Current Students: want to be a Peer Guide?
Who can be a Peer Guide?
Anyone who is committed to helping new students settle in at Bangor can be a Peer Guide.
We have a varied student profile and our Peer Guides should reflect that 鈥� so don鈥檛 let age, gender, ethnic background or similar stop you from becoming a Peer Guide.
We are always eager to recruit good Peer Guides. All Peer Guides are expected to be a positive ambassador and role model who will help the new students in a responsible manner, by putting their needs first. In order to do this potential Peer Guides should:
- promote positive attitudes to the student experience, including adherence to regulations and procedures
- facilitate access to a range of inclusive activities
- respect individuals
- keep personal information confidential
- encourage sensible drinking
- maintain a friendly but professional (ie not overly close or intimate) relationship with those you are helping
- resist pressure to pass on your Peer Guide shirt to others or to use the access to Halls to advertise local businesses
If you are conscientious, reliable and hardworking and can do all the above in a friendly and approachable manner we would love to hear from you. However, you should think carefully before applying if:
- you help run clubs & societies, work alongside your studies or have similar commitments as you might not have enough time to spare
If you are only interested in the social activities or think that Peer Guiding is just for you to have a good time or revolves around drinking games it would be better not to apply.
What would I do as a Peer Guide?
We expect our Peer Guides to be a positive role model and to undertake their duties responsibly. There are four main areas to those duties:
Pre-arrival contact
Your Academic School will help you contact the incoming students prior to them arriving in Bangor. This might be through a text, email or letter or more commonly these days a facebook page. However, whichever method is used in your school it will give you the chance to introduce yourself, answer a few questions and find out when they are arriving in Bangor.
Arrival Weekend
The Arrival Weekend is when the Peer Guides give everyone a warm welcome to Bangor by visiting them in the Halls of Residence. You will be out there knocking on doors, making sure everyone has the basic information they need and inviting them out to the social events that have been arranged for the Saturday and Sunday evenings.
Welcome Week
Welcome Week can be busy with Peer Guides helping in excess of 15 hours in the Academic School. Typically you will help out at induction sessions, give tours so everyone finds their way about (town as well campus), give basic information and answer questions, encourage everyone to make friends and empathise with anyone who may be finding it difficult to settle. On top of all this there are likely to be social events organised by the Academic School and less formal gatherings organised by the Peer Guides.
Beyond Welcome Week
Peer Guide activity slows down. We ask that you try to maintain an informal contact with the new students and make yourselves available to help them as required. It is difficult to say how long this may last 鈥� some people settle very quickly and do not wish to keep in touch with their Peer Guides but others want to maintain the link. Generally though, contact does tend to tail off quite quickly and by the end of the first few weeks there will probably be little contact (unless you have become part of the same clubs and societies or friendship).
At training it is made clear where the boundaries of the Peer Guide role are and what Peer Guides should do if faced with issues that are beyond that role.
How to become a Peer Guide
You鈥檒l get plenty of opportunity to apply to be a Peer Guide 鈥� just keep an eye on the MyBangor timeline and watch out for various other notices, messages and emails for dates and information relating to recruitment. Basically the system works as outlined below:
Attend an information session
- Information sessions are held during semester 2, and give a brief overview of the scheme. They are designed to help you to make an informed decision as to whether or not you wish to apply.
Complete an application form
- . Use your normal Bangor log-on. There is a page of information about the role of the Peer Guide, which gives a shortened version of the information for those who have missed the information sessions. Tick the box at the end of the information to proceed to the form itself. Applicant details are sent to the academic schools to confirm acceptance onto the scheme and after that you will be able to complete the online training.
- Some Academic Schools have their own additional application systems and they will let you know about those.
Complete the training
- Training is compulsory 鈥� no-one can be a Peer Guide without completing the training. Training is done online, and this will be available to you once your application has been approved by your School. It'll also remain there for you to refer back to at any point.
Pass the screening process
- When you submit an application, your referees will be contacted and asked to complete a short form. Towards the end of semester two, your university disciplinary record will be checked. A one off minor disciplinary offence would not stop you from being a Peer Guide but serious issues or repeated disciplinaries would, as we do expect our Peer Guides to be positive role models. Presuming there are no problems with these you will then be a Peer Guide.
Once all the above is complete you will be added to the list of Peer Guides for your academic school. It is then the Peer Guide staff in your school who will keep you informed of:
- any school meetings you need to attend
- what your duties are
- the details of incoming students you are asked to support
If you wish to know more about how your school organises Peer Guides please contact the relevant member of staff using the list here.
If you would like some more information please contact peerguiding@bangor.ac.uk.