On April 1 (Sat), April 3 (Mon), April 4 (Tue), and April 7 (Fri), a “Consultation Hour” event was held for new students at Ritsumeikan University's Osaka Ibaraki Campus!
The purpose of this event was to support new students in resolving any concerns or questions they may have about university life and to help them get off to a good start at university.
On April 1, 3, and 4, the consultation hours were held separately by each college, and on April 7, a join consultation hour was held for all colleges during lunch break and through 3rd period. As in previous years, the College of Business Administration conducted their consultation hours in collaboration with the College Administrative Office, and the College of Comprehensive Psychology held theirs with the Oritor group, and their College Student Council and Administrative Office. In addition, this year, for the first time, the College of Policy Science also held a consultation hour with the Policy Science Association’s Student Committee and their College Student Council. A large number of new students came to the collaborative consultation hours! We also provided English-language support for international students and other students, who were mainly new GLA students. We wanted to answer as many questions as possible, so we asked new students who had just met to consult with each other and answer each other’s questions. Seeing that some of the participants became friends and left together, made us feel that the event had achieved more than just answering questions. At SSP, it is not our goal to give participants all the answers, but to teach them the method of how to do things and then ask them to actually do these things on their own. I think that receiving hints and trying things out on their own helped the new students to grow.
We also had the opportunity to introduce SSP and the “Consultation Hour” event at the undergraduate course guidance and student life guidance. Many new students went straight to the consultation hour event after listening to the guidance, so we were able to guide them smoothly! The total number of participants at the consultation hours for all the colleges over the four days was 883! Compared to last year, over 500 more new students came to this year's event!
(Photo of a Consultation Hour)
(SSP and the Consultation Hour Being Introduced at a Guidance Session)
At the consultation hour, participants asked questions about course registration like, “How do I register for courses?” “How do I make a timetable?” and “What is an early use request?” Many students also asked questions about computers and systems, such as how to use manaba+R, the CAMPUS WEB, and multi-factor authentication, etc. We introduced them to the ICT Lab who can handle more specialized questions. Some students had questions about what classes they should take in their first year, and together we thought about the balance between liberal arts courses and specialized courses, as well as classes that lead to qualifications and different career paths. We were also able to tell them about how to join clubs and recommended places for self-study and meals.
The new students who participated in the event gave us comments like, “I get it now!” and “Can I come back again if I don't understand?” We were happy to receive these types of comments and questions as it made us feel that we were able to help the new students in some way.
(Consultation Hour at the Student Office)
Last year, we had more participants than expected, and we at the SSP could not keep up with this. This year, we prepared answers to frequently asked questions about the course registration process, early use requests, etc., and were able to respond to questions smoothly. On the other hand, we were unable to find a peer supporter who had taken certain classes from certain colleges on the spot. To alleviate this problem, we felt that we need to take measures such as compiling information on courses that peer supporters have taken for the next consultation hour event.
Thank you so much to all the new students who participated!
SSP plans to continue to hold events to support everyone’s student life, so look out for them! We will be posting information on manaba+R, Twitter, and the SSP homepage for these events!
(Reported by: SSP Peer Supporter (OIC), Natsu)