CUT embarked on a campus-wide Peer Mentorship Programme in 2013 to assist first-year students with the difficult transition into higher education, support and create a conducive environment that will motivate and enhance their academic performance.

The programme provides a framework for positive interaction between students, mentors and lecturing employees and most importantly, trained mentors provide leadership and support to students during mentoring sessions. These sessions are designed to help connect learners, provide them with information about campus resources, give them a sense of belonging and open possibilities of connectedness to the world.

On 18 October 2019, the Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching (CILT) hosted an award ceremony to honour and celebrate all the hard work, dedication and sacrifices made by these mentors throughout the 2019 academic year.  Recipients were awarded based on the following categories: Best Peer Mentor in the Faculty, Most Involved Peer Mentor in the Faculty, Most Innovative Peer Mentor in the Faculty, Most Compassionate Peer Mentor in the Faculty, and Best overall Peer Mentor in Bloemfontein Campus.

The 2019 best overall mentor award went to Ms MK Mabanza, from the faculty of Humanities.

Caption

From left: Prof. Friedrich-Nel, Acting Senior Director: Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching; Mr BBG Molokwane, Teaching and Learning Coordinator: Humanities; Ms. MK Mabanza, Overall Best Mentor; Ms Z Malan, Teaching and Learning Coordinator: Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology; Mr. M Masoeu, Teaching and Learning Coordinator: Health and Environmental Sciences; and Ms. K Matete, Teaching and Learning Coordinator: Management Sciences.