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 “Yes! I am currently responsible for an undergraduate mentoring program and the positive responses to the program far outweigh the occasional frustrations.”~ Keith Marriott, University of Cincinnati at Clermont College, November 5 “Last spring we began a peer adviser program. The basic idea was that as students will always seek advice from other students, we (the faculty and the Office of Academic Advising) wanted to increase the likelihood that the advice being given was correct.During Orientation Week we had some peer advisers on campus. It was an overwhelming success – I have yet to hear a word of complaint. Even faculty who were very wary of saying students should give advice were complimentary! On a practical level, I have noticed that I get a lot of questions via the peer advisers. They have been trained, and the thing I emphasize the most is that it is OK to say 'I don't know but I will find out the answer for you.' ” ~ Michele Daley, Rice University, November 5 “Undergraduates are ALWAYS peer advisers. They advise in the residence halls, the cafeterias, on the bus commute, in the local pub, etc. Unfortunately, this kind of peer advising is not sanctioned or monitored in any official way.
Now, I realize that the question refers to a more formalized and structured peer advising program, so I will try to respond accordingly.
What can they do? They can greatly enhance and support individual academic advisers (faculty and staff). Some viable tasks include assistance with the scheduling functions, the calculation of GPAs (especially deficits from some pre-determined standard), reviewing term loads (combinations of specific courses and/or instructors re: expectations in the courses), making appropriate referrals (if the adviser is not the person), and helping students understand what their issues or concerns really are, that is, to help frame questions for the adviser.Some tasks they should not attempt to perform include explaining the academic curriculum, explaining the rationale for the curriculum and/or academic policies, encouraging students to 'beat the system' (to avoid a requirement, procedure, etc.), violating any expectation of confidentiality of other students, providing opinions about 'bad teachers,' and signing forms for advisers. Ethics – I can't imagine any peer advising program designed to be unethical. Therefore, the critical element is in the training aspect of the peer advisers. All of the do's and dont's mentioned above must be clearly articulated in the training effort, thus always insuring ethical expectations and behaviors.” ~ Tom Grites, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, November 5 “I have been reluctant to use peer advisers at our community college. Reasons:
~ John Wick, Naugatuck Valley Community College, November 5 “I was a peer mentor/tutor for two years at a junior college and I believe that a successful peer adviser is one who can be able to give guidance to other students by relating their own experiences to what the incoming students may have to face. Peer advisers should not give information on academic policies and other requirements that they do not have complete information about. When I was transferring from a junior college to a university, a peer adviser helped me with my classes and persuaded me to take courses that were a waste of time and money. I never once got to talk to a professional adviser about what the best courses would be for me to take. It took me a whole semester longer than it should have as a result of improper advice. I am in favor of peer advisers if they are used as mentors to students who need that extra push in order to succeed academically. Peer advisers should make good grades and give good advice on how to succeed in college, but they should not give bad information about the type of courses a student should be put in. ”~ Revonna Woods, University of Texas at Arlington, November 12 The Mentor is published by Penn State's Division of Undergraduate Studies Available online at www.psu.edu/dus/mentor/ Privacy and Legal Statements | Copyright | © The Pennsylvania State University | All rights reserved | |
