Coquillette Peer Advisers
October 8, 2013
A $2 million gift from 1982 DePauw graduates Kenneth W. and Carrie Melind Coquillette funds career preparation programming in the Kathryn Fortune Hubbard Center for Student Engagement. Additionally, the gift supports the Sophomore Year Experience and endows the Coquillette Peer Advisers, a peer education program aimed at better connecting students with the plethora of resources available to them.
Liz Freedman, career adviser at the center, oversees the Coquillette Peer Advising Program. She recently hired and trained seven upper-class students who are responsible for answering and fielding questions at the Advising Bar, located on the upper level of the Memorial Student Union Building. One or two peer advisers and Center staff members are available from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. each week day and additionally on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 5 to 8 p.m.
“If students have quick questions about Winter Term, their résumés or LinkedIn profiles, they are able to stop by and ask a fellow student at the Advising Bar,” Freedman says. “The Peer Advisers are there to answer basic questions, share what resources are available or make appointments with staff members if they have more in-depth questions.”
Freedman explains that the peer advisers represent a cross section of students on campus. “We know that students like learning from other students, so the hope is that their presence at the Advising Bar will draw students in to learn how the Hubbard Center can assist them in their planning.”
Coquillette Peer Adviser Huizi “Cici” Du ’16 says, “Working as a peer adviser – especially with first-year students – enables me to look back on the struggles I had when I was in their shoes. It’s been a rewarding experience to share information that really helped me. Students are constantly overwhelmed with information from their professors and advisers, but hearing it from their peers makes them more determined and confident to find their own academic and professional path through DePauw programs.”
Shani K. Glover ’14 agrees. “As a peer adviser, I’m able to interact and engage with students on an academic as well as personal level. This opportunity allows me to be a resource and share my academic and personal experiences. Advising my peers has been a humbling and very exciting experience. I find myself eager to converse with my peers, whether it’s suggesting ways to improve their résumés or helping them decide which Winter Term course to choose. “
In addition to their work at the Advising Bar, peer advisers’ responsibilities include, giving presentations to organizations on campus about Hubbard Center offerings; assisting in résumé writing workshops; advertising GRE, MCAT and LSAT prep courses; and designing publicity for the center.
There are six additional Coquillette Peer Advisers. Three are assisting with international study abroad, and three are working with digital media to create a virtual advising program.
Visit the Hubbard Center for Student Engagement website for more information.
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