Support and advocacy for SGPS students

Support and advocacy for SGPS students

January 29, 2015

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Employee, teacher and mentor are just a few of the roles that graduate and professional students play while at Queen鈥檚 University.

As an SGPS student adviser, Becky Pero provides confidential advice and support to graduate and professional students. (University Communications)

To support them in those many roles, the Society of Graduate and Professional Students (SGPS) have student advisers, a team that provides confidential advice and assistance to other SGPS members. Trained in a wide variety of subjects that encompasses university policies and procedures, conflict resolution, active listening, harassment, discrimination and maintaining a positive space, they鈥檙e equipped to handle many of the problems that students may face.

Becky Pero, a PhD candidate in the Department of Geography, has worked for the past year as a student adviser.

鈥淭here are challenges that SGPS students face that we don鈥檛 talk about,鈥 she says. 鈥淭hey need somebody to listen and hear what they鈥檙e saying. Who better to do it than a peer?鈥

Created in 2001 in response to the need for advocacy and support services for graduate and professional students, the advisers offer strategic advice for resolving concerns and conflicts. Oriented towards self-advocacy, they aim to give students the tools they need to solve problems on their own, or to direct them to the appropriate service when they need greater support.

鈥淪tudents often come to see me with questions about rules, regulations and department-specific procedures, and I set them in the right direction鈥 says Ms. Pero. 鈥淎dvisers can support students when they go to a difficult meeting or can contact another party on their behalf.鈥

Funding for the four student advisers comes from the SGPS as well as the School of Graduate Studies. Each year, the advisers create reports about the issues they鈥檝e seen most consistently and make policy recommendations to keep them from happening again in the future.

鈥淕raduate and professional students take on a huge challenge when they enter their studies,鈥 says Dinah Jansen, Vice-President (Graduate) of the SGPS. 鈥淭he majority of students get through their studies without any major problems, but the adviser program exists for those who have faced issues and want to repair relationships or navigate policies.鈥

In her role as VP (Graduate), Ms. Jansen oversees the student adviser program and advocates at a system-wide level for SGPS students.

鈥淪tudents need advocacy and help, and it can be very useful to have someone listen to your concerns,鈥 she says.

The advisers can provide help for problems big or small and welcome faculty to refer their students on for advice and support.

More information can be found at their .