WHAT

Community Mentoring Programme “Students as Community Builders” is designed for experienced (graduate) students (migrant students and first generation students), who will be trained in workshops to become community-building mentors for undergraduate students. The community-building mentors learn how to develop collaboration between groups of peers and how to engage student groups in their learning outside of the classroom. Student-Mentors support students in their independent learning strategies. Also the community-building mentors act as role models by informing other students about their personal student pathways (e.g. challenges during study, what they enjoy most about studying and they also learn to share how they study and prepare for exams).

HOW

After these workshops, the community-building mentors receive a certificate and are now allowed to work with undergraduate students. For this purpose, learning communities are formed, each led by a community-building mentor. The community-building mentor passes on knowledge to the others and develops a supportive culture among the students.

WHY

The benefit for the mentors is to reflect on their own successful learning and studying strategies that can be important for their biography and following career steps. Undergraduate students benefit from the student community-building in being more
included in social student networks and they identify more with university (sense of belonging) – these aspects are highlighted as relevant for study-success and prevent drop out.

Timing

During the Dialogue Days, which will make the case for diversity and deliberate action to be inclusive, the Community Mentors will be introduced to students.

Participants

Students from either a migrant background and/or FGE will be asked to volunteer for becoming student community-building mentors.

Duration

Mentoring scheme lasts throughout the academic year. Workshop for Community Mentors is organized at the beginning of the academic year.

Follow up

Mentoring scheme will allow for creation of strong student-community, that will thrive with various community building activities.

Community Mentoring: Learning Objectives

At the workshops the community-building mentors will learn how to:

  • develop collaboration between groups of peers
  • engage student groups in their learning outside of the classroom
  • support students in their independent learning strategies.

Community-building mentors will act as role models by informing other students about their personal student pathways (e.g. challenges during study, what they enjoy most about studying and they also learn to share how they study and prepare for exams).

After these workshops, the community-building mentors receive a certificate and are allowed to work with undergraduate students.

Main Goal of the mentoring program is to:

  • establish community-building mentors as contact persons and role models for
    undergraduate students
  • develop and expand student networks
  • improve the communication between students and teachers in a sustainable way
  • Strengthen the sense of belonging among the students
  • Develop guidelines for a referential of competences related with the mentoring community