One of the most frustrating things about being in academic support is that the students who could benefit the most from our services aren’t usually the ones who walk through the door. As a result, many academic support offices spend considerable time just encouraging students to walk in the door. This leads to the question: What if we designed academic support so students didn’t have to decide whether they “needed” it in the first place? Instead of asking students to opt in, we can build support into the ordinary experience of law school.
Historically, academic support has fought an image problem. Students assume it’s intended for students who are failing or aren’t cut out for law school. The reality is quite different. In my experience, the highest performing students are often the ones seeking coaching to refine their exam writing, improve efficiency, or prepare for the bar.
ASPs know that academic support is about educational development, rooted in learning science, rather than remediation. The more our programming reflects that philosophy, the more broadly students may engage.
Shift from Reactive to Preventative Support
This shift is already present among many academic support programs who realized that too many interventions came after the student received a disappointing grade. While ASPs continue to offer important support to the disappointed student, they have increasingly developed opportunities to connect earlier and prevent the intervention entirely. This includes embedding resources, such as workshops, short videos, reflection exercises, and faculty partnerships, throughout the semester to allow students to develop skills and receive guidance before a problem emerges. These shifts make academic support part of the curriculum rather than a crisis response.
Make Support Part of the Learning Environment
Relatedly, students seem more likely to engage with resources that appear naturally within their existing routines. Consider embedding academic support:
- Within the learning management system
- Alongside course assignments
- During orientation
- Immediately before major assessments
- Within the classroom
When support is integrated into the existing experience, students are less likely to perceive it as something reserved for those that are struggling. Embedding support like this will often require faculty partnerships. If faculty help normalize academic support by recommending workshops, referencing resources, and inviting ASPs into class, participation will likely increase. Students frequently interpret faculty endorsement as evidence that academic support is part of the process.
Design for Low-Friction Engagement
If it’s hard to access academic support resources, students won’t use them. For example, if students must locate the webpage, decide whether they qualify for help, find the information on scheduling a meeting, and schedule that meeting all while feeling stigmatized for asking for help, they may never make it through the door.
Consider how your program might reduce friction. Some examples include one-click appointment scheduling; short, searchable video tutorials; QR codes linked to course materials; drop-in office hours; and embedded links in class pages. The easiest resources to access are the ones students are most likely to use.
Change the Language
The words we use shape student perception. I’m guilty of saying “if you need help, don’t hesitate to reach out,” but I am coming to realize that I am reinforcing the image of academic support being a place for only those that are actively struggling. Instead, I should be framing resources around growth, like “sharpen your exam strategy” to convey that everyone could benefit from using the resource. This subtle shift can remind students that academic support is about continuous improvement.
Ultimately, engagement with academic support resources may depend less on convincing students to seek help and more on designing educational environments where support is impossible to overlook and unnecessary to justify. Rather than asking, “how do we convince the students who don’t think they need us?” perhaps we should be asking “how do we design law school so that every student benefits from academic support, whether or not they ever schedule an appointment”? This shift from opt-in services to embedded support has the potential to transform how students experience academic support programming.
(Dayna Smith)
