Peer Academic Coaches Help Younger Students Stay Connected in the Virtual Environment
Graduating seniors Julia Abegg Machado (Management) and Ellie Galinas (Marketing) have experienced firsthand the value of peer mentorship and networking for students during their time at San Diego State University. Both Machado and Galinas served as facilitators for SDSU’s Fowler College of Business’ BA 100 course, Exploration of Business, which is an introductory seminar class for first-time-freshmen and Peer Academic Coaches. The course, focused on business careers and education, supports students with the skills needed to achieve academic and personal success, while also connecting them with campus resources.
Machado and Galinas share why they pursued peer academic coaching and how their experiences impacted their personal and professional growth. They also give advice to current students, describe their favorite SDSU memories, career aspirations, and more.
Q&A With Peer Academic Coaches Julia Abegg Machado and Ellie Galinas
Julia Abegg Machado
Major: Business Management
Campus affiliations / organizations: The international recruitment office (student assistant), Fowler College of Business (Peer Coach and former Instructor assistant), Brazilian Student Association (former President and Director of Events), International Mentor Program with International Student Center
Q & A
Q: Why did you pursue business management as an area of study?
I think I always wanted to pursue a career in business. I can’t remember thinking about pursuing other areas of study besides management. It seemed like the right major to expand to different fields. I thought that with this career I could find jobs in the entertainment industry, which was always a passion of mine, without the need of having the artistic skills, which I definitely don’t have. Also, business management can help me in very different aspects of life,whether it is managing people in a group project or managing my personal finances.
Q: What inspired you to become a facilitator for BA 100? Please tell us about the role and your experience.
When I came across the opportunity to become an instructor, I first thought it would be a big challenge for me. As someone who walked into school very shy and sometimes afraid of public speaking, instructing a class of around 20 students would be a huge challenge. However, after the first session I was already confident to do it every week. Essentially, the job consisted of helping first year students adapt to the new environment and get informed about campus resources while also developing soft skills like time management and self-compassion. My experience was so great that I did this for two semesters, Fall 2019 and Fall 2020 online, which was a completely different experience due to the pandemic. I felt like I was really helping some of the students since most of them ended up joining student organizations or landing on campus jobs. More than that, the role also helped me improve my communication and public speaking skills; I feel that I have improved myself personally and professionally after this experience.
Q: What inspired you to become a Peer Academic Coach this semester?
I have always had an interest in education and mentoring. In my previous experience mentoring international first year students, I was able to learn a lot from my students and about myself. Being part of the Peer Academic Coach program this semester was an opportunity for me to continue developing my communication skills outside the classroom while also helping a lot of students with my knowledge of campus resources and personal experiences. I can say that I was very inspired to join this program because of my highly valuable past experiences that helped me gain knowledge on academic resources.
Q: As a Peer Academic Coach, you work with students on academic skills and connect them to campus resources. What skills did you have going into your role and how did this role help you build on those skills or gain new ones?
I think the skill that was definitely the most relevant one for both me and the students was time management. Switching from high school to college is a difficult transition, especially in terms of time management since college is way more time consuming than high school. As for myself, my time management skills got better during college, and one of the main skills I got while being a peer academic coach was organizing my time and all the information I acquired. Helping seven completely different students requires a lot of organization to make sure I don’t mix up any information or forget what was talked about during the meetings. I believe helping students improve their time management abilities also helped me better organize my time. Communication was also another skill I definitely improved throughout the semester - it is very important to have effective communication with students and supervisors.
Q: What challenges have you faced as a Peer Academic Coach?
I think the main challenge might be the virtual environment. At the same time that it is helpful to make meetings easier and avoid having to reschedule due to other minor factors, it is also a challenge sometimes to make students feel engaged. Sometimes they don’t have their cameras on, or are just not feeling like talking a lot, so it ends up cutting the meeting shorter or not making the experience as helpful as it could be. There is also the challenge to understand what each student is facing and how to better help them. Some students just don’t want to share what challenges they are facing, making it harder for us to assist them. However, all of these challenges can be overcome by having access to the right resources.
