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What ARE the mentoring opportunities provided by the access service?
What ARE the mentoring opportunities provided by the access service?
The Access Service within The University of Sheffield runs several widening access programmes that work with local and national schools and colleges. The programmes on offer have recently been reviewed and overhauled to ensure that mentoring provision is embedded within their offer. As a result the targeted participants of these programmes will therefore at times receive the opportunity to be matched to a University current student Mentor for a set number of weeks to receive tailored 1 to 1 support.
The Mentoring opportunity is designed to provide direct support for young people who have the academic potential to progress to university, who are from backgrounds that are currently under-represented in Higher Education or have no family tradition of going to university. Our mentoring opportunity has become embedded in several programmes including:
Access to Sheffield Year 9 - Year 11 (Mentoring takes place in Year 9 and Year 10)
Access to Sheffield Pathways for Y12 and Y13 (Medicine, Dental Professions, Law, Arts, Humanities & social sciences, STEM)
Access to Sheffield Summer School
Access+ Participants (Y13 only for those that firm TUOS with UCAS)
The student mentor role is paid, regular employment, not a voluntary or casual activity, and as such we expect a high level of commitment and reliability from our mentors. The transferable skills developed through participation are highly sought after by employers, and are of particular relevance to anyone wanting to go on to work in the education/youth sector. As a mentor you will be DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checked and undertake appropriate mentor and safeguarding training
As a student mentor you will either work in-person within school (for pre-16), or online via the university’s Blackboard Collaborate platform (for post-16). For both opportunities you will work for 4 hours per week, which allows time for session preparation and/or travel time. Mentors will be matched to a mentoring ‘block’ based on their availability. This will include being matched to either one of our partnered local schools for in-person mentoring with Year 9 & Year 10 students, or else directly with Year 12 & Year 13 participants from a Post-16 programme for virtual mentoring. In-person mentoring will be conducted in teams of 4 mentors with a ‘lead mentor’ to help coordinate delivery. Mentoring, whether it is in school or online, will always be at the same time each week for a series of weeks across the ‘block’ of mentoring, usually 6-8 weeks at a time
The main aims of the mentoring provision are:
To provide positive role models for local young people
To increase the attainment of participating young people
To raise the confidence, self-esteem, and motivation of participants
To raise awareness of HE amongst under-represented groups
To provide University of Sheffield students with the opportunity to gain school classroom experience
To provide University of Sheffield students with the chance to develop and evidence transferable skills
To provide skill development via Skills Builder.
At The University of Sheffield, Access Mentoring is coordinated by a dedicated mentoring team in the Access Service, which sits within Student Recruitment, Marketing and Admissions. The team provides widening participation opportunities to raise aspirations of local young people, and gives them a realistic insight into University life. Access Mentoring is one of a number of programmes coordinated by the Access Service.
what are the benefits of the programme?
what are the benefits of the programme?
Student Mentors
Student Mentors
The programme will give student mentors the chance to:
Gain experience of working with young people
Gain first-hand experience of what a career in teaching/education involves
Develop transferable skills such as communication, leadership, initiative, adaptability, planning and organisation etc., enhancing employability
Get involved in the local community
Contribute to CVs, support initial teacher training applications and/or graduate scheme applications
Contribute to University award schemes e.g. Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR) or mySkills
Earn a regular income
The University of Sheffield
The University of Sheffield
The programme encourages better links between the University and local schools. Some of the benefits to the University are:
Raising the profile of the institution locally and nationally
Raising awareness of the opportunities that HE offers
Providing local young people with positive role models (from HE)
Raising aspirations and ambitions of local young people
Raising attainment in local schools
Providing students with a regular income
Providing students with a chance to evidence key transferable skills
Providing students with the opportunity to gain in-school experience
Schools
Schools
Schools often find that participation in the programme contributes to:
Improving mentees’ attitudes to learning, aspirations, and attainment
Positive partnerships with staff and students at The University of Sheffield
Promotion of widening participation to Further and Higher Education
Raising the awareness of and aspirations to Higher Education to the wider school cohort
Enhanced or enriched curriculum through University student mentors’ support and ideas
The school improvement agenda
what are the key roles of the participants?
what are the key roles of the participants?
Student Mentors
Student Mentors
Student Mentors are carefully recruited and selected each year. The role carries significant responsibility, and therefore all mentors are required to:
Take part in all pre-programme and CPD training provided by the University
Attend all the in school and virtual mentoring sessions over the agreed period of weeks
Support classroom teachers and other school staff in a professional manner
Act as a role model and give a first-hand view of the benefits of Higher Education (HE)
Submit all required paperwork and evaluations as requested by the Mentoring Team
Adhere to the Code of Conduct at all times
Fill in their own individual weekly timesheet via myJobshop each week and on time
The University of Sheffield
The University of Sheffield
The University of Sheffield is responsible for recruiting students to work as mentors and for supporting them throughout their time on the programme. The University also provides administration for the project including:
Recruitment and selection of participating students (mentors)
Administration and delivery of a thorough preparation training programme
Administration and delivery of further CPD training sessions
Liaison with local schools participating in the project
Day-to-day coordination of the mentoring programme
The University has staff appointed to manage the programme. They provide support and guidance for School Coordinators and Student Mentors. Ongoing contact is maintained through meetings, Google Drive (schools only), regular emails, social media, and text alerts (mentors only).
Schools
Schools
Within the school the project is managed by a Strategic Coordinator, usually a senior member of staff. There is also an Operational Coordinator, who manages the programme on a day-to-day basis. The coordinators are responsible for:
Ensuring young people, teachers, and mentors get maximum benefit from their experience
Overseeing the necessary practical arrangements for sessions
Briefing the mentors on the background to the school and its policies
Liaising with the University in relation to the mentors and mentees
Ensuring all young people and staff involved understand the aims of the Access Mentoring programme
Providing ongoing information, support, and guidance to all participants
Completion of the end of programme online evaluation form
Supplying data on how the student mentors have impacted upon raising standards in the classroom, where possible
Contributing to the monitoring and evaluation of the programme, by providing feedback on the achievements of the participants
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