Journal of Academic Development and Education JADE Issue 11 Summer 2019 | Page 59

taking place across the life course and related to
wider social context (Gale and Parker, 2014).
Regardless of how it is conceptualised, transition for
students into higher education is widely accepted
to be a time of enormous potential that can lead to
academic, psychological and social transformation.
However it also exposes students to significant
challenges in terms of co-habitation with peers,
increasing distance form social and familial support,
financial burden, academic pressure and demanding
workloads (Mulholland et al., 2008, Glossop, 2001,
Urwin et al., 2010). This can lead to negative
effects on the physical and mental health of
students, increasing the risk of low back pain, sinus
infection, and strep throat and the experience of
stress, anxiety and /or depression (Hussain et al.,
2013). It has been reported that the incidence of
mental health conditions is higher in undergraduate
students than the general public (January et al.,
2018, Ibrahim et al., 2013, Mkize et al.)
A risk factors for the development of anxiety in
undergraduate students in examination anxiety
(Khoshhal et al., 2017). This is a set of responses
that include excessive rumination, low mood,
decreased confidence and irrelevant thinking related
to the thought of examination or its outcome (Rasor,
1998). It is said to be experienced by 20-35% of
all students (McDonald, 2001) and can be more
common in undergraduate health programmes such
as nursing and medicine (Glossop, 2001, Anuradha
et al., 2017). As a result of this Universities UK
(2015) recommend higher education institutions
promote the health and wellbeing of their students
by offering a range of initiatives to reduce the risk of,
or manage mental health problems.
Peer mentoring, also known as peer assisted
learning, co-operative learning, collaborative learning
or peer coaching (Sevenhuysen et al., 2013) is one
approach that could be utilised by higher education
institutions to support students in transition
into higher education and during their academic
journeys (Christiansen and Bell, 2010). It involves
pairing inexperienced students with more a more
experienced peer to share ideas, knowledge and
experience in a way that can be mutually beneficial
(Topping and Ehly, 2001).It has been known to be
a cost effective method of supporting students at
key stages of higher education. It provides a safety
net in the first few days of university transitioning
from their previous life to higher education,
provides a forum for less experienced users to
gain academic support and guidance, helps instil a
sense of belonging and reduces social isolation and
provides valuable and transferable employability
skills (Andrews and Clark, 2009, Carragher and
McGaughey, 2016, Toklu and Fuller, 2017).
Research on the topic of mentoring is limited
(Andrews and Clark, 2009) and the vast majority
of research that has been completed is related
to education or professional practice in nursing,
midwifery and medical (Carragher and McGaughey,
2016). Little is known about the effects of
mentoring in undergraduate physiotherapy
programmes or on the effect of mentoring on
preparation for undergraduate examinations
and further research is required to increase the
knowledge of peer mentoring and its effects on
supporting students during their academic journey
(Christiansen and Bell, 2010). Therefore, the aim of
this study is to explore the role of peer mentoring
in assessment preparation for students new to
higher education in an undergraduate physiotherapy
programme.
Materials and Methods
A 60 minute café style workshop was arranged
during Semester 1 after all module formative
assessments had been completed. The session was
planned with Keele Student Services, an experienced
Keele Mentor and the Year 1 Head of Study.
The session was structured to facilitate informal
discussions focusing on: reflection on formative
assessment, experience of year 1 assessment, top
revision tips and free discussion.
Participants
27 SHAR Mentors were invited to participate in
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