On move-in day my freshman year, I kept my door open while I started to unpack. One of my RA’s stopped by to introduce himself, then the girl who lived across the hall from me, and then my other RA introduced herself. The next girl that introduced herself to me told me her name, and followed it up with “I’m your Peer Mentor!”
I don’t think I have ever been more confused in my life. A what? What do you even do? Are you just trying to tell me you’re my friend? Thank God she saw the look of confusion on my face, because then she explained what she does—“I’m sort of like an RA, but for academics!” But with so many services offered at UMass, I still wasn’t totally clear as everything a Peer Mentor has to do, until I became one. So, what exactly does a Peer Mentor do?
We’re here to listen!
Peer Mentors are wicked friendly! Whether you want to talk about your classes, get advice, or to just chat, we’re always here for you.
We’re here to give you information!
Look at all the information we can pass onto you! We’re constantly caught up on important deadlines like Add/Drop or Pass/Fail dates. We can also help you with anything SPIRE-related, like enrolling in classes or setting up your housing assignment.
We’re here to refer you to On Campus services!
Like I said before, we have so much information on hand. But if you have a specific major-question, or if you’re not sure who can answer your question, we can help you get in touch with the right people!
We’re here to help you succeed!
Each Peer Mentor spends 5-hours a week in the RASC, the Resident Academic Success Center. It’s basically like our own Drop-In hours, where you can come in with any kind of questions you have.
Freshmen Collegiettes, talk to your Peer Mentor today!