Academic advising -- Undergraduates at UK receive academic advising from different sources: students who have not yet declared a major are advised by UK's Central Advising Service; students who have declared a major are advised by staff departmental advisors, the Directors of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) and the faculty of their major departments. Undergraduate advising at UK is considered to be quite effective and professional, as determined by internal and external evaluations and by student surveys.

The UK AMSTEMM Coordinator/Advisor, Sue Scheff, serves as the academic advisor for the students in the Program. She meets with and advises each UK AMSTEMM student regularly in individual and group sessions to offer assistance with the transition to college and with taking advantage of the special UK AMSTEMM services and programs.

UK AMSTEMM students benefit from the more intensive, personal advising provided by the program, including extensive information and support to help ensure that they are made aware of all of the special opportunities available to them. Advising AMSTEMM students takes many forms: effectively communicating the curriculum of each STEM major, the requirements, and academic policies and procedures; monitoring and accurately documenting each students' progress toward meeting his or her educational goals; encouraging and guiding student to define and develop clear and realistic educational plans; providing students with information on campus resources and services; creating a safe, positive environment for each student so he or she can explore ideas and interests regarding personal, academic, and career goals; assisting students in developing relationships with faculty and instructors and helping students identify research opportunities on campus and providing information on AMSTEMM research fellowships.

Peer Mentors -- Based on the successful peer mentoring already in place in several departments and programs, UK AMSTEMM recruits and trains upper-division Appalachian and minority STEM majors to serve as paid peer mentors and informal counselors to the new UK AMSTEMM students during their first two years at UK. Peer mentoring is a win-win-win situation: 1) The lower-division students benefit because, in addition to becoming friends and role models, perhaps even "fictive kin," peer mentors offer advice and support regarding decisions on all aspects of UK life, for example, class selection, study skills, time management, extra-curricular activities, and utilizing academic support services. 2) The upper-division students gain the satisfaction, the status, and the self-worth of their supportive role. And 3) the peer mentors' pay serves as a form of much-needed financial aid for the upper-division UK AMSTEMM students.

There is considerable evidence from studies of undergraduates who remain at UK versus those who leave that one of the major factors affecting retention is the formation of personal relationships with other students. Those who form such relationships are much more likely to be retained from their first to their second years. Those who do not form such relationships are much more likely to leave. Peer mentoring is designed not only to provide advice and guidance, but also to provide a personal network that helps encourage UK AMSTEMM students to return after the first year.