Abstract:

In (SSA) Sub-Saharan Africa, enrolment at higher education institutions has grown faster than on any other continent over the past four decades, however less than two out of ten students end up graduating. The number of student enrolments in relation to student dropout rates at higher education institutions has a direct impact on institutional prestige and the economy of a country. The high dropout rates of students in SSA remains unanswered, as well as what the causes may be for such high dropout rates. The objectives of this scoping review explore to identify the key influences on student dropout rates, the impact peer mentoring programmes has on undergraduate student dropout rates, the key characteristics of successful and unsuccessful peer mentoring, as well as identifies potential gaps around the topic within the literature. The scoping review follows Arksey and O’Malley’s methodological framework, as refined by Levac and colleagues. In addition, it utilises the PRISMA-ScR for data charting by Tricco et al. as recommended by the Joanna Briggs Institute’s. The accessed databases include Academic Search Complete, APA PsycARTICLES, ERIC, MEDLINE, SocINDEX. African Journal, Wiley Online Library, Pub Med, JSTOR and SCOPUS. The findings highlighted the positive impact peer mentoring has on the successful transition of undergraduate students, especially those in their first year of study at institutions of higher education. The findings indicate further that the importance of existing peer support programmes and its significance in terms of assisting institutional intervention programmes, may ensure future student retention and finally student success. The study demonstrates that the most noticeable gap in contemporary literature is the limited number of research conducted in SSA around this topic. This highlights the need for a subsequent systematic review which will allow further investigation around the thematic domains which were also included in this study.

Keywords:

Peer mentoring, undergraduate students, higher education institutions, scoping review.