I knew the buddy scheme would be thoroughly enjoyable, but I never thought I would get such pleasure from meeting new students and watching them thrive.
The buddies I’ve been gifted are so co-operative and are always happy to participate in any fun activity ranging from online pub quizzes, to virtual cooking sessions - even little catch ups. Each one of the buddies brings their own charm and energy to our group, which is now more of a close-knit team.
I signed up to be a mentor hoping to gain some transferable skills. After meeting my buddies, I completely forgot about that. I was just enjoying getting to know my buddies. Looking back now, I have subconsciously gained more skills than I’d hoped for, including organisational, social, and creative skills, in organising a variety of socials within the constraints of Covid-19.
In terms of the workload; as a second-year student, I have not felt the buddy scheme to be strenuous in the slightest. My team and I meet once every two weeks and keep in touch on a regular basis. Depending on assignments and coursework, our meet ups vary in length. We even managed to arrange a quiz with another team which ended up being such a lovely evening!
I could not recommend the buddy scheme more and could not be happier with my fabulous new buddies!
Ariela, Buddy Scheme Mentor & Volunteer