Mentorship Program
Nervous and excited about life at Mines? Become a SWE mentee!
- Join a community of women at Mines who are excited to help you
- Establish valuable connections with junior and senior SWE members to create a support network early in your college career
- Get the inside scoop on Mines (and your major) from someone who has been in your shoes
- Take advantage of resources to help you adjust and thrive at Mines!
If you have any questions about the program, connect with our current Mentorship Director, Gemma Ponce: gemmagponce@mines.edu.
Goals/Objectives
This programs aims to:
- Provide a setting for women at Mines to feel comfortable with their peers, creating a sense of belonging.
- Find solutions to challenges facing women in STEM, such as impostor syndrome, lack of self-assurance (confidence to be assertive), and feelings of isolation.
- Create a community of women at Mines who are eager to help incoming women, and attract more women to Mines.
- Strengthen SWE as an organization by providing an outlet for more members to get involved in ways that relate to and benefit them, ultimately resulting in increased persistence and retention.
- Benefit incoming students by providing them with the opportunity to establish connections and learn from junior and senior SWE members in their major through advice sharing and guidance.
Pairing Methods
- The number of mentors/mentees pairs varies on major. Generally, 2-3 mentees per mentor.
- Pairings are based primarily on intended major, then narrowed using other noted interests from the mentee sign-up form.
- There is no pressure for a mentee to remain in a group if they decide to switch majors. Their mentor and the Vice President of Member Services will be happy to help find the mentee a new group.
Pairing & Logistics Timeline
For Mentors:
- Application emailed to all current SWE members one month before school begins.
- Applications must be submitted by the first day of the fall semester.
- Training about the program, featuring presentations from the Counseling Center and Title IX Office, occurs within the first 2 weeks of the fall semester.
For Mentees:
- Sign-up form emailed 2 weeks before first day of the fall semester to all incoming freshmen, transfer, and sophomore students.
- Sign-up closes at the end of the second week of the fall semester.
Once all sign-ups have been received, SWE’s Executive Board will assign groups. Pairings are announced during the mentoring kick-off event, ~ second week of September
Activities
The Mentorship Director organizes ~6 large events each semester covering relevant topics. Attendance is strongly encouraged.
Sample of topics:
- Career Fair/networking
- Registration
- Sophomore year housing options
- Tips for academic success & confidence
- Communication & teamwork
- General community building
- Empowering others
Evaluation and Improvement
The mentorship program is designed to benefit all participants. The leadership team routinely solicits feedback to improve the program. This is done via surveys once a semester: one to mentors and one to mentees.
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