

Applies to all academic and program advising provided to students by Lansing Community College (LCC) academic advisors and program advisors.


3. Prerequisites

  • Academic advising may be provided to students by academic advisors from the Student Affairs Division, and/or by program advisors, whether faculty or administrators, from their respective program areas.
  • Program advising, including career information, will be provided to students by program advisors, whether faculty or administrators, from their respective program areas.
  • Both academic advisors and program advisors periodically will complete training on, and will maintain currency in, the following:
    • The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 as amended (FERPA);
    • College catalog rules and procedures;
    • Reading and understanding Program Pathways;
    • Transfer, including appropriate articulation agreements;
    • Appreciative Advising;
    • Advising technology such as Banner Big View, SPACMNT, Banner Academic History, Degree Works, etc.
  • Program advisors also will maintain currency on their respective Program Pathways, including Enhanced degrees; articulation agreements; and internship and career opportunities.
  • Both academic advisors and program advisors will participate at least once per semester in a meeting hosted by Academic Affairs to ensure consistency in advising practices and to promote collaboration.


4. Responsibilities

  • Academic Affairs – Responsible for providing guidelines and updates on the scope, processes, and rules of academic and program advising.
  • Director of Academic Advising – Responsible for overseeing all procedures and guidelines for the academic and program advising of students, including coordinating with the Associate Dean of Academic and Career Pathways, and the Deans of Student Affairs, Arts & Sciences, Health & Human Services, and Technical Careers to ensure both periodic training and training necessary due to updates or changes.
  • Deans or designees – Responsible for ensuring staffing and training of their respective advisors.
  • Academic Advisors – Responsible for providing academic advising, along with using the advising notes section of the student’s educational record in the College student information system, for the following:
    • Students who have not yet earned the first 30 credits toward their declared program of study,
      • including students working toward admission to selective admissions programs,
      • but not including students in programs specifying early referral to program advisors;
    • Students needing guidance on developmental coursework and options due to placement levels;
    • Students desiring Academic Amnesty;
    • Students considering changing to a program in a different Career Community;
    • Students desiring a pre-audit for the Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA) endorsement;
    • Students desiring waiver of the First-Year Experience requirement in their declared program of study, based on the student meeting at least one of the College-approved waiver criteria.
  • Program Advisors – Responsible for providing advising, along with using the advising notes section of the student’s educational record in the College student information system, for the following:
    • Students who have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 30 credits or more toward their declared program of study or who have completed, and students in programs specifying early referral to program advisors, regardless of the number of credits earned;
    • Students who have specific program-related questions about, or who already have been admitted to, selective admissions programs;
    • Students who have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 45 credits or more toward their declared program of study and express desire for a change of major into an Enhanced degree program;
    • Students who have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 45 credits or more in the General Associate (0863), Associate of Arts (AA) in Transfer Studies (1779), or Associate of Science (AS) in Transfer Studies (1782) and express desire for a change of major to an Enhanced degree;
    • Students considering changing to a program in the same Career Community;
    • Students desiring a pre-audit for the Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA) endorsement;
    • Students preparing to graduate with a degree or certificate;
    • Students preparing to transfer to another institution;
    • Students desiring substitutions and/or waivers of requirements in their declared program of study per Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) RO.007 Course Substitutions and Waivers – Program-Level.
  • Academic Affairs Project Manager (AAPM) – Responsible for the following:

5. Procedure

  1. Academic Advisors
    1. During New Student Orientation, provide students with individualized My Academic Pathways (MAPs) in Degree Works of 1 semester or more, based on their intended program of study, along with academic advising and referrals to other areas when needed.
    2. During appointments or other contacts, provide students with academic advising, including confirming and/or helping update majors, creating and maintaining individualized MAPs, and making referrals to and collaborating with other areas when needed.
    3. Via LCC email, and providing key details about individual students’ progress, initiate the transition to students’ respective program advisors for advising in the following situations:
      1. When students either have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 30 credits or more toward their declared program of study;
      2. When students are declared in programs specifying early referral to program advisors, regardless of the number of credits earned;
      3. When students who have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 45 credits or more in the General Associate (0863), AA in Transfer Studies (1779), or AS in Transfer Studies (1782) express interest in pursuing an Enhanced degree.
    4. Use the advising notes section of the student’s educational record in the College student information system to:
      1. Review previous advising notes, whether theirs or others’, prior to or during working with the student;
      2. Enter their own advising notes after working with the student.
  2. Program Advisors
    1. Provide students with advising, including confirming and/or helping update majors, creating and maintaining individualized MAPs, and making referrals to and collaborating with other areas when needed, in the following situations:
      1. When students are declared in programs specifying early referral to program advisors, regardless of the number of credits earned;
      2. When students either have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 30 credits or more toward their declared program of study;
      3. When students who have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 45 credits or more toward their declared major express request a change of major to an Enhanced degree.
      4.  When students who have earned, or in the current semester will earn, 45 credits or more in the toward General Associate (0863), AA in Transfer Studies (1779), or AS in Transfer Studies (1782) express request a change of major to an Enhanced degree.
    2. Use the advising notes section of the student’s educational record in the College student information system to:
      1. Review previous advising notes, whether theirs or others’, prior to or during working with the student;
      2. Enter their own advising notes after working with the student.

6. Reference

The following are links to reference documents that will open in a new browser window:


7. Definitions

  • Advising (Academic and Program) – A process of teaching and assisting students in exploring, strategizing for, and pursuing educational and career goals.
  • Banner – LCC’s Student Information System.
  • Career Community – A group of programs of study in related fields, sharing a central core of common courses.
  • Degree Works – A software product to audit student progress toward completion of a degree or certificate.
  • Academic advisors – Advisors employed by the Student Affairs Division to provide academic advising to students about any program of study.
  • Program advisors – Program faculty or administrators serving as advisors for their program areas.
  • Enhanced degree – A degree program designed to allow students to complete additional requirements for transfer beyond those of the base associate degree, as specified by specific transfer articulation agreements.