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CASP Peer Mentorship Program

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Peer Mentors with their small group.
"The fundamental task of the mentor is a liberatory task. It is not to encourage the mentor’s
goals and aspirations and dreams to be reproduced in the mentees, the students, but to give rise to the possibility that the students become the owners of their own history.” Educators, “[sic] have to transcend their merely instructive task and to assume the ethical posture of a mentor who truly believes in the total autonomy, freedom, and development of those he or she mentors." (Freire, 1960)

CASP Peer Leaders

The CASP peer mentorship program is offered exclusively for Chancellors Associates Scholars and gives each student an opportunity to work with CASP Peer Leaders (CPLs) who serve as a resource and support. 

  • CPLs work with a caseload of 8–12 first-year CASP students in providing support and counseling related to academic, personal, and sociocultural issues affecting their college transition. The role of the CPL is to foster a welcoming, safe, and inclusive community among entering students and to encourage student development and identity awareness through peer mentoring meetings.

Why Peer Mentorships Work

Peer mentoring is a form of mentorship that happens between a person who has already had, or lived through a particular experience (peer mentor), and a person who is new to that experience (the mentee). An example would be an experienced student being a peer mentor to a new student, the mentee.

Peer mentoring provides individuals who are new to an experience (in our case, being a UCSD student), the chance to learn from those who have already had some experience going through the process (you, having had more time as a UCSD student). Peer mentors may challenge the mentee with new ideas, and encourage the mentee to move beyond the things that are most comfortable, or familiar with. Most peer mentors are selected for their sensibility, confidence, social skills and reliability. (Bozeman, 2007)

Peer mentoring in education was first promoted and introduced in the 1960s by educator and theorist Paulo Freire. CASP uses peer mentorship as an additional tool for success for students so that they may have access to an additional resource to aid them in their academic achievement, personal, and student development.

Get Involved

If you are interested in becoming a CPL, please contact Maria Rodriguez at m4rodriguez@ucsd.edu or Mariana Valdivieso mvaldivieso@ucsd.edu 

2022-23 Chancellor's Associates Scholars Program Peer Leaders

Visit our Meet the Staff page to get to know more about our CPLs for the 2022-2023 academic year.

UC San Diego Peer Mentorship Programs

Transfer Peer Coaching

Modeled after UC San Diego's Student Success Coaching Program, Transfer Peer Coaching is here to support transfer students' academic, personal, and professional success through a variety of coaching programs and services.

Transfer Peer Student Coaches are NASPA Certified Peer Educators trained through our College of Reading and Learning Association certified program, trained to help students achieve their goals. Through coaching, we offer campus navigation, academic and career support, information, skill development, and encouragement that both motivates you and equips you with skills to be successful while navigating your time at UC San Diego and beyond.  We seek to help you establish meaningful connections on campus which guide you through your academic, professional, and personal journey. 

You are encouraged to have regular coaching sessions, but if your need is to talk with a peer coach for quick questions, such as where to find the right services, you are welcome to do so!

For more information, visit the Triton Transfer Hub website.

OASIS 2Excel Second-Year Experience

2Excel is a retention and support program serving second-year students. The program is a year-long commitment starting fall through spring quarter.

2Excel provides holistic support through personal, academic, and professional development.

How to participate:

  • You must be a second-year student who entered UC San Diego as a freshman to apply to the program (no transfer students)
  • Program capacity is limited to 205 students
  • 2021-2022 Application will open Week 5 of Spring Quarter. Must apply your freshmen year.

Your commitment:

  • Year-long participation from fall quarter to spring quarter
  • Required attendance of 1 presentation/ podcast/ Instagram Live per quarter
  • Meet with OASIS Career Peer Educator OR Academic Advising
  • Mandatory meetings with your peer mentor 3 times per quarter
  • Attend Quarterly Group Meetings with your mentor
  • Enrollment in EDS 23 (a 2-unit seminar offered winter quarter)
  • Completion of a program assessment exercise at the end of the academic year

For more information, visit the 2Excel website.