Q: What advice would you give to students wanting to get involved in tutoring or peer academic coaching?
I would say just go for it. I believe the main thing you need is the willingness to take on the challenge. If you are willing to learn the resources and really help those students I think you would be ready to do it. Good communication skills are also needed, especially because you will communicate with a lot of different people who have unique backgrounds and you need to know how to adapt to talk and assist each of them. My main advice is to be open to taking the challenge and improving yourself in many aspects. It can be a stressful role at times, like when students don’t respond or are not open to sharing their experience, but at the same time you get very rewarding moments when you notice you have been helping them.
Q: Are you involved with any organizations at SDSU? If so, can you share why you got involved and what your experience has been like so far?
Yes. In the past, I was part of the professional fraternity Delta Sigma Pi, which I ended up leaving before the pandemic and I was also part of the International Student Organization for one year and a half. Nowadays, I am part of the Brazilian Student Association which is my most recent affiliation to campus and probably my favorite one. I got involved right after I started my second semester at SDSU because I wanted to make more friends and get the feeling that campus was my home away from home. I have had amazing experiences with all the organizations I was part of and am currently in; they all taught me different things and helped me get where I am right now in terms of career and campus engagement. At the Brazilian Student Association, I was able to improve my leadership skills by being president of it for an entire academic year; my time management skills were also improved since I had to balance school, work and managing an organization of over 20 people. Overall, I would recommend everyone to join a club or organization on campus because I believe that enhances the entire college experience.
Q: What has been your favorite SDSU memory so far? Is there anything you are particularly looking forward to as SDSU moves towards more in-person opportunities in the fall?
As I am graduating this May, I will unfortunately not be able to experience in person classes again, but I am very excited for the opportunity that the future holds both on and off campus. As for my favorite SDSU memory, I would definitely say everything from my first year of college; from moving into the dorms (University Towers) to meeting my friends and going to SDSU’s events. I had a great time during finals week studying with my friends in the library until late at night and taking advantage of the free food at the Midnight Study Break; these are small moments I wish everyone takes advantage of because they go by so fast. If I was not graduating, I would say that having lunch with my friends on campus would be the thing I am most looking forward to when going back to in person classes.
Q: What is the best advice you have received during your time at SDSU?
Definitely to take advantage of all the opportunities. A friend who was already in her final years of college told me to embrace the challenges and try to develop myself as much as I could. I believe I followed her advice because I was able to embrace all the opportunities presented to me while also developing my skills, which will definitely help me in the future. .
Q: What career aspirations do you have following your time at SDSU?
I am still trying to decide what field I want to pursue, but during my college experience, I had a growing interest in education, so I might go into that path. I also enjoy recruitment and plan to learn more about talent acquisition and get more experience in that area. During my college career I noticed that talking to people and helping them was one of my favorite things to do, so the plan is to definitely join a company and a field that will allow me to do that on a daily basis. SDSU gave me a great base on business and management in general, so I feel prepared to take on another challenging role.
Ellie Galinas
Major: Business Marketing - Integrated Marketing Communications
Campus affiliations / organizations: Center for Student Success - Peer Coach, American Marketing Association - Vice President of Marketing, Pi Beta Phi
Q & A
Q: Why did you pursue marketing as an area of study?
Coming into SDSU, I knew I wanted to pursue a degree in business, but to be fully transparent, I really didn’t know why or what kind of career path it would land me on. I had always loved learning about trends, social media, and the digital space as a whole. As I began to explore my major and join clubs on campus, I developed a passion for marketing, branding, graphic design, and social media.
Q: What inspired you to become a facilitator for BA 100? Please tell us about the role and your experience.
