by Émélie Beaudry
Starting at a new school can be daunting. We’ve all been there! But fear not: OCADU offers many resources to ease your transition. Read on to hear from Cindy Xue as we discuss the Peer Mentor program, a service offered to match you with the mentor that will help guide you through your first year at OCAD!
Émélie Beaudry: Could you tell me a little bit more about the Peer Mentor program, and your role in hosting it?
Cindy Xue: The Peer Mentor program pairs current upper year students to the new undergrad students to support them through the transition into a new environment. It’s a great way [for new students] to make their first friend in the school, learn about OCADU, and prepare themselves for the upcoming school year.
My current title is the assistant of the Orientation & Mentorship program. I’m responsible for the mentor-mentee matching process and am the first point of contact if any students involved in the program have any questions, concerns or requests.
É: What could students expect when joining the program?
C: New mentees will be assigned a mentor within a few days after they sign up, and will be notified by me via email. Mentees can expect their matched mentors to get in contact with them about a week after that through their OCADU email or the personal email they provided. If mentees don’t hear from their mentors, they are encouraged to email me for a reassignment; if they don’t respond to the emails within two weeks, they will be considered inactive and mentors will stop reaching out. Mentees can specify their mentor preferences in the sign up form and I try my best to match them with the best suited mentor. However, I can not guarantee all the preferences will be satisfied. All the mentors are volunteer based and their main job is to direct mentees to the right resources. There is a training session every year, but please don’t expect them to have all the answers.
É: Is there any part of the peer mentor program that you find gets overlooked/that you’d like to highlight?
C: A lot of mentees treat the program as a place to get quick answers and just disappear after that. It’s sad because the program is supposed to be a community building platform rather than a customer service hot line. My team has made quite a few changes to the program this year and one of them is to organize more physical events so people can feel that their mentors are not just digital profile pictures on email, but peers of similar passions. That also allows the mentors to know each other better and help one another out.
É: What’s the most fun or rewarding thing you’ve done as part of the program?
C: Solve people’s problems :) I believe a lot of the mentors have a similar reason as mine to become a mentor. I moved to a new city and explored a new school all on my own not realizing there’s a mentorship program. Then I had the opportunity to help the new students whose shoes I was once in, it feels like I helped my younger self. Now that I have the power to improve the system behind it, on one hand, I can see my own growth along the way; on the other hand, a better system encourages more mentors to join. There’s no better reward for me than seeing my effort pay off.
É: Are there any other programs that you think are beneficial to students?
C: I encourage students to do volunteer and/or paid student monitor positions on campus. I learned a great amount of general knowledge about facilities and each major during my job at the admissions office (which was obviously helpful to me with getting my current job as well). You can get much more information than expected from just listening to people.
Another place to look for a whole collection of OCADU knowledge is the OCADU 101 course and it’s not for credit or grades. Information is divided into modules and published in the order of what new students would need. The link to the course is sent to the new students in their welcoming emails, but current students can also join the course to learn more.
É: What would you tell someone that’s considering joining the program?
C: For the prospective Mentees:
Becoming a mentee does not make you weak. A lot of mentees sign up just to make some friends. Moving to a new environment can be overwhelming and confusing, but knowing someone from OCADU before arriving can ease some of those feelings. I hope that having a peer student to hold your hand through the transition can create a more intimate space to chat.
For the prospective Mentors:
As someone who’s been a peer mentor for 3 years. I can not tell you the amount of pride I feel when I see a past mentee now signed up to be a mentor and make an impact on someone’s life. Don’t feel pressured and know we do not expect you to have all the answers. What matters is showing up, sharing your genuine experiences, and helping your mentee find the right resources when they need guidance.
É: Where can students go to learn more and sign up to be a mentor or mentee?
C: Our sign up forms can be found in the bio of our instagram @ocaducampuslife, Get Mentored page on the Orientation Event website, OCADU 101 course, and the email that Office of Registrar sent out to all new students. They can read more about the Mentorship Program page on OCADU website.
É: Is there anything else you’d like to add?
C: All undergrad students who are new to OCADU, that includes the first-year students, transfer students and exchange students, etc., are welcome to sign up to be a mentee. Mentee signup generally starts in early July, and mentor signup starts in December.
Sign up to be a mentor or mentee
Forms live in the bio of @ocaducampuslife, on the Get Mentored page of the Orientation Event website, in the OCADU 101 course, and in the Registrar’s email to all new students. Read more on the Mentorship Program page at ocadu.ca.
