Access Leaders (ALs) are student champions who guide, mentor and encourage students from their communities to engage with UCD. Access Leaders foster an inclusive and welcoming environment and help UCD create a University for ALL.
Social integration/belongingTraining | Workshop | On campus | In person | Live
Time lineWhat is the main idea or gist?
What does this initiative/support/project look like?
The UCD Access Leader programme was developed in its current format in 2013. It has been redesigned and amended over the intervening decade. The student leadership programme is an opportunity for UCD students to engage in university life outside of their academic programme and in doing so act as role models and ambassadors for UCD Access and Lifelong learning.
Access Leaders are students who have a first-hand understanding of UCD’s diverse entry pathways and of the journey students have taken to be here, which means they are uniquely placed to help incoming first years adjust to their new environment. They are students who have been recruited from across all the underrepresented groups including:
Their first-hand understanding of UCD’s diverse entry pathways, and of the journey students have taken to attend higher education, means they are uniquely placed to help incoming students adjust to their new environment. Their presence, voice, and own experiences help reassure newer students that their goals are achievable.
The Access Leader (AL) training programme is a formal, mandatory training programme delivered by all the Access and Lifelong Learning (ALL) team. It is a blend of information sessions and workshops designed to develop responsibilities and skills including leadership, communication, problem solving and child protection training. Aspects of the training programme are created in consultation with current Access Leaders.
In addition to AL Training Programme, there are other training sessions which may be specific to an event or may be an opportunity for Access Leaders to avail of training in an area of interest including The National Council for the Blind training.
Access Leaders are involved in a variety of voluntary and paid activities across the UCD campus and beyond. These range from assisting at events such as the annual Access and Lifelong Learning Symposium and ALL Student Welcome, assisting and guiding our University for All Initiative through provision of staff training and project work, planning and running academic support and social events for their fellow students, as well as assisting with our diverse outreach activities where they meet potential students who would like to know more about UCD. Access Leaders also represent UCD at committee level and national conferences. Some of the more typical activities include UCD campus tours, Access and Lifelong Learning Welcome events, and Outreach events.
Access Leaders are trained so they can guide and mentor incoming students coming through on similar pathways.
The main purpose of the Access Leaders is to act as role models for incoming students and to provide student input into the work that the Access and Lifelong learning Centre does.
New Access Leaders are typically recruited towards the end of the academic year and go through an extensive training programme.
The Access Leader training draws on the expertise of UCD’s Access and Lifelong Learning team and on the current Access Leaders.
Some of the topics covered in the training include:
What are the goals?
The goal is to up-skill access students so that they can act as role models to help inspire and encourage incoming students who may have had to overcome barriers on their educational journey.
In addition, Access Leaders contribute to the overall work of the UCD Access and Lifelong Learning Centre. Being an Access Leader helps students enhance their communication, leadership, facilitation, public speaking, interpersonal skills among others. This experience and skills enhance students’ CVs. Access Leaders also build a network of their own and it gives students the opportunity to meet students from other disciplines.
How are students involved?
Previous Access Leaders assist in the design and delivery of the training acting as facilitators during the various workshops.
Access Leaders participate in focus groups on an ongoing basis to give feedback on the work that the Access and Lifelong Centre, including providing feedback on support offered and have the opportunity to make recommendations. As an illustration of how access leaders have shaped our thinking and actions, at a focus group in 2018, Access Leaders felt that they would like to be called access students rather than HEAR students, DARE students etc. This resulted in us removing the access admission label from all students and started us referring to them as Access Students.
What underlying constructs or ideas inspired the design?
Extensive evidence that mentoring and peer to peer support is effective.
The literature on widening participation regularly referenced the roles of students, who were variously referred to as student mentors, student ambassadors and peer mentors. There was also a student ambassador programme in the university which is used to refer to current university students engaged in student recruitment.
We have reviewed the literature which indicates the benefits of involvement in WP programmes
for the ambassadors themselves. Studies from the United Kingdom (UK) identified a range of benefits including the acquisition of transferable skills valued by employers (Ylonen,2013); increased personal confidence (Copley, 2010 cited in Sanders & Higham, 2010); the satisfaction associated with doing something worthwhile (Thompson, 2010 cited in Sanders & Higham, 2010); and gaining a useful source of income (Ylonen, 2010)
What the success criteria and the points of attention?
Successfully running in its current format since 2013.
The addition of Access Leaders to any initiative or event has a range of impacts:
Students are part of the design and delivery of the Access Leader Programme which is a key part of its success.
(How) does the effectiveness get tracked?
Research conducted in 2016 by UCD Access & Lifelong Learning sought feedback from students on their experiences. When asked why they applied to be an Access Leader many noted the desire to give back to other students who they saw as similar to themselves in starting their university journey as well as a desire to give back to Access & Lifelong Learning with whom many credit their successful transition to university. One Access Leader noted: “I applied so I could be part of the community and help provide and be part of the experience that I received when I started in UCD. I wanted to give a little back”. Students also noted the value of gaining work experience within UCD: “[I wanted] to enhance my own work profile through the various experiences and workshops in order to better sell myself to future employers as well as earn valuable skills to add to my CV.”
When asked about the benefits of the Access Leader programme, students noted a wide range of outcomes for themselves including skills development in the areas of leadership, public speaking, teamwork, communication and managing groups. Most students also noted the importance of the programme for their personal development referring to increased confidence, pride, self-awareness and reflection and an overall improved college experience. One respondent noted “It gives you a sense of pride knowing that what you are doing is valued and respected by fellow access leaders and by the UCD staff who entrust such an honor to you, this then adds confidence into your studies and even daily life.”
Students all noted that the Access Leader programme gave them a greater sense of belonging to UCD, their programme and even to their community where many work as mentors and role models.
strongly agree
(How) is this initiative/support/project evaluated?
Yes – testimonials and feedback
Feedback is collected using a google form after each Access Leader training programme and after each initiative that they are involved in. Recommendations are taken on board where applicable and possible.
How is it communicated and advertised?
Advertised on the UCD Access & Lifelong Learning webpage
Direct email to students who have come through the access route.
What is the current and ideal timing and duration?
New Access Leaders are typically recruited towards the end of the academic year, as they have experience of university life and navigated their first year.
What resources are needed to run this initiative?
Is it easily transferrable to other contexts or groups?
We think it is easily transferable to other contexts or groups.
Yes this is easily transferable, specifically within Higher Education. It requires a good knowledge of students’ needs and the appropriate resources to support those needs. It requires being able to differentiate which students have entered university through diverse pathways but if that is easy to establish and you have the staff and resources to offer training to develop students’ leadership skills then the Access Leader Programme could be replicated. It is also designed using Universal Design principles.
It requires designated staff with specialist knowledge on delivering training particularly on building students leadership, communication, problem solving and mentoring skills. There are a lot of existing resources on this type of training which could be used and adapted.
It would be very important to include the students in the design and delivery of the training as this is a key part of the success of the UCD Access Leader Programme.
Additionally you need resources behind this initiative, staff to administer it, funds to run it, training spaces etc.