Purpose: This study aims to describe the development and validation of a student survey instrument to assess academic advising services. The instrument was based on the SERVQUAL scale, a well-known instrument for service quality. Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative methodology was used. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire using a survey instrument adapted from SERVQUAL. Survey responses were collected from 457 students at a large public university in the USA. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used to validate and develop the assessment instrument. Findings: A validated assessment scale for academic advising services was generated, which consists of three distinct advising service dimensions: information resources, reliability and empathy. For the study participants, information resources and empathy were found to significantly influence satisfaction with advising. Practical implications: This study describes the development and validation of a concise nine-item survey instrument that may be used by practitioners to evaluate three distinct dimensions of advising service quality: information resources, reliability and empathy. Originality/value: This research develops and validates a survey instrument to assess academic advising services based on the SERVQUAL scale using structural equation modeling.