Career Mentor Scheme Information

The Career Mentor Scheme provides you with the opportunity to be matched with an industry professional to support your career development and assist you with your transition from study in to the workforce.

To be eligible to participate in the Career Mentor Scheme you must register through CareerHub providing details about your professional interests and your course of study at QUT. This information will then be used to match you with a mentor who has common interests and experience in similar areas.

Once you are matched with a mentor, you with become their ‘mentee’ for the duration of the academic year (typically from April until November), however you are encouraged to continue the mentoring relationship beyond this time.

While every effort is made to match you with a mentor, sometimes this will not be possible if there are no mentors available within your discipline area. However, the Career Mentor Scheme Coordinator is continually recruiting mentors and often students who missed out in the initial matching stage will be matched with a mentor later on in the year.

Benefits

The Career Mentor Scheme is an invaluable experience for students, matching students with an industry mentor during a year of their study.

Advantages of participating:

• Gain access to advice from an industry professional;
• Receive information and knowledge straight from the real world;
• Valuable networking opportunities; and
• Forge a supportive, on-going professional relationship to support your career.

Responsibilities

Mentee

• Taking time to contact and meet mentor, both in the initial stages and on an on-going basis;
• Working to foster the mentoring relationship;
• Thinking about goals before meeting a mentor and being willing to openly discuss these goals with their mentor;
• Communicating expectations, needs and feelings;
• Developing a trust relationship and sharing concerns;
• Negotiating activities in order to obtain goals;
• Embracing learning and exploration with enthusiasm and commitment;
• Being willing to listen and when appropriate take advice and also giving feedback on each session;
• Learning to accept feedback and use it positively;
• Trying to implement mentor suggestions.

Mentor

• Acting as a source of information and/or insight into the occupational field;
• Counselling regarding career development or strategies for achieving professional goals;
• Assisting with personal goal setting and planning;
• Teaching specific skills including job seeking strategies and resume writing;
• Listening with an open mind, challenging and encouraging the exploration of ideas;
• Encouraging professional behaviour;
• Facilitating self-directed learning;
• Providing feedback on observed performance;
• Coaching for effective coping strategies;
• Being a confidant during personal crisis, problems or transition.