Whether you want a mentor or want to be a mentor, the first step is to speak to your Line Manager, Director, Head of Department / School, or colleagues. This way you can find out about existing or potential mentoring opportunities within your area.
Whether you're considering becoming a mentor or mentee, it is beneficial for both parties to gain an understanding of the key things to consider before getting started.
As a Mentor, you should consider:
As a Mentee, you should consider:
Preparation will be key in building and maintaining the relationship. With any new mentoring relationship, prepare for the initial discussion so that you get to know each other to be able to know if the relationship is right.
As a Mentor, you should consider:
For example:
As a Mentee, you should consider:
Mentoring seeks to enable you to reach your potential by linking you to the support of an experienced colleague. Your Line Manager, Director, Head of Department/School or colleagues may also be able to offer their insight from previous experiences or help you to find out about existing or potential mentoring opportunities within your area.
There are some local mentoring initiatives in place across the University to support staff and students on a variety of topics, including career goals, research grants, navigating life changes and more. Each mentoring scheme offers something different, and we have included a snapshot of live University mentoring schemes below:
Mentoring Scheme |
Who can participate? | Open to mentees? | Open to mentors? | How do I find out more? |
---|---|---|---|---|
Faculty of Medicine Mentoring Scheme | All FOM colleagues, PGR students and clinical academic trainees | Yes |
Yes Also open to mentors outside of Medicine |
Have a look at the SharePoint Site Email: [email protected] |
Electronics and Computer Science Mentoring Scheme | All ECS colleagues | Yes | Yes | Email: [email protected] |
Mechanical Engineering & ISVR Mentoring Scheme | All staff and PGRs in Mech Eng and ISVR | Yes | Yes |
Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] |
Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences Mentoring Scheme | All FELS colleagues and ECRs | Yes | Yes | Email: [email protected] |
School of Humanities Mentoring Scheme | All Humanities colleagues | Yes | Yes | Email: [email protected] |
Centre for Higher Education Practice |
Available to everyone:
|
Yes | Yes | Email: [email protected] |
Student Career Mentoring Programme Annual scheme from September |
All staff are invited to be mentors | Open to students and graduates | Yes- open to all staff from all industries and no experience required |
Have a look at the SharePoint site Email: [email protected] |
Library Staff Mentoring Scheme |
All Library Staff | Yes | Yes |
Have a look at the SharePoint site Email: [email protected] |
If you know of any existing opportunities or schemes within the University that we can promote through these web pages, please email the details (including School/Department and a contact email address) to Leadership & Management Development
For additional resources on mentoring, visit:
Good Practice - log in using your University email address
LinkedIn Learning - Recommended bitesize audio course 'How to build a secret circle of mentors’ . Adapted from the Modern Mentor podcast, the course identifies six types of “secret” mentors—people who can teach you critical skills from afar.