This one is worth getting all bold about.

Those of you who know your First World War may have heard about Lord Kitchener's Pals Brigades. That was a recruiting campaign to lie down and avoid. (Don't mention the Somme!) Thankfully, this recruiting campaign isn't like that at all.

As many of you already know, there is a fairly huge discrepancy on campus between the number of work/study employment opportunities available to students in the sciences and the scant few such opportunities available to history students. That may be about to change.

The University Learning Centre is looking for a few good students to serve their fellow students and generally advance the cause of university civilization by undertaking to work as PALS, Peer Mentors engaged in Peer Assisted Learning.

PALs work with ULC coordinators and professors on a variety of academic support projects and initiatives serving U of S students, including:

• providing guidance for Learning Communities for first-year Arts and Science students
• leading Structured Study Sessions for traditionally difficult courses
• organizing and leading Communication Café sessions for ESL and EAL students in the Global Commons
• leading small-group Study Skills workshops for undergraduate students
• contributing to the development and delivery of Community Service-Learning events
• working with the Math and Stats Help Centre programs

Ok, so that last bit might not be required of the likes of you. Where strong history students might come in especially handy, PALS-wise, is in

• assisting junior students with their writing in a discipline-specific way.

As our friends (pals, even) over at the the PALs Recruiting Office put it, "Strong students can offer support to their peers, and, in so doing, bolster the quality of student commitment and effort in the courses we teach." Amen to that.

As for what your university can do for you, in return for working with the ULC to help other students succeed, PALs receive valuable experience, ongoing training, a support system and a place to prepare their work or collaborate, and an honorarium equivalent to (Canadian) tuition for one or two 3CU classes.

In an ideal world, wouldn't all historians be pals? And wouldn't all PALs be historians?

The deadline for applying for a PAL-ship is fast approaching. Very fast. Like, tomorrow, Friday, March 28th (extended from an earlier deadline.)

To learn more, click here or here or call Donna at the ULC, 966-2886. Do it now!