Peer Mentor Sign Up

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BPK PEER MENTORSHIP: Mentor Expectations and Responsibilities

[Websurvey and Application are the end of the page, updated for the 2020 – 2021 cycle. Please read the following, before applying.]

THE PURPOSE:

The BPK Peer Mentorship Program is a student-driven initiative affiliated with the BPK Student Association (BPKSA) that aims to strengthen the BPK community by connecting incoming first-years with more senior BPK students. Our goal is to give first-years the most successful, easy, and fun transition from high school to university.

As a second+ year BPK student, you have accumulated valuable knowledge over your time here at SFU. We wish to harness that wisdom for incoming first year or transfer BPK students, to ensure their transition to life here at our university is successful. We are looking for mentors that are highly engaged students in the BPK community, as well as through other volunteer opportunities, who have proven themselves academically, and who can take on whatever university life has to throw at them. We want people who enjoy the pursuit of their degree and are looking to support and guide an incoming student.

Your participation as a mentor will further the success and integration of that new student, in a profound way.

All that is required from you is a genuine commitment to the program and an actual interest in supporting and guiding the student(s) that you will be paired with. While the program is simple, flexible, and expected to help both you and your mentees grow, you will have several duties to uphold as a mentor:

RESPONSIBILITES:

  • Attend SFU peer mentorship training on one of the following dates: (Will be updated, TBD)
  • Complete the online Canvas training (approximately 2.5-3 hours) before you attend the BPK-specific training (currently will be online, likely ~2.5 hours).
  • Attend and participate in at least two BPKSA, BNSS or Peer Mentorship Program events with your mentee such as BPK Kickoff, KinCup, Careers in BPK, etc.
  • Encourage your mentee to attend such events even if you cannot attend yourself.
  • You will be paired with 1-3 mentees, and will be expected to carry out “mentor duties” with each one (see below).
  • Participate in program evaluation and individual reflection at the end of each semester.
  • Maintain communication with the Director throughout the year on your progress as a mentor.
  • Respond to emails within a timely manner, especially for your mentees; a maximum of 48 hours should be plenty.

MENTOR DUTIES:

  • Send a “Welcome to BPK Peer Mentorship” email to your mentee within one week of being paired
  • Meet your mentee face-to-face within the first two weeks of the semester
  • Carry out a minimum of 4 contacts per semester with mentee via face-to-face meeting, email, phone and/or text.
  • Provide support and guidance to your mentee throughout the fall and spring semesters.
  • Keep all information shared by your mentee confidential (unless your mentee is in an unsafe situation).
  • Create and maintain a positive, friendly, and encouraging relationship with your mentee.
  • Maintain a professional relationship with your mentee.
  • Be knowledgeable about university resources, and proactively pursue an answer if you do not know it.
  • Be willing to share your first year experience and the way you adjusted.

COMPENSATION:

  • Volunteering Achievement and Personal Growth.
  • Recognition on your Co-Curricular Record (CCR).
    • This will likely show up as 25 – 30 hours, but more hours can be verified per the Director/Assistant Directors of the program. Details will be further discussed.
  • A reference letter will be provided upon successful completion, per request.

MENTORSHIP COMMITMENT PERIOD: 

0-1 hours per week during the Fall 2018 and Spring 2019 semesters, as well as 5-6 hours of training over the Summer of 2018.

MENTOR BOUNDARIES:

As a mentor, you have a number of responsibilities and expectations, as discussed and outlined. However, it is crucial to understand your boundaries as a mentor. You CANNOT do/be everything for your mentee! Trying to carry out responsibilities outside your role may seem like a helpful thing to do, but in fact, may end up doing more harm than help. Note that this will be covered in our Summer mentorship training.

A MENTOR IS NOT:

  • A playmate or romantic partner
  • A tutor
  • A professional counsellor or therapist
  • An academic advisor
  • A surrogate parent
  • A saviour
  • Without fault or “all knowing”

It is useful to discuss with your mentee what their expectations are of you. What do they hope to get out of the program? Will they try to call you at 2am the night before their midterm or have you discussed hours that they can reach you? Questions like these should be discussed as soon as possible in order to bring to light any discrepancies between expectations. Remember that program directors are always available to assist and support you.

THE FUN STUFF:

While the above all sounds very serious and formal, we ultimately want you and your mentees to have fun! Hopefully, you are matched with your mentee based on similar interests and actually enjoy spending time with them.

We really want to thank you for reading this blurb. If you decide to participate in our Peer Mentorship program, we hope that your time as a Peer Mentor is as rewarding as your profound influence on someone’s first BPK year.

 

*** Applications for BPK Peer Mentors have re-open. Please click the below:

[CLICK HERE] APPLICATION, 2020 – 2021 Cycle.

Please send in your application by May 31st, 2020, 11:59pm**. This includes:

(1) Filling out the above application (web survey), and 

(2) E-mailing your resume to bpkpm@sfu.ca by the same date.

 

**If you are unable to apply by May 31st for any reason, please send us an e-mail at bpkpm@sfu.ca to let us know. We will send back an e-mail and grant you an additional week (deadline of June 7th, 2020 by 11:59pm). Applications given past this extended deadline will require an e-mail with some reasoning, and may not be accepted.

***Interviews for selected candidates will likely occur in early June. Please try to accommodate your schedule to open then.***

One Reply to “Peer Mentor Sign Up”

  1. Hi there,
    I am interested in becoming a mentor in Fall 2021. On the webpage, I only see the deadline for last year. Could you please email me notifying if this program is running in the future?

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