Reflections 2021

Mentor Reflections per Topic as Reported by the Mentors of Venustia

What was your experience of Welcoming?

I had a lot of fun and I enjoyed getting to know my mentees better and spending time with them. It was a lot of hard work but I think it paid off.

I had a lot of fun and I enjoyed getting to know my mentees better and spending time with them. It was a lot of hard work but I think it paid off.

Wow. how do you sum up one of the best times of my university career? Welcoming was a the busiest yet most incredible time. I made strong bonds with fellow mentors and HC members that I will cherish forever. I also loved getting to know my mentees and form bonds with them. I enjoyed the activities that were planned I enjoyed watching the first years make friends with each other. I felt safe not only mentally but also physically despite being in a pandemic. COVID protocols were followed so I did not feel I had to worry about that. There were so many laughs a few stressful moments that we had to deal with and so many memories made. It was a wonderful few weeks.

Welcoming was a whirlwind experience. Both pre-welcoming and welcoming was a beneficial experience that I will always cherish. The first great thing to happen was the bonding experience between the mentors and HK of Vensutia. We all spoke about our highs and lows and honestly the greatest thing that I took away was that we truly never know what people are going through. The next highlight of my welcoming was bonding with the rest of the mentor team. I became best friends with a few of the girls and honestly I'm so glad I became a mentor.The welcoming period was certainly one for the books. The biggest fear I had going in was that I wouldn't be able to get along with my mentees due to us not having our degrees in common. However I was surprised at how easy it was to find common ground with them. Some of my highlights was when I did the highs and lows game with them and I saw my mentees open up to me. It made me happy knowing that I could provide a safe environment for them. There were many activities where I needed to take the lead such as playing mafia or walking the mentees to the societies fair/ 2021 picture. I realized that I thoroughly enjoy having responsibility and that this made me thing of whether or not I'd want to be apart of the HK team. All in all I enjoyed welcoming and I enjoyed creating a great atmosphere for the first years. It was sad knowing how different welcoming was due to covid but I'm still glad that they got to experience some sort of welcoming.

Welcoming was a rewarding but strange time. This was my third welcoming in a leadership position. From a personal perspective I am currently in my honours year so I had classes running alongside the welcoming period. This was exceptionally stressful and left me feeling very tired. However the welcoming programme was such fun and so inclusive that it felt amazing to rush from a presentation back to the newcomers. I thoroughly enjoyed this welcoming although the pandemic made our interactions slightly harder to orchestrate.

In your opinion, what was the most helpful aspect of being a mentor to your mentees - how did you add value to their university experience?

I believe that the most helpful aspect for my mentees was the fact that they could ask questions freely about anything and that I was able to show them around campus (Neelsie and lecture locations).

I believe that the most helpful aspect for my mentees was the fact that they could ask questions freely about anything and that I was able to show them around campus (Neelsie and lecture locations).

I gave my mentees very practical advice on how to handle different situations that university life throws at you. Although many mentees enjoyed discussions about very important topics such as race womxnhood mental health etc many also thanked me for advice on the small things such as where to buy groceries how I do washing what I find best to take notes where to get your student cardetc. I think the most helpful aspect was just being there as a support line for my mentees so they did not feel so alone or lost.

The most helpful aspect was that I made sure to be inclusive. Being inclusive is not only about pronouns or race but its also about socio-economic backgrounds family lives and many different factors. I made sure to create a safe and fun environment for my mentees so that they could feel safe to open up to me. I realized that this paid off when I would get mentees who personally messaged me asking for advice or just to tell me their problems. I felt quite accomplished in my job as I realized that they trusted me enough with their problems. I think I added to their university experience by ensuring that they know that I will always be there for them no matter what the issue is.

I think that the most helpful role I could have played was that of a friend and guidance provider in these strange times. Most of my mentees only had online classes and so had little to no interaction with anyone outside of welcoming week. Those who did not already have friends in Stellenbosch only really knew me as their mentor.Providing them with practical guidance and advise was obviously hugely helpful. I do feel however that simply being a friend in a new and scary situation was the most helpful position I could have undertaken.