Who is a Mentee?
A mentee is someone who is enthusiastic to connect with a mentor and believes that their guidance and support can help them set goals and learn how to achieve them. A mentee is eager to explore new ideas and opportunities in addition to their academic studies.
We hope that you will benefit from your mentoring relationship and will be able to:
- Build a professional network;
- Develop and enhance professional and communication skills;
- Connect academics and career, and acquire advice on experiences and courses that would be of greatest benefit to you;
- Explore new ideas and areas of interest;
- Gain exposure to career options, advice and job-search tips.
The First Conversation: A Guide for a Mentee
After being introduced to your mentor, try to build a connection with them. Think about what you might like to share with them – general background information (your hometown, where you grew up, what school you attended, etc.), your AUA experiences, extracurricular activities, hobbies, etc.
Setting Goals
It is highly encouraged to start discussing your goals for the mentoring relationship as soon as possible. Goals are important because they provide direction and clarity, and help to improve the success of the relationship. Before the first meeting, think of two or three things that you would like the mentor’s assistance with over the coming months.
How to make the first impression?
- Begin the session with a smile and confidently introduce yourself.
- Thank them for being your mentor.
- Create a profile of your current activities. Include things such as your major(s), minor(s), research projects, student activities, and recent jobs or internships.
Questions to Ask Your Mentor
Job-related questions
- What is your job title?
- What is your typical day on the job?
- What percentage of each day do you spend in various work activities?
- How free are you to do your work independently?
- What types of problems are you likely to face during the day?
- What are the most satisfying and the most frustrating parts of your work?
Advancement
- How did you get to your current position?
- What are the future trends and developments that you see affecting careers in your field?
Preparation
- How did you prepare for this occupation?
- What preparations do you recommend for a person entering this field?
- What education/degrees/training/licenses are required?
- What are the best places to go for additional education or training for a position like yours?
- If you could start all over again in launching your career, what steps would you take?
- What courses do you recommend taking for this occupation?
Lifestyle
- What hours do you normally work?
- What are the professional organizations in this field?
- How do these organizations serve their members?
- What is expected of you outside of working hours?
- Is there a formal mentorship program set up in your workplace?
- Did you have a mentor? Who was/is your mentor?
- What types of activities do you enjoy outside of work?
The Mentoring Relationship
For mentoring to be successful, there must be a mutual relationship between a mentor and a mentee. As with any important relationship, both parties should work to make it successful by being open-minded and respectful, and fulfilling the expectations that they have set for the relationship.
How to Build a Mentoring Relationship?
Here are some guidelines to help you create a meaningful relationship with your mentor.
Get to know your mentor!
Be sure to get to know your mentor on a personal level. While mentors are excellent career resources, you can learn a lot from their personal stories as well.
Set goals with your mentor!
- Setting goals with your mentor is critical because it gives direction and clarity to the mentoring relationship. It also increases the likelihood of a successful relationship.
- Think about what you hope to gain from this experience and what activities you might be interested in doing with your mentor. Here are some ideas:
- Review and update your résumé;
- Get tips on job and internship searches;
- Prepare for interviews;
- Discuss how to balance personal and professional priorities;
- Discuss graduate school perspectives;
- Attend a professional meeting or a program.
Remember, goal-setting is a process – priorities can and will evolve over time!
Set expectations with your mentor!
- Determine how and when you will communicate with each other.
- Schedule your next meeting time – if only tentatively – at the end of each meeting.
- Keep the relationship a priority. Even if you cannot meet or talk with your mentor very often, at least try to keep your communication consistent (e.g., send an email/message every couple of weeks).
Be proactive!
Initiate communication with your mentors and try to make the most of this exclusive opportunity. If your mentor has not responded to you in a while, do not be shy about sending another email message or calling them. They simply may have missed your previous message, or they may expect you to initiate the communication.
The Purpose of Goal Setting
Setting goals helps people to strive to achieve. Although goal-setting might be challenging, it is worthwhile. The intention is to increase efficiency and effectiveness by specifying desired outcomes. Goals are important because they:
- Guide and direct behavior;
- Provide clarity;
- Reflect on what the goal-setters consider important;
- Help to improve performance;
- Increase the motivation to succeed;
- Instill pride in and encourage satisfaction with achievements;
- Provide challenges and standards;
- Increase self-confidence and decrease negative attitude.
Goal-setting model
Use the guidelines below to set SMART goals that will help you in traveling the road to success.
- Specific – A goal of graduating from college, for example, is too general. Specify how this will be accomplished (e.g., study more or more effectively in order to earn better grades).
- Measurable – Establish criteria for how to achieve a goal. “Measurable” does not refer to a timeline; it refers to determining intermediate steps to measure success in achieving a long-range goal.
- Action-oriented – Be proactive in taking action that will result in reaching the desired goal.
- Realistic – Strive for attainable goals; consider the resources and constraints relative to the situation.
- Timely – Allow reasonable time to complete each goal, but not so much time that you lose focus or motivation.
As a mentee, you are expected to give feedback to the program coordinator consistently. Communicating your progress and questions to the OAR staff would help to ensure successful mentoring relationships.
If you have any problems or concerns about the mentoring relationship or your mentor remains unresponsive for a prolonged period of time, initiate contact. If he/she doesn’t respond after multiple attempts, please contact us at alumnirelations@aua.am.