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20 March 2023 | Story Lunga Luthuli | Photo Lunga Luthuli
Peer mentor support programme
Pictured are students who recently attended the peer mentor training programme for the 2023 Peer Mentor cohort on the Qwaqwa Campus.
Helping first-year students with the transition to a university environment, the University of the Free State (UFS) has been running the Peer Mentor Programme.  Over more than a decade, it has grown by leaps and bounds, providing a socio-emotional space conducive to student learning, development, and success.

Previously known as the P3 Mentor Programme, which was only available to students on the Bloemfontein Campus, it has grown into an institutional programme that provides support to first-year students on all three UFS campuses.

Dr WP Wahl, Director: Student Life: Division of Student Affairs, said: “The biggest need observed was that first-year students find it hard to adjust to the university environment, and since its inception, this programme has provided significant support.” The first-year student cohort for 2023 had their first interaction with their peer mentors on Friday 10 March 2023.

To become a peer mentor, senior undergraduate students go through a rigorous selection and training process before serving in a mentor role, and must have an average of 60% in their studies.

Recently, the UFS trained more than 500 student peer mentors on the Bloemfontein and Qwaqwa campuses to act as trusted confidants to first-year students on all three campuses, connecting them to resources and opportunities and acting as healthy role models. 

“Peer mentors are also trained to co-create solutions with first-year students in response to their specific developmental needs. First-year students who join a peer mentor group also become part of a friendship circle,” added Dr Wahl.

Part of the Division of Student Affairs that students can look out for is Kovsie Support Services, where they can sign up for the Future Lead Challenge offered by the Student Leadership Development Office. 

For student support, the Career Services Division also has a Career Development Programme, which helps students to think about and plan for their future careers. 

News Archive

Public Tourism lecture at Qwaqwa Campus a first
2011-10-03

 
Attending the Tourism Month celebrations were from the left: Dr Elias Malete, Qwaqwa Campus Principal; Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk; and Dr Choice Makhetha, Vice-Rector: External Relations (actg).
Photo: Thabo Kessah

Tourism Month was celebrated in style at our Qwaqwa Campus with the hosting of the first ever Public Tourism Lecture. The lecture was part of the national Tourism Month celebrations and was organised by the National Department of Tourism in partnership with the UFS, the Central University of Technology, Free State and the University of Johannesburg (UJ).

The keynote address was presented by UJ’s Ms Milena Ivanovic, whose paper was entitled Cultural Tourism – Global and Local Perspective. This presentation was followed by a discussion by a panel of experts, namely Prof. Doreen Atkinson, Ms Merle Naidoo (both from the UFS), Prof. Albert Strydom (CUT), Dr Webber Ndoro (African World Heritage Fund), Ms Leonore Beukes (Department of Tourism) and Dr Kevin Mearns (UJ).

In acknowledgement of the role that institutions of higher learning play in advancing the tourism agenda, Minister of Environmental Affairs & Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, said that South Africa was now in a better position to welcome tourists compared to pre-1994.

“Before 1994 we had less than 500 000 foreign arrivals in the country while in 2010 we had over 10 million of whom 8 million were tourists. In 2006 only 26 airlines were using our airports, but now there are over 50 airlines,” he said.

Also in attendance were Free State MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Mxolisi Dukwana, and the UFS team led by Qwaqwa Campus Principal, Dr Elias Malete, and Vice-Rector: External Relations, Dr Choice Makhetha.

The Tourism Month festivities were concluded by a tough, but informative Poster Presentation Competition that pitted UFS, UJ and CUT students against each other.

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