the role of student affairs and services in higher education

PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
The last three decades have seen an increasing effort by student affairs and
services professionals to improve professional standards. A number of
professional associations/organizations, e.g., the Association of Managers of
Student Services in Higher Education (AMOSSHE), Centre Nationale des Oeuvres
Universitaires et Scolaires (CNOUS), the Canadian Association of College and
University Student Services (CACUSS), Deutsches Studentenwerk (DSW), and the
National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), offer clear
recommendations and guidelines on professional standards. Furthermore, they
sponsor and accredit a wide range of staff development and training courses,
many of which are conducted by universities and colleges; however, most are
sponsored directly by these organizations. Appropriate professional standards
and accreditation requirements enhance program productivity, learning outcomes
and efficient utilization of resources.
Professional standards impact upon:
1. program development and targeting of appropriate students.
2. ongoing professional development and improved effectiveness.
3. benchmarking that helps ensure comparisons with best practices.
4. institutional/sector acceptance of a suite of student-centred programs.
5. the embedding of student affairs and services staff and their work into the
institution/agency, as well as into the broader community.
6. lobbying/politicizing just causes, including genuine equality of opportunity.
7. the securing of adequate budgeting for appropriate services.
8. evaluation and assessment of programs and services.
In summary, standards give direction to our endeavours and aspirations to
achieving positive student learning outcomes.
Note: The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS),
a U.S. based group, was established in 1979 and represents an ever-growing
consortium of U.S. higher education professional associations. CAS was created
to establish, disseminate, and advocate professional standards and guidelines on
a nationwide basis for U.S. higher education student programs and services.
Individuals and institutions from the 31 CAS member organizations comprise a
professional constituency of well over 100,000. No other body exists that so
comprehensively represents and speaks for this important field of endeavor. CAS
will continue to have significant impact, especially as institutional effectiveness,
student learning, and outcome assessment become increasingly crucial to higher
education.
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