
Benefits of PASS
Benefits of PASS
PASS offers benefits to students and staff at all levels – to the school, the programme, first year students and PASS Leaders.
Benefits for First Year Students:
Peer Assisted Student Support is intended to provide a safe, friendly and supportive environment to help first year students:
- adjust quickly to the demands of third level education
- acquire a clear view of course direction and expectations
- develop their independent learning and study skills to meet the requirements of higher education
- enhance their understanding of the subject matter of their programme through collaborative group discussion
- prepare better for assessed work and examinations
- feel more at home among their peers
- increase their confidence
Benefits for PASS Leaders:
By becoming a PASS Leader, you can:
- development of their personal and professional skills such as leadership, team working, organising, time management, listening, interpersonal communication, facilitation and presentation skills;
- increased confidence;
- provides valuable experience to enhance their CVs;
- provide an opportunity to gain credits or accreditation for their activities.
Benefits to Lecturers:
As a lecturer, you will see a number of benefits from Peer Assisted Student Support, including:
- A reduction in the number of minor requests and queries from first year students, as PASS Leaders can act as a first point of contact for ‘specificinformation/queries’ on settling into college life.
- Helps students to become better prepared for their lectures or/and tutorials.
- Helps students to better manage their workload and keep up with course work and assignments distributed by the lecturer during the term.
- Help students learn more effectively in a peer based group.
- Leaders give regular feedback to the ‘PASS Programme Co-ordinator’ which feeds back to their school management and lecturers.
Benefits to Faculty:
Faculties and Departments that introduce Peer Assisted Student Support to programmes can expect to reap the following benefits:
- PASS creates links between classes across the programme, which can help develop a more cohesive culture in your school/department.
- The level of student involvement in – and ownership of – learning is increased.
- Support can be targeted at the specific areas of a programme(s) that students find particularly challenging with an aim to improve student understanding.
- PASS Leaders provide additional feedback for the Programme Boards.
- Valuable additional student support which can be used to present the School or Department positively during institutional audits, subject reviews or marketing initiatives.
- In the student PASS Leaders, the programme gains committed students who can help promote the course and even meet with internal or external reviewers.