The Impact Peer Mentoring Can have on Freshman Students

Abstract

The transition from high school to college can be very difficult for many students. At the University of Pittsburgh, we have a system of courses and academic counseling that is designed to address these issues and help with this transition. One major component to help the freshman make this major transition is a series of mentoring courses that the entering student can select for the first semester. This paper discussed how these courses are integrated and describe the interaction of counseling with the first semester engineering problem solving course. The paper discussed the mentor selection process, the mentor-training program, and the topics covered in the mentoring sessions. Finally the impact of mentoring was compared to the student learning styles to show how mentoring can have a major impact on a group of students