Being a Peer Mentor



Peer Mentoring

Being a Peer Mentor

Almost any student can be a peer mentor. Probably the most important qualities to have as a peer mentor are enthusiasm, patience and an interest in working with people.

What is peer mentoring?

• Peer mentoring involves students supporting each other in a structured scheme. The support could relate to any aspect of University life: academic, social or practical.

• Peer mentoring usually involves one or more experienced students supporting a group of less experienced students but may also be on a one-to-one basis.

• Key to successful peer mentoring is building constructive relationships between mentors and mentees and between the mentees themselves.

Is there more than one kind of peer mentoring?

• Yes. Peer mentoring is a general term for organised student-to-student support that can cover any or all aspects of student life, whether academic, social or practical.

• There are several schemes at the University. They range from those that focus on helping students manage the first few months of their time at University, including matters such as organising finances, accommodation and transport, and building friendships, to those schemes that focus on academic matters.

• Buddying is a term sometimes used in place of peer mentoring. Peer-assisted learning (PAL) may be used to refer to peer mentoring schemes that are more focused on academic learning.

How does peer mentoring fit in with other kinds of support?

• Peer mentoring complements and does not replace other kinds of support offered to students by the University, such as the Students’ Union, Student Services or a personal tutor. However, a mentor may well find themselves directing students to these services and so they need a good understanding of what the services provide.

• A mentor is not a substitute for a personal tutor or a welfare advisor. Nevertheless, their first-hand experience of student life makes them ideally placed to provide support to fellow students.

What’s in it for you?

Being a peer mentor is not only enjoyable, but it can benefit you in many ways.

• You are meeting people in a helping context, striking up friendships that you might not otherwise have done.

• Helping others increases your own confidence.

• Assisting other students find their way around the University systems, their academic subject, or to deal with other challenges, will consolidate your own knowledge and understanding.

• Gaining some understanding of how other people learn will, in turn, help you to learn.

• Mentoring develops important transferable skills, such as the ability to set up productive meetings, facilitate discussion, and nurture group problem-solving. Such skills are valuable during your studies and in the workplace.

• Being a peer mentor will look good on your CV. It will provide evidence that you are willing to take on responsibility and get involved in your department’s service to students. It may help you get a work placement or a job.

• Peer mentoring can contribute to the Bath Award.

Why does peer mentoring work?

Peer mentoring has proved to be successful at the University of Bath and at other universities around the country.

• Students may find it easier to raise issues with a fellow student rather than with a personal tutor.

• Fellow students can empathise with each other’s problems and challenges. They may have developed strategies for dealing with particular difficulties that they can share with others.

• Peer mentoring groups encourage students to work together to solve problems. Mentors are there to encourage discussion and problem solving.

• Peer mentoring provides an opportunity for diverse groups of students to meet. Students from a wide range of backgrounds come together in an informal but structured setting.

• Peer mentoring can encourage the development of a wide range of skills among mentees, including more effective listening, talking and problem solving.

• Students set the agenda for peer mentoring sessions. They ‘own’ what is discussed as well as how it is discussed.

How does peer mentoring work?

• Your departmental co-ordinator (a student or staff member) will explain the aims of your scheme and how it operates.

• If you wish to be a peer mentor you will be asked to attend training sessions so that you become comfortable and competent in your mentoring role.

• Your role as a peer mentor depends on the nature of the scheme you have joined. For example, the scheme may be concerned with students’ general acclimatisation to life at university or may relate specifically to academic learning?

• Whatever the nature of your scheme, if you are asked questions that seem to lie beyond its scope – do not avoid the issue or close down discussion about it, but direct students to other sources of help at the University. Do not try to take on the role of counsellor or personal tutor.

Planning a peer mentoring session

Peer mentoring sessions are informal. Nevertheless, they still require some planning.

• Choose an informal location for a group or one-to-one session. Unless the focus is on academic work, a café or common room may be a suitable place where students feel comfortable and able to talk. (Try to avoid pubs and bars unless you are confident that all your mentees are happy with venues where alcohol is served).

• The first meeting with a peer mentoring group may require more planning than most. Unless students have already been introduced to each other, encouraging them to introduce themselves and say something about their background should be one of the first things you do. Be sensitive to the needs of individual students – some will be much shyer than others. You can also use icebreakers (exercises that encourage participants to interact by sharing names and other information about themselves) to help students get to know each other.

• As a mentor your role is that of facilitator. Ownership of any meetings after the first one should rest with the group as a whole. In advance, get the group to agree topics for the next meeting (but be prepared with some suggestions).

• Once topics for a session are agreed, you will need to do some homework to consider the major issues that might need to be covered for a given topic. Make yourself aware of any University services or procedures that might be relevant to the topic under discussion.

• A key issue is confidentiality. Unless you or others are explicitly given permission otherwise by the individual concerned, anything discussed at a one-to-one or group meeting is confidential. This needs to be made clear to the group or individual. Confidentiality is the fundamental basis for developing trust.

Running a peer mentoring session

• As a peer mentor you are not there to provide all the answers. You are there to stimulate discussion, help deal with issues that students bring, and get students to work together to find answers to their own questions. The training you receive will help you do this.

• Some of the issues raised by your mentees will require more expert help than you can provide. Where appropriate, direct mentees to other support structures around the University, such as Student Services, the Students’ Union or a personal tutor. To guide students effectively you will need to be familiar with what the various services have to offer.

• Do share your experiences but don’t dominate the meeting. The fact that you’ve experienced similar issues to the ones students are encountering, and have found a way through them, will give you credibility in students’ eyes.

• Peer mentoring is an opportunity for students to ask questions without feeling that they are being judged. Listen to students attentively and seek not to make judgements or limit discussion.

Being a good peer mentor

• Be positive. Help lift the spirits of students who may have low self-esteem or be lacking in confidence.

• Be reliable. Set the standard in the relationship by committing to, and arranging, regular meetings.

• Be a good listener. People do not always listen carefully to each other. Showing that you listen well will encourage your mentee(s) to know that you respect their views. Developing effective listening and questioning skills (see mentor support and development) is a key part of peer mentoring training.

• Communicate clearly. Explain your intentions to mentees, discuss their expectations, and check your understanding and theirs.

• Show interest. Make a conscious effort to remember previous discussions and if appropriate, take brief notes. Typically, the first part of a meeting follows up on points from the previous meeting.

• Be approachable. Be relaxed, friendly and responsive to the needs and concerns of others.

• Be non-judgemental. As far as possible, do not apply your own standards or experience as the sole basis for building your relationship with mentees.

• Be realistic. Don’t make promises you can’t keep.

Confidentiality

• Students will not openly discuss their concerns if they feel that sensitive information they are sharing will be passed on.

• What is discussed between you and your mentee(s) is confidential to you and them. Only in exceptional cases should information be shared outside the peer mentoring relationship (see below).

• Nevertheless, the boundaries of the peer mentoring relationship do need to be clearly set out. A peer mentor can break confidentiality if they genuinely have concerns for another’s health and wellbeing. Such rare situations include if a student seems to be at serious risk of harming themselves or another person, or if the student appears to be on the point of failing or leaving a course. In such cases, a peer mentor can consult a personal tutor (their own or the student’s), the relevant Director of Studies, or the Departmental Co-ordinator for Peer Mentoring.

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