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What's in it for me?

The quickest way to succeed is to learn from people who have been successful and various studies have confirmed that being mentored is linked with achievement.  Mentees often gain an increased understanding of a profession. They also receive guidance and advice, report higher confidence levels, and gain access to networks and other resources not otherwise available.

Mentoring is a two way learning process and there are immense benefits to be gained for both the mentee and the mentor.  The Career Mentoring Scheme has been designed for you to gain valuable experience and support in your career planning and transition into the world of work. The rewards are numerous and below are some of the reasons why students often choose to take part;

Insight into your chosen industry or career idea:

You will gain a deeper understanding of the type of work involved, what skills are required and an “insiders” look at what real success means within the industry. Your mentor is also likely to have useful tips of how to “get in and get on” within your chosen career.

New perspective:

A mentor can provide a welcome point of stability during a time of change such as moving from education to employment.  A mentor is an independent voice, outside of education, family or work and is a great person to chat through your ideas with in a confidential and non-judgemental way.

Personal development and reflection:

The mentoring process will help you to recognise your own abilities and limitations in relation to your career ideas and highlight areas for development. You may find yourself “digging deep” to consider what you really want out of a career, your short and long term goals and how you will achieve them.

Development of specialist skills:

You will be matched to a mentor from your chosen career area or with someone who has specialist skills or interests that reflect your needs. This is an opportunity to gain an understanding of the specialist skills that are needed for that job role and consider how you will develop these skills for your future career.

Development of employability skills:

Mentees continually comment that by working with their mentor they develop skills in communication, listening, negotiation, time management and commercial awareness as well as developing their overall confidence.  Additionally, a mentor can provide practical support in other essential areas such as interview preparation or developing strong leadership skills.

Opportunity to network:

Mentors often introduce their mentees to a network of individuals and / or organisations that ordinarily you wouldn’t have access to. This can prove invaluable when assisting you to gain knowledge about your career ideas and, in the past, has led to real career opportunities for mentees.

Confidence:

Your mentor will give you the personal support you need to face your job search with confidence. With regular, constructive, feedback the mentoring process should enable you to become more self aware i.e. know your strengths, your aspirations and your areas for improvement.

Testimonials:

Read some of the most recent comments from mentees , which give a flavour of the impact of mentoring on these individuals.

Articles

You might find some of these recently published articles on mentoring interesting to read. They all give an overview of mentoring and coaching, but from different viewpoints.

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