Mentoring at Dundee College

1
Mentoring at Dundee College

• Proposal To establish and embed within the
  support structures in the college an additional
  layer of support through the creation of a pool
  of student mentors, who, after appropriate
  screening and training would act as peer mentors
  to individual or groups of vulnerable students at
  transition stages and on an ongoing basis

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• The mentors would act as befrienders to
  vulnerable students
• Support college induction by familiarising
  students with the college environment, learning
  and teaching approaches and support structures in
  the college
• On an ongoing basis meet with the student(s)
  through out their programme of study as
  appropriate, offer peer support, and act as a
  point of referral/advocacy to support services in
  the college
• Support the student(s) to become more independent
  learners
• Support the student(s) in the transition from
  Dundee College to HE, in particular, the local
  universities of Abertay and Dundee.

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Establish liaison mechanisms with mentors at the
  universities
• Establish themselves as a Mentoring Group, aimed
  at developing and improving the service and
  feeding back to the college student issues,
  concerns and suggestions
• With the support of the colleges Student
  Services team contribute to the monitoring and
  evaluation of the scheme
• Identify appropriate representation on the
  Steering Group

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Outcomes
• Vulnerable students would receive effective and
  responsive peer support aiding their retention,
  success and transition to higher education
• Mentors would increase their employability and
  citizenship skills
• A model of good practice would be established
  which could be replicated in other colleges

5
Mentoring at Dundee College

• Developments
• College working group established
• Research in to models of Mentoring undertaken
• Identification of possible model(s) for Dundee
  College based on perceived student need

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Mentoring Pilots
• Cross college students based in college
  accommodation students from out with Dundee
  international students students with
  disabilities
• Curriculum students in Social Care students in
  Arts, Dance, Horticulture, Music

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Mentoring Students Away From Home
• Identifying Needs and Types of Support
• - Focus Groups
• Issues
• - Arrival and integration
• - Living and Learning
• - Supporting and Signposting
• - Local Community

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Mentoring Students Away from Home
• Research
• -Materials
• -other institutions
• Student recruitment process
• - College accommodation
• - Dance/theatre
• Information/Training session
• Mentor/Mentee pilot
• Monitoring

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Mentoring Students Away from Home
• Pilot Outcomes
• Living in close proximity
• Mentee need and mentor availability
• - Curriculum demands
• Student Induction
• - natural progression to buddying

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Mentoring Students Away from Home
• Next Steps
• Target students in independent accommodation
• Liaise with private companies
• Integrate more with the International mentoring
  scheme

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• International Students
• Identifying Needs
• - Focus Group - International Staff
  discussion
• Emerging Issues
• - Arrival and Induction
• - Language and Living
• - Studying and Progression
• - Cultural and Social

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• International Students
• Research
• - Peer connections/TESS
• - Volunteer helpers/SFEU
• - Other mentor schemes
• Steering Group
• - International office/curriculum/ESOL/SS
• Design
• - Role of Mentor
• - Referral Supervision
• - Resources Recruiting
• - Monitoring Development
• - Payment Accreditation

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• International Students
• Next Steps
• Clarify referral, supervision and support
  mechanisms
• Finalise necessary materials
• Recruit more students
• Continue training
• Monitor progress
• Integrate into college and communicate externally

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Curriculum Based Approaches
• Who identified need?
• Recruitment
• Training
• Partnerships
• Models for piloting

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Curriculum Based Approaches
• Outcomes
• Valid Research
• Curriculum driven
• Availability and appropriateness of personnel
• Need for a variety of models
• Timing and design of Training

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Generic Outcomes
• Training materials created adaptable to range of
  contexts ( SFEU supported)
• Recruitment, selection, disclosure checks in
  place
• Payment Procedures (where appropriate)
  established
• Exploration of Accreditation

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• Lessons (so far)
• No singular model for Mentoring but generic
  processes can be applied
• Staff commitment leadership needs to rest with
  people responsible for the students
• Student commitment training, accreditation/recog
  nition, time, difficulties with transitory nature
  of students

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Mentoring at Dundee College

• What next?