Equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives at Canadian universities
Q Success Program supports underrepresented students in transition to university life
A mentorship program at Queen’s University is helping students from underrepresented groups make the transition into their first year of university. The program pairs first-year students with upper-year mentors and offers events throughout the year to offer support.
The program is open to all first-year students at Queen’s and takes care to match students with mentors who share similar experiences, for example students who are Indigenous, racialized, or otherwise underrepresented in the university community. In a study of the program, members of underrepresented groups were found to participate at higher rates than the overall first-year cohort.
The popularity of the program with underrepresented students shows that there is a need for this type of programming on campus and offers a model for other universities wishing to create programs that reach all students while considering equity, diversity and inclusion.
Online information
Q Success: Supporting underrepresented students in transition, 2017
October 15, 2018