My Mentee Experience: Career eMentor Scheme
Hello everyone! I'm Catalina, a penultimate year International Business and Marketing student at Leeds University Business School.
Earlier this year, I had the great opportunity of joining the University's Careers eMentor scheme, an eight-week online mentoring programme where I interacted and learned from a Leeds alumnus working in the Marketing and Advertising industry.
Let me take you through the process of taking part in this scheme, but most importantly, of what I learned from it.
The Process
I came across the Careers eMentor scheme through a University email sent to Undergraduates. After reading about the program and benefits such as obtaining real word advice, guidance, and practical information from a mentor, I was immediately interested.
The application process was really simple and quick: I was directed to an online form where I filled in some contact information and gave details about my industry of interest. In just a few minutes, I submitted my application and was given an estimated date when I will hear back from the Mentoring department.
After a few weeks, I got an exciting email where I was informed that I had been successfully paired with a mentor, as well, as receiving a Mentee Handbook with further information and tips on how to establish our first meeting and how to make the most out of the scheme.
My mentor and I exchanged a few emails before agreeing that our weekly one-hour interactions would take place over video calls. During our first few calls, we had thought-provoking discussions around the current and future state of the marketing and advertising industry, as well as, conversations about employability, interviews, and work-related situations.
After a few sessions, my mentor had a great idea to start inviting some of his colleagues to our calls in order for me to hear different perspectives and experiences. This was an incredible opportunity and one of the most valuable lessons from the scheme:
Lesson 1: Networking opportunities in a mentoring scheme are not limited to your mentor
Your mentor is your first and main point of contact, but at the same time, they know many other people that they can connect you to in order to expand your professional network and to learn from diverse perspectives.
In my experience, I was able to interact with people in different marketing-related roles, but most importantly, with women within the industry who shared their career journeys and the different challenges that they experienced to get to their current roles. For example, I had the chance to meet an Internal Communications Manager at a large bank and discuss topics such as adapting your communication style, handling mistakes, and driving change from the bottom up.
Lesson 2: The importance of transferable skills
One of the areas where I got the most support from my mentor was employability. When discussing interviews, graduate schemes, and career progression, he put a lot of emphasis on the importance of transferable skills.
These are skills that can be developed in one role and then taken into different positions and industries. For example, the ability to write copy (also known as copywriting) which I have strengthened during my placement as an Oncology Marketing Undergraduate at Pfizer (which you can learn more about here) is as relevant and sought-after in the pharmaceutical industry as it is in the retail sector.
My mentor highlighted various of these skills which will be extremely useful during upcoming graduate role interviews. Another attribute we spoke about was proactivity
Lesson 3: Be proactive
I have discussed the importance of being proactive as a university student in a previous blog and it was really interesting to hear from my mentor and his colleague about how to do it in a professional setting.
Some of the approaches we discussed included joining as many meetings as possible (when I get the chance to work in the office), or learning a particular digital skill and becoming the main support contact within my team.
Hearing about these actions and about how appreciated and valued they are by managers and senior employees was really motivating and encouraged me to become a Digital Workplace Champion in my placement.
What's next for me?
Taking part in the Careers eMentor scheme was a great opportunity to expand my network in the Marketing and Advertising industry, improve my employability and become a better professional.
Moving forward, I will implement many of the lessons that I took from the scheme and I will also continue my relationship with my mentor. We will not meet as frequently as we did during the scheme, but we have agreed to catch up on a recurring basis, and particularly if I need support once the application period for Graduate schemes starts.
What's next for you?
Taking part in a mentoring scheme is a fantastic opportunity and Leeds has a dedicated team that offers many different mentoring opportunities throughout the year.
If you are interested, make sure to visit the mentor schemes website available to learn more about the different schemes offered by the University.
If you have any further questions about my experience, do not hesitate to get in touch!