Introduction of Near-Peer Mentorship Program in an Undergraduate Medical College in Pakistan: A Pilot Study

Objective. Transitioning from college to university life is a whole new exciting experience for the students but it also often develops feelings of unfamiliarity within them. The literature states that near-peer mentoring is a new paradigm that can provide multiple opportunities for the professional growth of the mentees and mentors. This study aims to introduce a formal near-peer mentoring program at Ziauddin Medical College and identifies its effects on the participants of this program. Methods. A quasi-experimental study design was used for a duration of 5 months. In total, 73 students participated in the program, 21 from the 3rd year as near-peer mentors (NPMs) and 52 from the 1st year as mentees. All mentees were randomly distributed among the mentors, broadly in a ratio of 1 : 2. Data were collected using a peer-mentoring evaluation toolkit, having questions based on a Likert scale. Results. The results showed that after participating in this program, 69% of the mentees felt acclimatized into the university environment and 66% of the mentors also developed a sense of belonging. Ninety percent of the mentors agreed that their soft skills improved after mentoring their juniors. Overall, around 70% of the mentors and mentees agreed that participation in this program had positive effects on their learning. Conclusion. This study provides baseline information of NPM program intervention, which had a positive effect on both the participated mentors and mentees. Thus, the formal introduction of such programs will be beneficial for medical institutes to improve the student support process.