BSPS Buddies: A Circle of Friends and Peer Support for New Bachelor’s Students

Before she even arrived on campus for her first year at the College of Pharmacy in August, freshman Rashika Balakrishnan knew she had a circle of peers and mentors who could show her the ropes.

Balakrishnan and her fellow freshmen are off to a smooth start thanks to their BSPS Buddies – peer mentors who volunteer to welcome and support bachelor’s students through their first year.

This fall, the College of Pharmacy admitted freshmen directly into the Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences (BSPS) for the first time. In past years, BSPS students transferred into the program from Literature, Science, and Arts as sophomores or juniors, or from other universities. The College launched this new peer mentoring initiative to provide personalized support for these “true freshmen” and transfer students as they learn to navigate campus and college life.

The College of Pharmacy is often labeled as a best-kept secret, and one reason is that it is a small, tight-knit community within a large University. That feeling and experience don’t just happen; the College is intentional in deploying programs like BSPS Buddies (or Pharmacy Phamilies for our PharmD’s) to help our students feel connected and jumpstart them with social connections. 

BSPS Buddies pairs groups of six to seven freshmen or transfer students with two student peer mentors who are in their third or fourth year of the program.  The groups provide “a structured way for new students to build social connections right away when they get here, while also receiving peer guidance,” says Sneha Strodel, Student Affairs Program Manager, who developed the new initiative.

“It’s been really helpful,” says Balakrishnan, a freshman from Rochester Hills, Michigan. My mentors are really friendly, open, and good about reaching out. They are willing to answer questions any of us have, whether pharmacy-related or about life on campus.”

Her group mentors, Sydney Barnes and Marisa Crociata, both say they wish they had the same kind of support when they started at U-M. “I volunteered for BSPS Buddies because I thought it was important. As a freshman, I had no idea what was going on,” says Barnes, a senior from South Haven, Michigan. “I came from a small school where I knew everybody and how everything worked. When I came to Michigan, it was a little bit overwhelming. Now that I’ve been through everything, I figured it would be good to help the others find their way.”

I totally agree,” adds Crociata, a junior from Cincinnati. “I also was feeling overwhelmed when I got to U-M. I felt like there were a lot of resources available, but I wasn’t entirely sure how to utilize them. I have a twin sister who goes to Michigan at Ross (School of Business), and she had a peer mentor her freshman year. I saw how much that helped her, and I was excited about the opportunity to provide that for BSPS students. I wanted to be a part of it.”

Volunteer mentors were asked to reach out to incoming students by email with a welcome before the fall semester began, promising to organize an opportunity for the group to meet after classes began, Strodel says.

Barnes and Crociata immediately set up a text chat for their group (“because no one uses email,” they note) where incoming students can connect and share questions and resources. A couple of weeks into the semester, they gathered the group for coffee on the Law Quad lawn to chat about how the term was going. The mentors fielded questions about minors and how and when to apply for research opportunities and study abroad. 

Mentors are expected to check in again with their group in November before registration for next term’s courses and coordinate additional meetups throughout the year. Through the group, new students can learn from the experience of others, while mentors gain leadership experience.  

Balakrishnan, who fell in love with the Ann Arbor campus when her older sister enrolled, had specific questions about things her sister didn’t experience, like using the campus bus system. “The most surprising thing about the University so far is the variety of things there are to do on campus. Sydney and Marisa have been great about sharing places to eat, study, or hang out. They’ve been pretty helpful with study tips and how to balance my course load.”

BSPS Buddies builds on the longstanding Pharm Phamilies program, which assigns first-year graduate students to a group with peers from each year of the program and a faculty member. Together, they provide a community, a sounding board, and guidance throughout the professional degree journey. The new initiative aims to provide undergraduates with the same sense of community.