Peer Mentoring and Interaction Among Mature Students: A Qualitative Study

Using original qualitative data obtained through a series of online focus groups, and informed by a review of literature, this article examines peer mentoring and peer interaction amongst mature university students. A combination of students and recent alumni (n = 20), and student advisers (n = 10), from University College Dublin participated in the study. Inductive thematic analysis was applied to the data to generate three subthemes relating to the dominant peer-mentoring theme: the value of peer interaction, study groups as peer bonding, and resource implications for peer-mentoring schemes. Findings reveal that peer interaction and mentoring, including study groups, are highly valued by both mature students and student advisers. In conclusion, it is recommended that well-resourced peer-mentoring systems be developed and extended in higher-education institutions.