Open to all current students over the age of 18, and supported by La Trobe University staff, Industry Mentoring is a flexible program over 12 weeks that connects students with Industry based professionals, including La Trobe Alumni. The program is guided, but is flexible for mentor and mentee to tailor to suit busy lives and professional development goals.
The program is designed for students to connect with industry, expand professional networks and work on unique employability related professional development goals. Industry Mentoring is offered as part of the suite of opportunities and programs offered to all La Trobe students through the Career Read Advantage Award.
See more information on the Mentors and Students pages on the benefits of being involved in the program.
Semester 1 Round: March – June
Semester 2 Round: August – November
Summer Round: November – February
Exact dates will be communicated to participants who have registered prior to the upcoming mentoring round.
The matching of mentors to mentees is administrated by Industry Mentoring staff, and is based on the profiles built by participants. Alignment will be sort based on study and career background and aspirations, as well as professional development goals. Briefings are run in the lead up to each round, and all participants are kept up to date on progress.
Once in a mentoring connection, participants will have access to a range of resources through the mentoring platform. This includes a connection plan which gives a guide for how a 12 week mentoring plan could look. Within the connection plan are suggested activities, tips, helpful resources and suggested timelines. The platform also has the functionality for mentor and mentee to message each other, upload documents and map individual goals. Surveys are also built into the connection plan to help assist administration with program improvement.
The connection plan is a guide only. Industry Mentoring is designed to be flexible to each unique mentoring connection. Some participants may follow the guide carefully, others will negotiate their own plan for the 12 week period. This is encouraged, and administration is available throughout the 12 weeks to offer guidance if needed.
The flexibility of Industry Mentoring extends to the time commitment required and also the mode in which you and your mentor choose to communicate. The Connection Plan suggests 3-4 meetings over the 12 -week program, with email and/or phone in between. Meetings may be face-to face or they may be over video conferencing. This may depend on location of participants, and you can give preference on this when signing up to the program.