Impact of student to student peer mentoring program in first year of pharmacy program

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Mentoring programs, a practical tool commonly used by universities, can serve to help new students adapt to challenging college life. Peer mentorship offers the potential for professional development of student pharmacists. EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING: The Raabe College of Pharmacy at Ohio Northern University implemented a peer mentoring program in 2014. This study evaluates the impact of that program on new student pharmacists. A post-program survey was completed evaluating students\u27 career perception, emotional stability, academic success, and student perception of the program\u27s influence on these areas. FINDINGS: The results indicated that 71.7% of respondents found the mentoring program helpful in their transition to college, and that 60.4% of respondents would somewhat likely or extremely likely stay active in the mentoring program. DISCUSSION: Peer mentorship may serve as a tool to assist student acclimation to the expectations of a professional degree program. SUMMARY: It was concluded that the pharmacy mentorship program at the Raabe College of Pharmacy at Ohio Northern is making a positive impact on first-year students by engaging them in the pharmacy program and aiding their transition from high school to college