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Your Mentorship Timeline

Before your first meeting be sure to carve out time for personal reflection and really hone-in on some of the areas in your life you want to discuss with your mentor. Do not worry if you aren’t entirely sure of your goals, just come to the first meeting prepared to share your story, your hopes and fears and a bit about your aspirations in life; beyond careers.

Meeting #1

Get to know each other – let your mentor in

  • Get to know each other; trust and a positive rapport in any partnership takes time to develop but giving your mentor a sense of who you are will really help them understand how to support you.

  • Review the Mentorship Agreement together
  • Discuss your communication preferences, how you best retain and learn new information and review the Meeting Agenda Template in anticipation of your second meeting.
  • Set your meeting schedule moving forward.

Meeting #2

Refine and set goals

  • Discuss any learnings or updates since your last meeting.
  • Discuss goal-setting and decide on 1-3 career or aspirational goals you’d like to work on together.
  • Create a high-level task list to accomplish these goals.
  • Make room to discuss how you are feeling, any obstacles you can foresee getting in the way of you achieving these goals and discuss how to avoid any stumbling blocks (e.g., I don’t have the confidence to apply for my dream job or ask for what I want in my current role or I tend to procrastinate and I’m worried I’m going to leave updating my resume or applying for grad school until the last minute – knowing this your mentor can help work with you on getting ahead of these scenarios by working on your resume at the onset, building your grad school applications well in advance or setting reminders to ask you how it’s coming along to keep you accountable).

Ongoing meetings #3 through #6

  • Discuss your progress or updates since your last meeting
  • Start checking off tasks for short term goals
  • Consider some activities you can do together:
  • Attend a virtual Alumni Mentors Program Workshop together
  • Discuss any virtual networking opportunities
  • Conduct a virtual mock interview with your mentor
  • Ask your mentor to scan your social media with the lens of a prospective employer to see if any red flags appear.
  • Suggest something that will boost your mental health (e.g., a podcast, a book, a coffee conversation with someone new or an outdoor activity).
  • If your meetings are usually more formal, switch it up and connect over coffee, lunch or breakfast.

Final Meeting (Typically the 6-8th meeting depending on your frequency)

  • Reflect on the goals or progress were able to accomplish together.
  • Provide feedback on the mentorship experience.
  • Discuss how you will remain connected moving forward.
  • Gratitude and conclusion of formal mentorship.

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Frequently Asked Questions