University and EUSA win award for excellent international student support

The University and EUSA have been recognised for two highly successful projects aimed at supporting international students.

The Buddies and Peer Proofreading projects won the NUS (National Union of Students) Award for Excellence in International Student Support at the UKCISA (UK Council for International Student Affairs) Warwick Integration Summit on 6 May.

Winning projects

Edinburgh Buddies is a popular peer support scheme that pairs visiting exchange students with students returning from their year abroad. It allows international students to establish connections with peers and start building their support networks early, as well as providing a friendly and personalised welcome to the University and the city. Over 450 students participated last year, and this year 900 matches have been made.

I love my Edinburgh buddy. She has been an excellent person to go to for advice. She has also been really great about inviting me to different events so I got to meet people when I first started here. I'm really glad I did the Buddy Project if for no other reason than I got to make a good friend because of it.

The Peer Proofreading scheme was established in 2010 to meet a demand from non-native speakers of English. The service is run by student volunteers and aims to both improve the language skills of international students; and provide student volunteers with a rewarding opportunity to develop valuable transferable skills. It has also received great feedback from students. All of those surveyed about the service said they would recommend it to a friend.

We are delighted to see Peer Support being recognised as an integral part of the International Student experience, creating a space where students from such wide ranging cultures, backgrounds and educational settings can come together and share their knowledge and experiences

Get involved in peer support

There are peer support projects open to all students within every School at the University. Visit the EUSA Peer Support webpages to find out more: