Hae Ming Jung (L) and Teri Grant of the Coaches Corner program.
University life can be exhilarating and mind-expanding — but it can also be stressful for harried students juggling classes, assignments, papers and exams.
Enter Coaches Corner, an award-winning program offered in the Chapman Learning Commons (CLC) in collaboration with UBC Student Development that helps students assess their study habits and skills, reflect on their academic strengths and weaknesses, and set goals for success.
Coaches Corner takes up two tables in the CLC, located on level three of the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. “At any point, any student from any faculty and any academic year can come and speak to any of our student-volunteer coaches,” says Teri Grant, the Student Development Coordinator who oversees the program.
Coaches discuss issues confidentially with students, and help them formulate an action plan. Students may be referred to other nearby services in the Learning Centre, such as AMS Tutoring and the Writing Centre.
By mid-March, the Coaches Corner program had served nearly 80 students during the 2011/12 academic year. Most are undergraduates from the Arts and Science faculties. Yet some belong to other units, including the Faculty of Land and Food Systems, the Sauder School of Business, the Faculty of Dentistry and others. The most popular topic of discussion? Time management.
The experience has also been valuable for the coaches. “Coaches Corner has benefitted me by helping me open up to meeting new people and know more about events going on on campus,” says Hae Jung Min, a coach and Arts student in Cognitive Systems.
Exciting times lie ahead for the program, as it expands to include new campus cohorts such as Arts Peer Coaches, a partnership between the Faculty of Arts and Student Development.
For more information, please visit learningcommons.ubc.ca
This story first appeared in the UBC Library Community Report (2012).