Oakland University provides countless support resources to ensure the success of its community members. Some services are tailored to a student’s specific challenges, other services provide broad support.
Campus resources are essential for college students to reach their highest potential. Despite this, Ross E O’Hara of Psychology Today found that a majority of college students are not aware of the resources available to them. O’Hara cited a Tyton Partners survey that showed only a fifth of the 2,000 students surveyed utilized tutoring, financial aid counseling, career advising or mental health counseling.
One of OU’s support services is the Academic Success Center (ASC), located inside Wilson Hall, the recently renovated building in the center of the main campus. The Academic Success Center’s mission is to provide residents with the help they need to succeed in the classroom, and beyond it.
Despite its main office being in Wilson, the ASC provides support to campus residents and commuter students. Students can utilize the resource to learn better ways to budget their time, effectively take tests and improve their study skills.
“We have four main services: tutoring, study groups, supplemental instruction and academic support appointments. More details are located at oakland.edu/asc,” Cash said.
These services have directly had an impact on students’ return to academic success. One story in particular stands out in Cash’s mind.
“Amy Ward, our Academic Support Coordinator, was integral in the motivation and determination of a student to return to OU, who was on probation and subsequently dismissed from the university for two semesters. Amy met with this student while she was attending the community college and was anxious to return. Amy helped her with time management, study skills and supported her motivation to return by meeting with her several times over these semesters. This student is now registered and back attending OU,” Cash said.
While studies show that students sometimes do not utilize the resources available on college campuses, the ASC looks to combat this trend through several changes and initiatives.
“When I started as the director [of the ASC] in 2020, I knew our reputation and name needed to change. We were known as the Tutoring Center, which signified one support. However, we do so much more. Some students are hesitant to seek out support as it may be embarrassing to ask for help. We’ve tried to help this with a name change, the Academic Success Center. Our tutors and staff are also friendly and supportive. We have a beautiful space to study and in addition to getting academic support, students can surround themselves with like-minded peers,” Cash said.
The Academic Success Center is indeed so much more than just tutoring. Through the ASC, students can find help in getting involved on campus, which directly correlates to success in the classroom.
“This concept is extremely important as students need to build networks of friends in every course. Sometimes this could be through extracurricular involvement and student organizations, or group work in a class or any of the many other activities at OU. It’s important to feel connected with others in challenging moments in coursework. Last semester we supported an impromptu study group for a math course at the request of a student. All students were invited to join and a new group was formed, possible friendships developed and support was provided by our tutors,” Cash said.
Students can find more information about the ASC at its webpage on OU’s website.
