Peer Involvement Advisors

Peer Involvement Advising is a 1-1 appointment-based and drop-in service for all UM students. As part of the Student Experience and Development (SEAD) office’s Building Experience pillar, this service helps students find and share meaningful involvement opportunities to support them in their journey of getting involved.

Meet with a Peer Involvement Advisor

Meeting with a Peer Involvement Advisor (PIA) is a great first step towards learning more about involvement on campus.

  • You can talk to Peer Involvement Advisors (PIAs) about:

    • Your interests, values, needs, and goals and explore involvement opportunities you may find valuable;
    • Your Experience Record, what information is on it, and how to use it to narrow down your next steps for getting involved;
    • How to navigate UM tools and resources and find involvement opportunities such as UMConnect, Experience Catalogue, UM Calendars, and more; and
    • Getting an overview of the application process to get an experience published in the Experience Catalogue.

    Scheduling a meeting with a Peer Involvement Advisor (PIA)

    To schedule a meeting with a PIA, you would need to book an appointment through WaitWell.

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    All UM students are eligible to meet with a PIA.

    This includes students from:
    - All faculties and programs, including Extended Education
    - All campuses, including Distance Education students
    - All years, including graduate students

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    In-person or Online

    In-person appointments are held at the SEAD office (225 University Centre), while online appointments are held on Microsoft Teams.

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    15-20 minute appointments

    Appointments typically take about 15-20 minutes.

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    Appointments are free!

    There is no limit to how many times you can meet with a PIA.

Preparing for your appointment

Here are some ways you can get the most out of your appointment with a Peer Involvement Advisor: 

  1. Look up the location of the office or get set up on Microsoft Teams
  2. Login to your UMConnect account and try looking around
  3. Look at some of the experiences available on the Experience Catalogue
  4. Write down any questions or concerns that you have
  5. Consider the following prompts:
    • What are your interests or values?
    • What activities have you tried in the past? Which ones did you like or dislike? Why?
    • Is there an area in which you'd like to gain more experience or a specific skill you'd like to develop? Or are you looking to diversify your knowledge, experience, and skills?
    • Are you looking for something that is comfortable or a challenge?
    • How much time do you have available? How much time are you looking to commit to a new experience?

Our Peer Involvement Advisor Team

Tyler (he/him)

Peer Involvement Advisor

4th year, Faculty of Science, Psychology

Hello! I am Tyler Big George, a fourth-year Psychology student in the Faculty of Science!  Outside of classes, I enjoy playing video games and spending quality time with my family which includes two kids.

To me, involvement means actively participating and contributing to community activities, enjoying the experience, and honing skills that complement one’s university education. In the past, I was part of the St. John’s College Student Association and currently, I participate in Spiritual Drumming every Wednesday with the Spiritual Care and Multi-Faith Centre.

By participating I was able to build connections with other people that led to more opportunities for growth in addition to creating a strong sense of belonging to the UM community. I was also able to improve my time management skills by taking on more roles and having to balance them all out. 

Tips For Selecting an Involvement Activity

From Peer Involvement Advisor Tyler

Becoming involved at university can be daunting, but with these tips, you can climb your way to involvement success! Read on to take your first steps on your involvement journey.

Imagine this: You’ve finished your classes and are about to go home or to your dorm.  You start to wonder if there is something else you could be doing. You heard from some friends about some student groups on campus, but you have no idea where to begin. If that sounds like you, then you should read on for some tips on getting involved!

1. Reflect on Why You Want to Become Involved

Be clear on why you want to become involved. Your motivations will determine what opportunity type best suits your needs. Ask yourself a question like, "What is it that makes me want to get involved?" For example, you may want to help people, in which case volunteering is an excellent fit. However, you might be trying to get some skills out of it, and although volunteering can suit your needs, skills can also be obtained in a variety of ways at UM. Here are some examples to consider:

  • Socialize and meet new people
  • Develop skills
  • Help people
  • Discover your passions
  • Form a new hobby
  • Rally behind a cause
  • Continue an existing hobby or interest
  • Participate in activities related to your degree
  • Network professionally


2. Find the Right Opportunity Type

Step two is to find the opportunity type that best suits your motivations. Some examples of opportunity types are:

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    Volunteering

    Volunteering is good for those who want to primarily help people but also develop skills in the process. There are also opportunities to socialize and meet new people depending on the activity. A lot of places accept volunteers for a variety of tasks such as sorting food and helping with events at the UM Foodbank, taking care of the plants at Buller Greenhouse, helping with events, and more!

