UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — On its surface, the Academic Peer Mentoring Program (APMP) in the Division of Undergraduate Studies was designed to benefit its mentees, but its mentors say the program is rewarding and has helped them develop crucial career readiness skills.
Through a partnership with DUS and Penn State Learning, APMP mentors are undergraduates who are specially trained to offer guidance, support and real-world strategies to peer undergraduates who are on or near academic warning. Mentors must enroll in and complete EDUC 295, a one-credit preparatory course that covers skills such as motivational interviewing, time management, coaching and other valuable skills. Mentors and mentees are then paired together and meet weekly throughout the semester.
George Kadavil, who graduated in May with degrees in biology and psychology, said APMP taught him how to interact in formal mentor-mentee relationships. He said he saw the APMP program mentioned in a newsletter and thought it would be a good idea to become a mentor to develop his skills and bolster his resume.
Kadavil said it’s already paid off, since teaching and mentoring were brought up during an interview for medical school, which he hopes to attend. While he was involved in the program, Kadavil said he enjoyed getting to know his mentees and helping them become successful in their studies. His first mentee was an international student, and he was able to figure out right away one reason why she was struggling.
“Time zones are different in China than it is in the USA,” Kadavil said. “So, she was just kind of sleeping through her classes. She didn’t have the energy.”
He said he also saw that she was struggling with the language and missing some crucial information in her classes. Over the course of the semester, Kadavil said she found community at Penn State and became more comfortable, and he saw her energy increase.
“It was really cool to be able to learn about my mentee, relate to her, empathize with her and be able to honestly see her succeed,” he said.
He said his mentees were very different from one another, and he tried to keep an open-minded approach.
“You can't always predict the way that it will go, so another really good thing to keep in mind is flexibility within these relationships as well, because it's not all going to be set in stone,” Kadavil said.
Emily Hidalgo, a fourth-year Schreyer Scholar majoring in math and minoring in human development and family studies, had similar things to say about the three mentees she's had since joining APMP. While all three were unique, she said for each she always tried to lay down a foundation of trust and motivation at the start of each semester.
“I really want to build that trust and rapport in order to get my student to want to open up to me about their academic struggles or life struggles,” Hidalgo said.
Hidalgo was previously part of the DUS Leadership Council and was recommended to APMP by her DUS adviser, Kathy Garren. She said the EDUC 295 course and guidance she received helped her to fully understand the resources she was given and the techniques used in formal mentorship. Among those key techniques was motivational interviewing.
“Motivational interviewing is pretty much a way of interviewing where you're not answering the questions for them, but instead you're asking guiding questions,” Hidalgo said. “So you’re not telling people the answers, but you’re working together through some constructive talk in order to get to the answers. But they're able to get to it themselves.”
Brendaly Drayton, student success manager and scholar in residence for learning communities at Penn State Learning; and Tanja St. Pierre, director for New Student Orientation and student engagement in the Division of Undergraduate Studies, co-lead the APMP program. St. Pierre said it’s crucial that mentors learn to work with students who might be very different from themselves. They also have to learn about resources they might never have needed in their own lives.
“We bring in a lot of guest speakers to talk to the mentors from a variety of offices,” St. Pierre said. “We teach them how to differentiate Penn State’s available resources, and to help their mentees recognize when to seek additional help when it’s appropriate.”
Mentors are taught to differentiate between resources and service in a way that benefits the mentee best, in their particular situation, St. Pierre said. This allows mentors to build critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
“In the past six years our mentors have helped many students achieve good academic standing,” Drayton said. “They have also honed transferable skills noted in the list of attributes employers look for on resumes according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers.”
Sam Kilareski, a third-year student studying finance and economics, said he joined APMP as a mentor as a way to give back to other students.
“I know there’s a lot going on in college with academics and socially, and there’s just a lot of change,” he said. “You’re moving to a new place, and oftentimes one thing people are lacking is a more one-on-one connection with students around them. I thought this would be a great way to provide that connection to those that might be lacking it.”
Since completing his training, Kilareski has had two mentees. He said he’s found the experience to be rewarding and will continue as a mentor this year. The training, and subsequent mentoring experiences, taught him a lot about intentional communication.
“Understanding the impact that your words have, and what you're saying and how you're saying it is something that has definitely been prioritized through this mentorship program.”
Learn how to become a peer mentor
The Academic Peer Mentor Program, through the Division of Undergraduate Studies and supported by Penn State Learning, connects students who are on or near academic warning with experienced Penn State students who can offer support, guidance, and real-world strategies for academic success.
Students interested in becoming a mentor must be a second year or higher student enrolled at the University Park campus, have a GPA of at least 2.67 and be passionate about helping others. Successful applicants will be enrolled in the one-credit, half-semester course EDUC 295 Mentoring for Success. The course starts Oct. 20 and meets from 2:30 to 3:45 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays. To become a peer mentor, students must earn a B or higher in the course and complete a mentorship interview.
“APMP promotes student success for both mentors and mentees, one that allows academic peer mentor to build valuable career readiness skills during their time at Penn State,” St. Pierre said.
Apply to become a mentor here.
The Division of Undergraduate Studies and Penn State Learning are part of Penn State Undergraduate Education.