Advising and guidance

Advising and guidance refer to all activities aimed at enabling the future student to plan and manage their learning in a way that is consistent with their personal life goals and makes full use of their individual skills and interests to achieve personal fulfilment.

Depending on the stage of the university process at which these activities are carried out, a distinction is made between:

  • Advising: carried out before the choice of course of study, it is aimed at future students and offers support in identifying the course to be undertaken on the basis of individual interests, expectations and aptitudes. In this phase, the various possible scenarios are presented to the future student and the alternatives of the university path are illustrated;
  • Guidance: carried out during the university career, it is aimed at enrolled students and is designed to guide them through the courses of study already undertaken, allowing them to establish a better interaction with the structures and the university context;
  • Career guidance: carried out close to or after graduation, is aimed at graduates or graduating students and is designed to facilitate their introduction into the working environment.

Advising

Guidance actions play a decisive role in the complex and articulated process of higher education of the new generations. The choice of a university study path is indeed a very delicate moment in the life of the student who has to make a conscious choice in order to build his or her own life project; shortcomings in entry guidance contribute to an increase in the number of study drop-outs, as well as to slowing down student careers by disproportionately increasing the time it takes to obtain a degree.

The main activities of the Academic and Career Guidance division are carried out in support of and in close collaboration with the Department's guidance delegate teachers and range from the organisation of and participation in guidance meetings held at upper secondary schools to the organisation of educational visits to the Department, aimed at the choice of course of study for students in the final years of upper secondary schools, from participation in national orientation fairs, organised in various locations throughout Italy, to collaboration in the organisation of the 'Studiare a Parma' (Study in Parma) open days, held annually at the University in the spring, and the 'From Maturity to University' info days, held annually in the summer, to coincide with the opening of enrolment. At the Department level, an annual presentation is organised for students of the First-cycle degree courses (CLEM and FOOD System) of the various Second-cycle Degrees activated at the SEA Department level; at this event, the FRIM President presents the degree course in detail and answers students' questions directly in the classroom.

Videos and slides of the FRIM course presentation at the Second-cycle Degree Open Day remain on the FRIM website available to all future students.
 

Guidance and tutoring

The purpose of the service is to support the proper integration of students in the course of study through, in particular, specific tutoring activities aimed at students enrolled in the first year of the course, as well as to encourage effective career progression by students through, in particular, assistance in the compilation of individual programmes of study, ongoing guidance activities aimed at encouraging students to choose the course of study best suited to their characteristics, and remedial activities for students experiencing difficulties.
For the purpose of carrying out tutoring activities for students, there are two separate tutors within the Department of Economics and Management: (i) Tutoring (TU); (ii) Supplementary, preparatory and remedial teaching activities (DI).
As far as Tutoring (TU) activities are concerned, persons to support the students of the Department's Degree Courses are identified through a University call for applications and through regular appointment by the Department Council.
Tutoring activities take place under the coordination of the Department's Delegate for Tutoring Activities, at the Tutor Office located on the ground floor of the Department.

The DI Tutors page on the Department's website is: https://sea.unipr.it/it/tutor-economia

The FRIM Second-cycle Degree Course has a number of teaching staff members with tutor functions, supported by two students with similar functions for each of the two years.