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    Skill Building & Development Opportunities

    Skill Building & Development is an excellent choice for those wanting to develop some skills or improve themselves in other ways. Some ways to develop skills are through one-time workshops or workshop series, term-long programs such as one of the many leadership development programs, working together with others for competitions, and more!

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    Community Groups

    Community groups are great for those looking to socialize and meet new people with a community or culture they identify with! Joining these groups provides a wealth of benefits to a university student. They can provide a sense of belonging, emotional support, and shared experiences for your university journey.

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    Interest-based Groups

    Interest-based groups are a good fit for someone who wants to engage in something that is more for fun, making it great for socializing and meeting new people or for people who want to continue an existing hobby or interest. Don’t let the laid-back nature of these groups fool you, there is opportunity for some serious skill-building in these opportunities! After all, every group needs people to run it and organize events.


3. Find the Right Involvement Opportunity

Here are some resources you can browse to help you find involvement opportunities:


4. Join Your Chosen Opportunity

Lastly, get in contact with someone in the opportunity you want to join!  For programs that are organized by university departments or faculties, you can find their contact information on their website.  Some student groups will also have their own website! For student groups that do not have a website, you can fall back to their social media page. First, look in their bio for a method of joining the group or an email that you can use to send a message that you are interested in getting involved with them.


5. When In Doubt, Talk It Out

…. With me! Your Peer Involvement Advisor.  The above is a lot of information and planning that is required. You may be someone who benefits more from receiving face-to-face guidance from someone, in which case the Peer Involvement Advising service is a good fit for you! 

Share your involvement opportunity

SEAD manages 11 ‘Get Involved’ boards located in different buildings across the Fort Garry Campus, and a display TV within the office. Below are the guidelines on what we can share in our boards and display.

Guidelines for Staff and Faculty Members

Promotional materials from UM faculty, department, or administrative unit must be for involvement opportunities that fall under the following categories:

  • Recruitment for UM volunteering positions under the supervision of the requesting faculty, department, or administrative unit. 

    Ex. UM Foodbank Volunteer, Student Recruitment event volunteer, International Centre Volunteer, etc.

  • Recruitment of participants in UM programs under the supervision of the requesting faculty, department, or administrative unit.

    Ex. Neechiwaken Peer Mentoring Program, Welcome Mentors program, Intercultural Leaders program

  • Information on a UM office and how students can engage with them.

    Ex. Career Services Calendar

  • Information about UM events and workshops that are open to students.

    Events and workshops must be connected to or under the supervision of the requesting faculty, department, or administrative unit.

Guidelines for Students

Promotional materials from students and student associations, clubs, or groups must be for involvement opportunities that fall under the following categories:

  • Information about an association, club, or group recognized in the Experience Catalogue and how students can engage with them.

    This could include contact information (email, physical location, social media handles, etc.) Events such as socials, theme nights, and meet and greets will not be published, unless the event itself is also recognized on the Experience Catalogue.

  • Information on student-led, volunteer-based experiences recognized in the Experience Catalogue.

    Ex. St. John’s Ambulance Volunteer Positions
     

  • Recruitment or election information for student executive positions recognized in the Experience Catalogue.

    We will not be able to promote specific candidates participating in student elections.

SEAD has full discretion to decline the sharing of experiences that:

  • Fail to comply with the University of Manitoba Respectful Work and Learning Policy. 
  • Contain offensive content, depicting violence, or spread hate messages.
  • Promote the consumption of alcohol.

If your promotional materials fall under the guidelines listed above and you would like us to share them on your behalf, please submit a request via email, with a copy of the poster you would like us to display. Once your request is reviewed, you will receive confirmation details (if approved) and further instructions for poster drop-off.

Contact us

Student Experience and Development (SEAD) Office, formerly Student Life
225 UMSU University Centre
65 Chancellor's Circle
University of Manitoba (Fort Garry campus)
Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2

involvement@umanitoba.ca
204-474-9093
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM, Monday - Friday