The Peer Program has reached its new application period. The program has been running for three years at the Medical School and the Faculty of Pharmacy (GYTK) in the frame of which students help their fellow students in all areas of university life. Prospective peers are expected to apply until 7 February, and their work for their fellow students will be rewarded with a five-month scholarship.
The Peer Program was launched in 2019 to make life easier for newcomers at the UPMS and GYTK: to help the integration, the navigation in Neptun and university life, the management of dormitory matters, and they also provide guidance on exams and scholarships. You can also ask the peers about the best places in Pécs. The helpers are students, meaning they know exactly what difficulties freshmen face, so they can give credible and effective advice on issues they once had to find the answers to.
There were 16 peers at the start of the program, but by the fall of 2021, a team of 44 people helped the lives of prospective doctors, dentists, and pharmacists. Those interested in the program could also get acquainted with it at the “Chill with the Peers” event held in the hall of the Medical School last October (https://aok.pte.hu/hu/hirek/hir/14418).
People interested in the program had the opportunity to chat with students who actively participate in the Peer Program and thus help their fellow students. They could also have hot tea, hot chocolate, and some snacks in the hall furnished with armchairs and bean bag chairs. The organizers also set up separate places for more in-depth and confidential conversations.
New peers are expected to apply until 7 February
According to the call for applications of the Hungarian Admissions and Student Service Office, new peers are expected to apply for the program's available spaces in the spring semester of the 2021/2022 academic year. Those who completed at least two successful semesters (first year) at the Medical School (general medicine, dentistry) and the Faculty of Pharmacy, or finished their studies at the UPMS/GYTK and are currently full-time, or correspondent Ph.D. students in the Doctoral Schools of the UPMS are eligible to receive the “Peer Program Scholarship.”
Detailed conditions for receiving the scholarship:
- active, full-time, or Ph.D. (full-time or correspondent) student status,
- adequate information on issues regarding university life (when and who to look for, where to go, what and where to find at the university, faculty, etc.),
- knowledge of regulations regarding students,
- adequate communication skills,
- empathy,
- having a bank account at a Hungarian bank.
The successful applicant undertakes to participate in training for peers and maintains ongoing contact with students requesting support until the end of the spring semester. In addition, they undertake to write a detailed report on their activities at the end of the semester.
Peer candidates can submit their applications online; the deadline for submission is 7 February 2022 at midnight. The application form is available at here. Candidates also need to attach a letter of motivation explaining why they would like to participate in the program and why they consider themselves suitable for the task.
The applications will be evaluated by a professional committee chaired by the Vice-Dean for Education; the deadline is 21 February 2022. Potential candidates will also be interviewed as part of the selection process.
Successful applicants will receive the Peer Program Scholarship, the amount of which is HUF 50,000 per semester for five months, with a monthly transfer of HUF 10,000, by the 15th of the month following the month to which it relates. A Hungarian bank account number is required for the payment.
Further information about the Peer Program is available at https://peer.aok.pte.hu/ and on the program’s social media sites: