Questioning is a helping skill advisors need in order to facilitate discussion with advisees. The situation will dictate what type of questions you choose to ask, similar to the type of advising you will employ.

Types of Questions

Closed Questions

• Used to obtain specific facts
• Best to begin conversations with these types of questions - makes it easy for advisees to enter the conversation
• Can be used to direct conversation to specific areas

Involvement Open Questions

• Draws your advisees more actively into the discussion
• Can be used to get your advisees to elaborate on their objectives, needs, wants, goals, and problems
• Allows your advisees to discover things on their own

Clarifying Questions

• Invite your advisees to expand or clarify an idea they previously expressed
• Feedback of your understanding of what you thought your advisees meant
• Helps uncover what is really on your advisee's mind

Continuing (Key Word) Questions

• Ask your advisees for a more detailed explanation of what they were saying
• Encourage your advisees to go into more detail along the same lines they were pursuing

Third Party Opinion Questions

• An indirect probe
• Relates to how others feel or react to a particular subject and then asking your advisees their reactions to that same subject

Reference
Adapted from "Types of Questions," as found in Crockett, D.S. (Ed.). Advising Skills, Techniques, and Resources. Iowa City, Iowa: The American College Testing Program, 1986. p. 175.