Supervision of New Professionals in Student Affairs: Assessing and Addressing Needs.

Abstract

This qualitative study examined the supervision of new professionals from the perspectives of new professionals and their supervisors. Analysis of interviews with four new professionals and their supervisors suggested the following: (a) supervisors supervised the way they wanted to be supervised, (b) new professionals had difficulty identifying and/or articulating what they wanted or needed from their supervisors, (c) seasoned supervisors appeared to be better diagnosticians of new professionals' needs than novice supervisors, (d) some supervisors lacked the skills necessary to diagnose accurately the supervision needs of new professionals, and (e) there appeared to be little direct connection between identified supervision needs of new professionals and professional development activities. Student affairs is a profession that has a large cohort of new professionals that enter its ranks yearly. At many institutions nearly half of a student affairs divisions' staff will be relatively new to the field (less than five years experience; Carpenter, 1991). As in many fields, new or emerging professionals in student affairs provide much, if not most, of the direct delivery of programs and services (other than physical and mental health) to students. Somewhat disturbingly, one study estimated that new professionals abandoned the field at a rate of 60% within six years of entering (Holmes, Verrier, & Chisolm, 1983). Most recently, it is reported that the attrition rate of new professionals, during the first five years, is between 39% and 68% (Ward, 1995). Regardless of the exact percent, clearly retention of new professionals is essential to the health of student affairs as a profession. New professionals are both the present and future of student affairs, and as such, a more thorough examination is needed of their work and life experiences. This research study was designed to increase understanding of new professionals' needs by filling, in part, the information gap that currently exists. A second purpose of this study was to determine supervision needs as defined by the new professionals and to compare those with their supervisors' perceptions of their needs. In other words, do new professionals (NPs) and their supervisors perceive the world through the same lenses? Ultimately, having a greater understanding of NPs' needs can facilitate intentional staff development that is purposely created to meet the needs of emerging professionals. The goal of this article is to first present the literature regarding new professionals, their supervision, and the issue that emerges regarding new professionals growth and development. Next, an outline of the research study is presented along with findings of the study. A discussion of findings and the implications for practice complete this article. It is important to note that many of the references used in this article are somewhat dated due to the lack of current research on the topic. While some of the research may not be applicable to current practice, the information serves as the only foundation to understand and address the needs of new professionals. It is also important to note that a thorough literature review of other disciplines, such as business and human resource management, was also conducted; however, because of the nature of student affairs work and because of the nature of this study, the information was less applicable and was not utilized in this project. Attrition and Supervision Attrition from the Field Writers have speculated as to why large numbers of neophyte practitioners leave the field. Some blame the problem on a lack of job satisfaction (Bender, 1980). Others claim the lack of autonomy given in entry-level positions, as well as the rigid administrative structures of such initial positions, are contributing causes (Wood, Winston, & Polkisnik, 1985). There is little research reported that clearly identifies the factors that contribute to the early-departure phenomenon. …