Peer Mentoring in the Faculty of Engineering
Peer mentors are student volunteers who help fellow students. Mentors can share their experiences, tips for success, and generally be a friendly face in the Faculty. All peer mentors receive training and will be able to signpost you to other University resources if necessary.
Being a peer mentor gives students the chance to build or improve soft skills, such as communication skills, team work and interpersonal skills, which are all sought after by employers.
The Peer Mentoring Programme is also an optional Nottingham Advantage Award module.
To sign up to become a peer mentor, get matched with a peer mentor, or find out more, please email the team.
Why having a peer mentor is great
A peer mentor is a student in a higher year and therefore has been in your situation before. They can help you get settled into university life and support you with general and academic queries. Our peer mentors are very approachable and eager to help. Peer Mentors are allocated by department and you will seem them around in your Welcome Week departmental sessions and throughout the year. They will wear the hoodies pictured below (dark navy with an orange hood).
What a peer mentor can help you with:
- finding your way around campus and Nottingham.
- understanding university procedures.
- finding information.
- finding a student society.
- getting your head around university IT systems.
- getting to grips with university studies and independent learning.
- preparing for exams.
- difficulties in modules by giving explanations.
There are, however, some issues they won't be able to help you with, such as financial difficulties, relationship advice or emotional and welfare support. But they will be able to point you to a university service that will be able to help you. And of course, our peer mentors won't do your work for you or give you all the answers.
My peer mentor helped me, from the first week of courses, with tips about living in halls and making friends.
How do I find a peer mentor?
If you would like to be matched with a peer mentor, please email the team, make sure to include your department, degree course and student number:
EZ-peer-mentoring@exmail.nottingham.ac.uk
Meeting the peer mentors at the start of term was really helpful. I felt more relaxed and informed about the course and student life.
Advantages of being a peer mentor
Peer mentors play a big part in supporting new students and helping the faculty to improve the experience students have while here at Nottingham. Their eagerness to help and dedication to support new students makes them a real asset to the faculty.
Benefits of being a peer mentor include:
- Learning and development of soft skills, such as communication skills, team work, problem solving and adaptability. These soft skills are sought after by employers and using examples from your experience as a peer mentor will help you to prove you have these skills and stand out.
- Get these soft skills recognised by completing the associated Nottingham Advantage Award module.
- Be part of a great team of peer mentors and make a difference for new students by supporting them to settle into university life.
- Meet new people from different courses and expand your network.
- Get a peer mentor hoodie.
- Support and take part in events such as Wobble Week and University Mental Health Day.
The variety of individual and group interactions, as well as face-to-face and online methods of communicating, have given me a breadth of opportunities to both develop new skills and utilise existing skills in new situations.
Who can become a peer mentor?
- Undergraduate students in their second year or above.
- Foundation year students who have started their first year of their undergraduate course.*
*Eligible to mentor only current foundation year students until they progress to second year.
Training and support
Peer mentors complete online training, where they get taught basic knowledge that will help them in their role as peer mentors.
The training includes topics such as:
- Communication - verbal, written and non-verbal
- Building relationships
- Reading body language
- Communication tools such as active listening and using different types of questions
- Where to refer a mentee with an issue that is outside of the peer mentor's remit
Peer mentors are supported by staff in the Education and Student Experience team. Peer mentors who are completing the associated Nottingham Advantage Award module can access guidance and support information on Moodle when they sign up, and from the team.
All in all, I would highly recommend a peer mentoring experience to any student who wants to improve their communication skills, build resilience, learn about healthy tips and tricks which will assist you while building a rapport with people around you.
More information about the peer mentoring scheme