Learn About  Becoming a Mentor 

Develop leadership skills and expand your network by becoming a mentor.

mentor-experience-header_2024
Retention Result_2024

Sign up to be a mentor—you choose your level of involvement!

Connect with a current student who shares a familiar course of study, interests, life experience, or aspiration in ways that work for both of you—whether it’s video chatting, texting, meeting for coffee, or a combination.

Common discussion topics include:

  • Academic success
  • Work-school-life balance
  • Career
  • Personal growth

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Mentor Collective?

Mentor Collective is an edtech software and service provider that partners with colleges and universities around the country to design and implement large-scale mentorship programs. 

Our technology allows for a safe and accessible experiences driven by student preference and helps colleges and universities learn how to better support students needs.

Is Mentor Collective a reputable company?

Yes! Mentor Collective is a legitimate and reputable company that is currently partnered with nearly 200 higher education institutions.

As a small start-up growing our footprint in edtech, however, you may not have see our name outside of your college or university.

Here's some more information from TechCrunch about our last round of series A funding.

Is Mentor Collective affiliated with my college or university?

The best way to see if your school is partnering with us is to Google your school's name and Mentor Collective. 

If you have an active program, your school's website will have a page that shows you when and how to sign up.

You can also send us a message!

Why did Mentor Collective contact me?

If you received a text from Mentor Collective, that means your college or university is inviting you to be a mentee or mentor in it's Mentor Collective program. 

Mentor Collective programs utilize texting to help make mentorship more accessible and easy to integrate into your day-to-day. This is how we'll reach out to you to fill out a questionnaire every now and then. We find this encourages people to make the most of their mentorship and their school's resources.

Your school gives us permission to reach out to you initially, however should you decide that you don't want to participate and do not want to receive further communications, you are always able to opt-out.

How long do the mentorships last?

Technically, one academic year, however we encourage you to remain in contact beyond this if you develop a strong relationship with your mentee.

Are mentors paid?

Most programs utilize volunteer mentors, but check with your program to learn about paid mentoring opportunities. Whichever opportunities your program provides, we welcome (and encourage) you to include your experience as a mentor on LinkedIn or your resume. As a mentor, you have the chance to develop strong leadership and communication skills.

What if I only want to participate for one semester?

That’s fine! You always have the option to adjust your involvement. Email help@mentorcollective.org if you want to opt out of the program, reduce the number of students you are supporting, increase the number of students you are supporting, or if you have questions.

How many mentees do mentors work with?

Mentors can take any number of mentees they are interested in. Most mentors take somewhere between 2 and 5 mentees at a time. The most important thing is that you do what feels right for you.

How much time do mentors need to commit?

After you register, there are a couple of next steps:

 – Fill out a brief matching survey that tells us about you and your preferences (5-10 minutes)

– Complete your mentor training that goes over the basics of Mentor Collective and being an effective mentor (45 minutes)

After those steps, you and your mentee can determine together what timing works best for you. You will be expected to speak with your mentee once a month, but anything more than that is up to both of you. Most mentors spend between 1 and 3 hours a month per mentee.

What counts as a "conversation"?

Throughout your mentorship, we ask you and your mentee(s) to log your conversations on our website or through our automated texts. But what counts as a conversation? It can be:

– 1 phone call

– 1 videochat session

– 1 email exchange

– 1 in-person "interaction" (grabbing coffee, spending 10 minutes talking before class, etc.)

– 2+ text messages exchanged within 1 day

If in doubt, please don't hesitate to ask us at help@mentorcollective.org. Logging conversations helps your program administrator(s) gauge whether the program is helping students, and how to help them better!

What if I have a serious concern about my mentee's physical or mental health?

We take concerns like these very seriously. As a mentor, you will have different opportunities for sharing a concern like this with us.

While reporting conversations on the MC website, you can indicate any concern you have about your mentee (or that your mentee needs extra support), as well as through monthly texts we send you.

Once you let us know about a serious concern, we send your concern to a point person in your program who can reach out to your mentee and provide extra resources and support.

What do I get out of the program?

Mentors are given on-demand training focused on supporting you in the program and honing critical thinking and listening skills. Upon completing and passing your training, you’ll receive a LinkedIn certification that you can add to your resume.  Read more about how mentorship can enhance your resume.

What if I have further questions?

If you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to help@mentorcollective.org. 

Tour the Dashboard

Get to know the Mentor Collective Mentor Dashboard.