Peer support and collaboration can be one’s strongest assets when navigating the many demands of a highly-competitive university program. However, it is easy for students to feel overwhelmed by the goal-oriented atmosphere and lose sight of what the real competition is.
When students politely ask each other how they are doing, they sometimes listen for the subtext or clues indicating the academic success of the other. They may feel nervous when they are told an exam was a success or relief when they are told their peer found it difficult. This selfish nature stems from a fear of being left behind from the pack, a desire to be seen as above-average and a determination to only fall short when everyone else does too. At the end of the day, the achievements of a single peer will have no effect on the outcome of one’s own success, yet it’s easy to dwell on these academic differences.
In a discussion with a group of students in Western’s Medical Science program, we began to discuss the possibilities that could evolve through learning someone else’s student password. We considered how far someone may be willing to go assure their own success over their peers’. The question of sabotage entered the playing field. Is sabotage ever a legitimate consideration, driven by fear and self-preservation? Ideas were shared and became more and more cynical as people’s competitive natures were revealed: “You could open up an online quiz, and then simply let it run out of time, or you could send professors insulting messages through another’s account, possibly leading to their removal from the program entirely.”
The possibilities here are endless. However, not a single one will improve one’s own chances of success as much as a good support system, like-minded peers to collaborate with or someone that one can face the competition with together. Instead of striving for perfection, we should be striving for individual growth. The knowledge and experience gained through these university programs can be used to create meaningful change and develop one’s personal impact on society. The support and motivation that can be gained from like-minded peers will allow one’s personal growth to be nurtured and achieve their optimal potential.
In this fast-paced society it is easy to feel alone or struggle to keep up with the pace of those around you. That is when you need the support of your peers most of all.
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