Relationship Building in Cohort-Based Instruction: Implications for Rehabilitation Counselor Pedagogy and Professional Development

Abstract

BackgroundGraduate studies in rehabilitation counseling present a variety of social, academic, and professional demands. To date, previous research has largely neglected the role that relationships among students that can help in addressing these demands.ObjectiveThe present exploratory study examined how relationships formed during a Master's Rehabilitation Counseling Education (RCE) specialization program enhanced the experience of participants both during their studies and following graduation.MethodsA total of 33 graduates of a cohort-based, Cognitive Disabilities Certificate (CDC) program were asked to reflect on the impacts of relationship-building on their experiences as students as well as their post-CDC professional development. Results were examined through phenomenological qualitative data analysis.ResultsParticipant responses revealed relationships as cohort members formed during graduate studies enhanced their student experience with facilitating camaraderie, enhancing learning, promoting student success, and providing employment leads. With regard to professional development, participants indicated their cohort-based relationships enhanced professional development, provided resources, and facilitated professional collaboration.ConclusionThe benefits of cohort-based relationship building that began during graduate education extended beyond into the professional careers of participants. More use of cohort-based instruction in RCE programs may be more likely to facilitate productive and supportive relationships.

Cohort-Based Education and Other Factors Related to Student Peer Relationships: A Mixed Methods Social Network Analysis

“…There is a small but growing literature on graduate student peer relationships. It includes a variety of literature related to individual attributes [29][30][31], the institutional characteristic of cohort-based learning [31][32][33][34], and social network structural factors associated with students' relationships with one another [29,30].…”

“…In cohort-based learning, educational programs assign students to groups, or cohorts, in which classmates take all of their classes together [40]. Cohorts typically consist of between 10 to 26 students [40] who have structured schedules [41] and high levels of interaction [32]. Cohorts are "low-cost social environments" [42] because students frequently and repeatedly interact and can engage with one another with relative ease.…”

“…Graduates of cohort-based learning in a Master's program have attributed the cohort model with helping them develop camaraderie among their peers and in some cases, lifelong friendships [32]. Cohort membership has been significantly associated with the likelihood of two MBA students becoming close friends, even after controlling for collaborations in classes taken outside the cohort [31].…”