Session Outline

This workshop explores the role of coaching in supporting student success and retention, drawing on the experience of a Student Development Coach during her first year as a coach at the University of Leeds. The coaching provision was introduced as a proactive intervention for students identified as being at risk of non-continuation, offering a student-centred approach to personal and academic development.

The session will begin with a reflective account of the coach’s first year in the role, highlighting key challenges, successes, and lessons learned. Student case studies will illustrate how coaching has helped individuals overcome barriers to success, improve confidence, motivation and develop their independent learning. The coach aims to adopt a non-directive approach drawing on the coaching spectrum (Downey, 2003); the coachee is empowered to solve their own problems and is able to engage with self-directed learning. Student feedback consistently demonstrates that coaching provides a safe and supportive space in which students feel heard, valued, and are encouraged to take ownership of their university experience.

Participants will be introduced to the “Wheel of Life”, the primary coaching tool used within this provision. This tool allows students to assess themselves across areas, such as academic achievement, confidence, motivation, and independence. By breaking down the areas that are most affecting their studies, students can create manageable development plans tailored to their unique needs. The tool fosters reflection and goal-setting, which can contribute to student success.

The workshop will be highly interactive. Attendees will engage with the “Wheel of Personal Tutoring”, a tool designed for the purposes of this workshop, for personal tutors to reflect on their own practice. Suggested topics are informed by relevant literature (e.g. Wisker et al., 2008; Yale, 2019). For example, international postgraduate students highlight that personal tutors need to be empathetic, encouraging, and provide personal guidance and clear communication to their tutees (Stylianou et al., 2025). Suggested topics include communication, empathy, meeting content, and professional development, but participants will have the flexibility to focus on areas most relevant to them. Working in pairs, participants will experience a short coaching role-play, alternating between the roles of coach and coachee. This activity will provide practical insights into the coaching process, enabling tutors to critically reflect on their approach and consider how coaching principles can enhance their interactions with students.

By the end of the workshop, participants will:

• Understand how coaching can support student engagement and retention

• Gain practical experience using a coaching tool for reflection and development

• Explore strategies for adopting a coaching mindset in personal tutoring and mentoring contexts

This workshop aims to inspire personal tutors to integrate coaching techniques into their practice and encourage senior stakeholders to consider the value of coaching interventions at an institutional level. It will also benefit staff with mentoring responsibilities, offering practical tools to support colleagues effectively.

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