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The Transition Mentor Programme Awards and Celebration Evening took place on 19 January 2023 – find out about the programme and our winners!
The Welcome & Induction Team were delighted to host the Transition Mentor Programme Awards to celebrate the outstanding contributions from the UCL Transition and Senior Mentors who have shown exceptional dedication to their first-year Mentees at UCL, supporting their transition to university as part of the UCL’s Transition Mentor Programme.
The Transition Mentor Programme is an initiative that matches every first-year undergraduate student at UCL with a second or third-year student from the same degree programme – their Transition Mentor. Through weekly sessions, Transition Mentors provide advice and support to the first-year students on a range of topics from support services, to tackling first assessments, thus helping them to settle in.
The event, led by Candice Mooney, Senior Welcome & Induction Officer (Transition), was an opportunity to celebrate the hard work of over 750 mentors involved in the Programme and to recognise the individuals that received exceptional feedback from their Mentees, peers and department staff.
Professor Kathleen Armour, Vice-Provost (Education & Student Experience) presented a keynote speech highlighting the importance of a positive transition to university. Guests from Student Support & Wellbeing, Student Registry Services and UCL departments presented the certificates and special awards. The second part of the evening consisted of a drinks reception where Senior Mentors, Transition Mentors, Department Staff and the Welcome & Induction Team had the opportunity to celebrate their hard work over Term 1 over drinks and nibbles.
Over 200 nominations were submitted and the Welcome & Induction Team carefully selected the winners. Awards were presented in seven categories and winners included:
The Above & Beyond Award: Alexandra Farsari, who provided dedicated support documents to her Mentor Group after her sessions and involved her Mentees in a number of activities outside of the transition sessions, helping to build friendships and bonds amongst the first-year students.
The Wellbeing Warrior Award: Dominic Ko, who championed wellbeing support and made significant contributions to cultivating a positive mental health culture in his group by implementing check-ins and placing an emphasis on the importance of mental health whilst studying Laws.
The Unsung Hero Award: Rohan Patel, who has provided a foundation of support for his Mentees through his exceptional organisation and attention to detail when delivering sessions strongly tailored to his students studying Medicine.
The Innovation & Creativity Award: Yvonne Tran, who has had an instrumental role making the Access UCL cohort feel well supported in their transition to university and into the Geography department and helping to address geographical academic needs and personal issues in engaging and thoughtful sessions.
Transition Mentor of the Year: Charlotte Cala, who consistently supported her Mentees in innovative ways, adapting every session to their needs and keeping her group both entertained and inspired through dedicated trips to museums, parks and hidden cafés. Charlotte’s kindness and passion allowed her Mentees to feel safe and supported in their transition to UCL.
Senior Mentor, Administrative Excellence Award
Honourable Mention: Eoin Mulholland, who showed tremendous initiative in preventing the development of any technological issues, providing outstanding communication to his department and consistently providing excellent support to his Transition Mentors
Winner: Kelvin Ho, who provided meticulous attention to detail when supporting the Transition Team and department with administrative tasks, acting quickly and effectively when dealing with concerns and delivering a successful social event for the first-year students and Mentors which helped to strengthen their bonds.
Senior Mentor of the Year
Honourable Mention: Katerina Duran Mynenko, who worked tirelessly as a solo Senior Mentor for her department, showing commitment and dedication to her Transition Mentors whilst balancing the role successfully with other commitments.
Winner: Eshka Chuck, who has been exemplary in the role of a Senior Mentor, putting a significant amount of time and effort into creating positive experiences for first-year Philosophy students on the Transition Mentor Programme. Her commitment to inclusivity in her department and the Transition Mentor Programme is highly commendable, helping to ensure that UCL is a welcoming and inclusive space for everyone.
All winners, finalists and nominees have shown an incredible commitment to UCL and the Transition Mentor Programme and we hope that by highlighting the fantastic achievements of our Transition and Senior Mentors, we will be able to inspire and motivate future participants of the Transition Programme and highlight the importance of supporting a successful transition for students joining UCL.
For more information about the Transition Mentor Programme, please contact the Transition Team.
Applications for the Transition Mentor Programme 2023/24 will open in Spring 2023, to register your interest please complete our form.