Connect Concordia mentorship program
The program provides undergraduate student mentees with the opportunity to connect with a Concordia staff, faculty or grad student mentor.
Mentees will dive into the professional life of a staff member at Concordia, learn about their mentor’s career paths and experience a real-life work environment. Mentees can also discuss their own projects and goals, all while working on their professional communication skills.
Equity deserving students will receive a $140 participation stipend upon completion! Equity deserving students include: International students, newcomers and refugees, Students with disabilities, Black students, Indigenous students, People of colour and students of racialized groups, members of the LGBTQ2S+, parents and caregivers.
How it works
Why be a mentee?
The program will connect you to a mentor for a period of about 10 hours over the course of a term (schedule to be determined by both parties) online or in person.
As a mentee you can expand your knowledge and skills, gain valuable advice from a more experienced person, and build your professional networks. You can also learn new ways of thinking, and, ultimately, get ready for life after graduation.
Some reasons for becoming a mentee might include:
- Wanting to build up your confidence at work and school;
- Wanting to gain practical advice, encouragement and support;
- A wish to learn about potential career paths;
- Wanting to develop a bigger network;
- Growing both personally and professionally.
Whatever your motivation, and it’s likely to be a mix of different things, sign up today to be connected to a staff mentor. If you identify as an equity deserving student, you will be awarded a $140 stipend for completing 10 hours of mentorship.
Applying
- We accept mentee applications on a rolling basis during the terms the program is running.
- Open to all undergraduate students. Equity deserving students will receive a $140 stipend for completing 10 hours of mentorship.
- Once your application is received, we will review it and match you to a staff or faculty member, or graduate student based on your interests. We cannot guarantee that we will find every student a match but we will do our best.
- Consider looking for your own mentor. Feel free to reach out to an instructor, staff member, researcher or graduate student whose work you admire. Be sure to tell them about the Connect Concordia mentorship program, point them to the website, and tell them why you would benefit from their mentorship. Fill out the form and let us know you’ve found a match.
Before the match
- Based on the answers in your application we will match you with a mentor. Don't worry if you don't know what you're looking for, this is also a self-discovery activity.
- Once a match is identified, you will be notified by email. Please fill out the agreement form so we can proceed with the introductions. Instructions for stipend payments for equity deserving students will be provided at this time.
- We will take care of initial e-introductions and then you can reach out to your mentor with suggested availabilities to meet (in-person or online depending on health restrictions and preferences).
Before the meeting
- Identify some goals and expectations you have for the experience. What do you want to learn? For example, you may want to gain professional communication skills, email writing skills, learn about the staff's specific workplace environment, etc.
- Write down your questions in advance; you can look at the sample questions below for ideas.
During the meetings
- Don’t be shy. This is a learning and sharing experience for the both of you. As a student you will learn about professional environments, career paths and more, whereas the mentor will be working on their coaching skills and reflecting on their work, impact and experiences.
- Share your goals and expectations during your first meeting. This will help define the remaining sessions you have together.
- This is also an opportunity for the staff member to learn about their impact on student life.
After the meetings
- Please fill out the feedback form to help us improve our program. The link will be sent via email.
- You have the option of staying connected with your mentor. Check in to see if they are willing to do so.
Sample questions to ask your mentor:
- How did you obtain the work position you are in now?
- What kind of career path did you take?
- Did you know what you wanted to do before graduating?
- What do you wish you knew in your last years of university?
- Are there parts of your job you want students to know about?
- How do you think your position impacts students?
- What is your mission within the university?
