Dawn Sweeney has a simple piece of advice to students walking onto one of Sheridan College鈥檚 three campuses in the Greater 91原创 Area 鈥 or a post-secondary institutions anywhere in 91原创.
鈥淎sk questions, that is the biggest thing. Ask for help,鈥 said the associated dean of Student Success Programs at the college. 鈥淗ave fun but ask those questions before you start struggling. Be as proactive as you can be and find that one person that you will connect with and stay connected with.鈥
At Sheridan 鈥 which has campuses in Oakville, Brampton and Mississauga 鈥 that person might be one of the official advisors who supports a specific aspect of school, like aiding students to navigate the college and access any help they need.
An advisor might specialize in athletics or a program 鈥 from animal care to welding 鈥 or be there to specifically support indigenous, Black or international students, for example. Sweeney said they are there to help you get the supports you need, such as tutoring or financial aid, and then check back to make sure you are accessing that help.
鈥淲e know students like to connect with one person to ask questions and get their help navigating the system,鈥 said Sweeney. 鈥淚t is having that one person who can connect the dots for you and check in on you.鈥
The advisor program is just one of the ways Sheridan College and other institutions across 91原创 are helping their students when it comes to ensuring their academic success. From peer tutoring to writing workshops, study tips to time management, these programs are designed to ensure students get the most out of college or university.
鈥淵ou don鈥檛 know what you don鈥檛 know,鈥 said Sweeney, who adds that for many first-generation, international or mature students, the world of post-secondary education in 91原创 can be a foreign place that they 鈥 and their families 鈥 are unfamiliar with.
鈥淭hey might be coming from a place where they don鈥檛 have that support at home where no one has been through our university or college system, so they might not have an idea even what tutoring is,鈥 she said.
鈥淭he other thing is psychological. If you are using services, or academic services, sometimes people connect that with the idea that, 鈥業 am not good enough.鈥 You have to admit that you are struggling, that you need to be here, and that can be difficult for some students.鈥
Melanie Parlette-Stewart is an associate librarian and head of Learning & Curriculum Support at the University of Guelph鈥檚 McLaughlin Library. She said post-secondary institutions offer numerous learning supports and programs because they want their students to be successful.
What we know is that the transition from high school to university can be challenging for a lot of students, whether that is dealing with homesickness or getting used to being more independent,鈥 she said.
鈥淪tudents often transition from high school where their parents and teachers are involved in their day to day and encourage them to stay on track. Then they come to university, and they are on their own. So, it is important for the university to support student鈥檚 academic success and to ensure they have the tools and resources that they need.
鈥淓ven writing an essay in high school to writing an essay in university and doing university-level research can be a lot different and can be quite a big jump for some students.鈥
Parlette-Stewart said among the programs offered at Guelph are supported learning groups 鈥 weekly study sessions led by upper year students that target courses with a high risk of failure, like general chemistry or the fundamentals of physics. A similar program is Guelph鈥檚 SAM Pearson Family Student-Athlete Mentor Program, which supports more than 300 student-athletes by providing resources and assistance tailored to their unique needs.
She said that on average students who participate in these programs achieve higher final grades in the course and have a lower failure rate.
鈥淲e have over 100 students that work for us in the library that actually provide some of the programs and supports, whether that be mentors in the SAM program or leading our supportive study sessions, offering writing supports or helping other students with time management,鈥 Parlette-Stewart said.
She said the fact this is a peer-to-peer program also helps to reduce some of the hesitation, reticence or perceived stigma that might be associated with asking for academic help.
鈥淪omething that we are always struggling with is how to communicate that this is not a remedial program,鈥 she said. 鈥淲hether you are coming for a writing appointment to get help with your essay, or whether you are attending a supportive learning group study session, it is offered not just at times when you are worried about failing or doing not as well as you would like to be in a course, it is for everybody.鈥
Ensuring students understand these programs are for everyone and can be beneficial to their success is also something that Sheridan struggles with said Jamie Goodfellow, the interim director of Learning Support and Early Intervention Services at the college.
鈥淚 think sometimes when you hear the word tutoring there is a connotation that maybe you are deficient in some way, that maybe you are not quite there yet or good enough, and you have to access this alternate support to get to where your peers are,鈥 she said.
鈥淭here may be a bit of that, but what I see is that people want the support, but the difficulty is their time. It is actually getting students to understand the benefits to them so that they carve out time in their busy schedule to come seek out these supports. We have students who are parents, we have students who have part-time and maybe even full-time jobs, so this is just another thing they have to do and they might not know the benefit of investing in those services.鈥
Goodfellow said one of the things the school does to combat both these things and to normalize accessing supports is to have the tutors visit classrooms and explain that this is who I am, this is what we do, this is how you can connect with us, and this is how we can help you.
鈥淚t is well researched and proven with extra-curricular learning that students who engage in even two sessions are shown typically have a better grade,鈥 said Goodfellow
鈥淭here are always opportunities for students to improve and to learn more from others and get more out of that university experience,鈥 added her Sheridan College co-worker, Sweeney. 鈥淚 think it helps them build community which is an important part in being successful in university and college.鈥
