Mentor students

Our students know there’s no better way to explore their employment options than by talking to someone actually doing the job. Register as a mentor and you can share your valuable experience while developing your own skills at the same time. Plus, you’ll be strengthening your links to the University and our pool of motivated students.

• Complete the form to register your interest in becoming a mentor.
• Take a look at our Mentor Information Sheet to find out more about the programme before you apply.

How does the scheme work?

• Communication with your mentee online via email, phone and video call - we know our mentors are busy people.
• Typically one exchange per week, for eight to ten weeks - this can be arranged with your mentee to suit both of your schedules.
• Two schemes per year, operating October-December and February-April - you can make yourself available to mentees depending on your schedule.

Timeline

The Autumn Career Mentoring programme is running from October until December 2024. The Spring programme will run in Semester 2 from February until the end of April 2025. Take a look at the timelines below for the key dates for each scheme.

Mentoring timeline - Autumn 2024

Mentoring timeline - Spring 2025

What can you bring?

• The answers to these questions: "What does a particular job involve?", "What are the skills required, and the challenges?", "What’s the recruitment process?"
• Advice on how to gain and present relevant experience to employers.
• Support with CVs, interview tips, networking, and getting ‘work ready’.

What can the scheme offer you?

• Personal and professional development.
• A new perspective – look at your job with fresh eyes.
• Profile raising for your company and a pipeline to our graduate talent.

What students say

My mentor has been really helpful in giving me an insight into the field and showing me that it is not as daunting as it may first seem. They have helped me to feel more confident in my own abilities and shown me how to utilise the skills I already have to make myself a better candidate.

Final year Hispanic Studies student

I would highly recommend the eMentoring scheme to other students. It enabled me to clarify what sector I want to go into and figure out what roles would be best suited to me. My mentor also helped prepare me for post-graduation life, helping me with applications, my CV and doing practice interviews.

Final year Journalism student

What mentors say

The programme is an excellent opportunity to share experiences and work with highly motivated students who are preparing the first steps in their professional careers.

I would wholeheartedly recommend the scheme to students and alumni as a rewarding and enriching experience for both.

A very rewarding and enjoyable experience. Very well managed and coordinated by the professional, responsive and helpful Careers Service staff. I wholeheartedly recommend this programme to students and alumni.

It doesn't take a lot of time or effort to be a mentor and yet you can make a big difference to the students you are supporting. It's good to feel you are really helping a student at the University of Sheffield.

Mentoring Awards 2025

This year we facilitated over 350 mentoring partnerships between a diverse range of students and mentors, on our student alumni platform, Sheffield Connect. Career Mentoring provides students with a fantastic insight into different industries and provides an excellent volunteering experience for our dedicated mentors.

Thank you! We are especially thankful to our alumni volunteers; we truly appreciate the difference your time makes to our students’ lives and their student experience.

After reading through your nominations, we are thrilled to share with you the winners of the 2025 Mentoring awards.

2025 Mentor Winner

The Career Mentoring Programme was an excellent way to reconnect with Sheffield University and to play a small part in supporting current students. I thoroughly enjoyed my time spent mentoring and the opportunity to see young talent flourish in such a short time. The ambition, intellectual curiosity and passion to learn reminded me of what it is to be young again! The programme is very well managed and the time commitment for mentor is far exceeded by the satisfaction received from being a part of this initiative.

Nuala Connolly

BA Japanese and Business Studies, 1991

2025 Highly Commended Mentor

As someone who benefited from being a mentee whilst at Sheffield University, it’s highly rewarding to provide insight and advice back to students who are just starting their career journeys. I’ve met many inspiring and hardworking students who appreciate the scheme and our discussions. I’ve learnt that even by providing a small window into our world of work is really eye opening and valuable for students. I highly recommend the scheme to anyone interested in joining as the programme is well supported and managed by the team.

Alec Roberts

MA Politics, Government & Public Policy, 2022

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2025 Mentees of the Year

The mentorship I received is life-changing. My mentors provided a lot of practical advice from their personal experience, which helped me reflect on my personal and career development goals. I gained insights in my field and became more confident in career planning. I would highly recommend anyone who is ambitious and curious about their field to apply for the mentorship program. I am sure you will develop a positive, fruitful and long-lasting relationship with your mentors.

Hiu Ching Ma

MRes Biosciences

Taking part in the Career Mentoring Scheme has been a game-changing experience. Working with Nuala helped me gain clarity, confidence, and direction as I navigate the transition from university to the professional world. Her practical advice, generous network support, and thoughtful guidance encouraged me to push myself, reflect deeply, and stay focused. From strengthening my CV and developing networking skills to refining my vision of the kind of professional I want to become, I've taken away so much that I'll carry forward in my career. I'm very thankful to have had such an inspiring mentor and would highly recommend the scheme to any student looking to grow.

Dominika Markiewicz

BA East Asian Studies

2025 Highly Commended Mentee

Within the study of history, there has always been a feeling of fear regarding the prospect of post-graduation employment. I personally felt like the skills I held were incredibly hard to describe and transfer to applications. Being in my final year, I believed this needed to change very quickly. Fortunately, The Career Mentoring program stood out to be a chance for me to learn how to form these applications. It helped unlock skills I thought were unusable in the field of employment, with a mentor who had the same degree as I, discussing similar fears and potential resolutions, which fuelled me with confidence. Receiving advice regarding networking, professional relations and applications, I plunged myself into various networking and career-related events, creating some incredibly strong links and situations I wouldn’t have had the confidence to find without my mentor.

Through constantly receiving feedback and second opinions from my mentor, the nature of employment seems more of an eventuality than an impossibility. Being able to hold myself confidently when talking professionally, I have truly found myself on better footing thanks to the Career Mentoring Programme.

Frederick Bellamy

BA History

Questions

For any further information or enquiries contact us by email: careermentoring@sheffield.ac.uk.