I’ve benefited from many great mentoring relationships throughout my career. Each relationship provided the support I needed at that life stage, helping me define and work towards personal and professional goals.

According to a recent Harvard Business Review article, the benefits of mentorship are clear. Mentees “perform better, advance in their careers faster, and experience more work-life satisfaction”. It is also important to remember that mentoring is two-sided, and that mentors also benefit from acting as a trusted advisor.

In higher education, mentoring contributes to retention and student success. However, college students don’t necessarily seek out mentoring relationships or know how to establish such a connection.

I’m not sure I really knew what a mentoring relationship entailed when I was at university. My professors, parents, and friends supported me. However, in retrospect, I would have benefited from the unique support a mentor provides.

To help break down some of these barriers, this article outlines what it means to be a mentor, the different types of mentors, and how to grow a mentoring relationship.

What is a Mentor?

According to the Indeed job site, a mentor is “available to their mentee to offer advice, provide support and answer questions”. Key things that mentors do include these ten things:

Believe in your growth.
Provide a safe space for you to voice your dreams.
Make you feel heard.
Help you clearly define your goals and how to get there.
Make you want to stretch these goals.
Keep you accountable.
Provide you with the confidence to rise above your fears.
Help you see the bigger picture and learn from setbacks.
Highlight opportunities and challenges you may not see on your own.
Celebrate your successes, large and small.

Mentors are generally more experienced than their mentee and help them grow. This growth can be both personal and professional. Mentors help by sharing personal experiences or perspectives, resources, and making connections.

Mentoring programs and student involvement

Types of Mentors

There are different types of mentorships. Each type of relationship has its benefits, and every person should determine which kind of mentor is best suited for them. Remember that you can have several types of mentors at different life stages. You can also have several mentors, serving different roles, simultaneously.

Below are three types of mentors:

The Peer:

Mentors are not necessarily older or significantly more experienced. Peer mentors can be a fellow student who has more experience than you in a particular field or is going through a similar student experience.

Peer mentoring often helps students navigate shared experiences, promoting collaboration and problem solving. Interactions are generally frequent and take place in both formal and informal settings such as coffees, lunches, or happy hours.

The Expert:

Finding a mentor who is an expert in their field helps students define their career path. This type of mentor shares current trends, provides advice, answers questions, and helps you expand your network. They may also help identify specific courses, activities, organizations, or job opportunities that aligned with your professional goals.

The Expert mentor, also known as Career mentor, can be someone from student affairs or career services. They may also be a professor, teacher’s assistant, or professional the student interacted with through a job or internship. Interactions generally take place in formal settings and are less frequent than with peer mentors.

The Anchor:

Anchors tend to be at senior stages in their career. They are someone who helps you see the big picture and keeps you grounded. They help you determine what is important to you in life and consider your school, career, personal dreams, and relationships as part of your life project.

Also known as Life mentors, these relationships are helpful prior to making an important decision. They also help you understand and learn from your failures, and in challenging times remind you to stay focused on your priorities and life goals. Interactions generally take place in informal settings such as a coffee shop and are often less frequent than with expert mentors.

How to Grow a Mentoring Relationship

If you want to establish a mentoring relationship, start thinking about what type of mentor you would like to have. Note that many mentoring relationships can happen virtually. Physical proximity is no longer an issue, which really broadens the field in terms of opportunities.

As part of this process, some things to consider are the following:

1. What are your personal and professional goals?

When defining your goals, make sure that they are SMART goals (i.e., Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-based).

2. How can a mentor help you achieve your goals?

Think about what your ask is of this person. Will they help you expand your network, build out a specific skill, or explore a particular career track.

3. Who within your network could you approach?

Some things to consider include a person’s interests, goals, and communication style. Trust and interpersonal chemistry are important factors in choosing a mentor.

Once you have identified several potential mentors, the next step is to reach out. Before asking someone to become your mentor, it is a good idea to first hold an informal meeting with that person. This will enable you to get to know them better and ultimately determine whether the person is a right fit for you.

After identifying the right person, it is important to know whether they are open to the idea. Do not take it personally if the person does not have the bandwidth to commit to a mentoring relationship.

Once the person has agreed to take you on as a mentee, some simple steps to follow include:

1. Agreeing on the frequency of your meetings.

2. Clearly stating your ask (i.e., what you would like them to help you with).

3. Share your SMART goals in writing. This helps create accountability and is a great way to track progress.

4. Send an agenda prior to each meeting. This demonstrates that you take ownership of the process and achieving your goals.

5. Follow up each meeting with a thank you email and recap of to-do items. This shows that you take the relationship seriously and are respectful of the person’s time.

6. Once you have achieved your goals reassess the relationship. Discuss with your mentor whether the relationship can evolve or should end.

Many higher-education establishments have mentorship programs. If you are interested in learning more reach out to your academic advisor, career services or student life contact to see what your college offers. Student organizations and clubs are also a great way to find potential mentors, as are volunteering events and other campus activities.

Most alumni associations offer mentoring programs, enabling you to become a mentor or establish a mentoring relationship with a fellow alumna. Further, internships and part-time jobs also provide mentorship opportunities.

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