Important Information for Mentees
Making the most of your UniMentor IntroductionAll of us, to a greater or lesser extent, depend on others for knowledge and information. This starts early in life as we learn from parents, siblings, friends and teachers. Later, in the workplace, we learn from those around us and especially from those further up the career ladder. This is mentoring in its simplest form and it happens every day in schools, universities, offices, studios, factories and all other workplaces. Informal mentoring occurs when the mentor and student are attracted by a mutual interest or friendship. The meetings are usually less formal and may include social as well as work related scenarios. Formal mentoring is usually organised by a third party and is based on a matching programme which links up mentors and students with shared interests or expertise. Why might you need a mentor?UniMentor is organised so that new students have the opportunity to meet with mentors in the same course as themselves. Your mentors will help you to settle in to the Faculty and to the University community. UniMentors have volunteered for the role, have spent at least a year at university and will definitely be interested in you. UniMentors are people who have been there and done that - they understand the University and how things work around here and they will be focussed on helping you find solutions to problems you might be having. Making the most of your UniMentorMost of you will meet your Unimentor for the first time during the first day of the O Week - Monday 16th February 2009. At your UniMentor Linkup, your UniMentor will arrange a meeting time with your mentor group for the following week. If you did not Orientation, your mentor will contact you to set up a meeting time in the near future. How often you meet after this first meeting depends on the mentor group. Experience has shown that regular weekly or fortnightly meetings are best. It is worth discussing this and coming to a decision. Don’t leave it undecided. The danger of leaving the next meeting open is that you are all very busy with projects, assignments and exams and things can simply drift and before you know it time has passed and opportunities have been lost. Consider suggesting regular meeting times with your mentor. Make sure that you discuss with your mentor the expectations that you all have of each other. This will help ensure that your expectations match and will avoid misunderstandings. It’s up to you to make the most of having an interested mentor with knowledge of the Faculty, who may have valuable advice for you, and above all, someone who is prepared to listen to you. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that because you have no problems, you will not benefit from having a mentor! In most cases students and mentors are matched for a maximum of one academic year. A mentor can be useful for:
As a mentee you should
Changing mentorsIf after the first one or two meetings you feel it will be impossible to develop a rapport with your mentor, contact us. You can ask to be matched with a different mentor. Don’t feel guilty - these things happen. You may either withdraw from UniMentor or request a different mentor at any time. There is no blame attached to incompatibility. It’s a part of life! You are always welcome to come and discuss any difficulties or concerns you have about UniMentor with any of the staff. Keeping in touchPlease make sure that your mentor has your current email address and telephone number. Please return all calls and messages from your mentor. To simply ignore them is discourteous and unfair. Thank your mentor!Your mentor will take time out of their day for you. While there are benefits for your mentor, the major benefits and objectives of the exercise are focused around you. Make sure you remember to thank your mentor for the time spent together. It is polite, and it is your acknowledgment of your mentor's efforts on your behalf. EvaluationThe only way for UniMentor to be developed and improved is to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of the programme. Periodically during the year, all mentors and mentees will be asked to complete a questionnaire designed to evaluate the programme. Please assist by completing and returning all questionnaires. Our contact with youAll communication between us and you is via student email. Please make sure you regularly check your student email and respond to any messages we send you. We might contact you about upcoming events, workshops, seminars, and other items that may be of interest to you. Contact us if you
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Ms Jayne Brown | Ms Narelle Palmer First Year Adviser - UniMentor/UniStart 1st floor, Student Services Guild Village University of Western Australia telephone: (08) 6488 3028 facsimile: (08) 6488 1119 Email: unimentor@uwa.edu.au | Ms Karen Stewart |
