Digital Pedagogy Consulting in Higher Education: An Analysis of Professional Contexts

Abstract

The digital transformation of higher education has underscored the strategic importance of digital learning advisors (DLAs). However, their role remains poorly defined and little understood, both in institutional documents and in the academic literature. This article presents an analysis of the professional situations experienced by DLAs based on a qualitative study conducted with thirteen professionals from ten college and university institutions in Quebec. Based on semi-structured interviews and the researcher’s reflective journal, seventeen situations were identified and grouped into seven categories: guidance and support, instructional design and innovation, facilitation and training, information analysis and processing, strategic and institutional leadership, collaboration and knowledge sharing, and management and coordination. The approach based on professional situations allows us to move beyond the prescriptive descriptions found in the literature and anchor our understanding of the role in the actual work of practitioners, within contexts marked by tensions, unforeseen events, and institutional constraints. The results highlight the diversity, cross-functional nature, and complexity of the role, revealing a profession at the intersection of pedagogy, technology, and organizational strategy. They open up new avenues for the professionalization, recruitment, and institutional recognition of DLAs.