Entering my final year, I really wanted to be as active as possible within the Fowler College of Business, so I began to search for occupations on Handshake. I stumbled upon the role of an ISA & figured that given the current state of the world, I wanted to help first-time SDSU students connect with not only one another, but myself, and all that San Diego State has to offer. While I facilitated the course and gave my students tips on professional networking, studying & notetaking, I also emphasized self-care and motivated them to be their best. I made it very apparent that I was always there for them as not only a teacher/mentor, but a friend & yet another (virtual) connection to what campus is really like.
Q: What inspired you to become a Peer Academic Coach this semester?
Kind of tying into my answer above, I have always wanted to make a difference. A personal goal of mine has been to be a light in the lives of those around me, and I really wanted to be that for students who may not otherwise have had that opportunity. More than anything I wanted to help, and as I’ve continued to tell them, “hopefully, if anything, this is just a positive, calm, and open space for just 30 minutes of your week. If you get nothing else out of this program, hopefully you at least have a new friend.”
Q: As a Peer Academic Coach, you work with students on academic skills and connect them to campus resources. What skills did you have going into your role and how did this role help you build on those skills or gain new ones?
The best skill I had going into this role was simply just being an involved student! Having several involvements on campus has made me aware of the many great resources SDSU has to offer that unfortunately, many students don’t know about. This role has given me the opportunity to give the tips, tricks, and advice I wish I had received back when I first began my journey at SDSU.
Q: What challenges have you faced as a Peer Academic Coach?
Being a Peer Academic Coach, sometimes it can be difficult to motivate. I don’t want to say I’ve been in my student’s exact positions, because I haven’t. However, at the end of the day we all have one thing in common, we’re students - in an academic environment that is wholly online, it can be really hard to motivate yourself, and really easy not to put forth your best efforts. Getting discouraged can be easy, learning and comprehending material is much harder than it is in an in-person classroom, and at times, all I can find myself saying is, “I totally understand and please know that I hear you, it’s hard.” Something I’ve found within myself that I try to establish and encourage in my mentees is perseverance. As long as we keep pushing, putting our best feet forward, and do the absolute most we can, we will all come out together on top.
Q: What advice would you give to students wanting to get involved in tutoring or peer academic coaching?
Quite literally, you have NOTHING to lose & everything to gain. Everything throughout these four years is for your learning experience, it goes by quickly so choose your involvements and spend your time wisely. Being a Peer Coach has been one of, if not the most, rewarding aspects of my career here at San Diego State thus far.
Q: Are you involved with any organizations at SDSU? If so, can you share why you got involved and what your experience has been like so far?
I am! During my time on campus I joined American Marketing Association (AMA) and Pi Beta Phi. I joined AMA because of the phenomenal connection & network opportunities, as well as to really delve into the world of marketing. I’ve been fortunate enough to hold over 3 positions on the Executive Board as I currently serve as the Vice President of Marketing, and I am so thankful for the leadership opportunities it has given me. I would highly recommend joining AMA for not only business or marketing majors, but anyone looking to further develop professionally, make connections, and seek out opportunities. I joined Pi Beta Phi to be a part of a group of the greatest, most influential and inspiring women I’ve ever met. Pi Phi introduced me to some of my closest friends here at SDSU and I will be forever grateful.
Q: What has been your favorite SDSU memory so far?
I don’t think I can pinpoint just one favorite memory, but some include the General Body meetings & agency tours for American Marketing Association, meeting my sorority sisters, Welcome Week, & the endless amounts of events I attended both on & off campus (especially football games!).
Q: What is the best advice you have received during your time at SDSU?
TAKE ADVANTAGE of this time, take advantage of being a student, and take advantage of the resources that SDSU has to offer. They are here to help you and are for your benefit, as are all of the SDSU staff. SDSU wants to set you up for success, let them!
Q: What career aspirations do you have following your time at SDSU?
Upon my graduation in May, I plan on continuing in my role within a local San Diego marketing agency! Long term, I would love to eventually move my efforts in house for a brand that I am both knowledgeable of and passionate about. More than anything, I want to continue to learn and grow.
