All students who enter the University of Iowa are assigned to an academic advisor based on their primary major. Students who are directly admitted to the colleges of Business, Education, Engineering, Nursing, Public Health, and Pharmacy are advised by an advisor in their college. The remaining 75% of students in the entering class are advised by advisors at the Academic Advising Center. This includes students in declared majors in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Open majors, and pre-professional students (pre-law and pre-health programs).

Students with declared majors in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences move to departmental advising once they earn 30 semester hours. Academic Advising Center advisors advise pre-professional students throughout their undergraduate career, as they prepare for their application to graduate or professional school.