Advancing YU | Alumni Information

There are several opportunities for the mentors to network with each other - the program launch, a dedicated mentor mixer and end-of-program celebration.

The Advancing YU Launch happens in person in September/October.  This is an opportunity for all the mentors to meet their mentees,  meet one another, network with each other and the Advancement Team as well as hear about the program. The mentor mixer is in January and is a virtual fireside chat.  This is an opportunity for all to go to mid check point, share experiences and ideas and another opportunity to network. 

Additionally, Advancing YU Celebration is the end of the program event (typically in March) that brings together mentors and mentees to collectively celebrate the successful completion of the program and to further connect all mentors and mentees.

The 8-to-10-hour mark is simply a minimum requirement to complete. Mentors and mentees are free to spend more time together for the purpose of this program, provided both the mentor and the mentee have the time to do so.

The mentor can choose to structure meetings in any form that they feel will be most suitable, either in person or online. Mentors have the choice of meeting with each student individually, or conducting meetings as a group (3 mentees, one mentor).

The advancement team can further support a mentor by providing resources and advice to help mentors with their interactions and other mentor-mentee activities.

The student engagement team and advancement team have worked together closely in creating an outline that suggests topics and themes for discussion in the meetings. However, mentors and mentees are free to discuss other topics that they feel are important to the mentee's professional development. 

Each mentor and mentee are required to fill out an individual registration form/application form respectively. This form assists the advancement team in understanding which mentors and mentees will be most compatible with one another. For example, if an alumni mentor works in a particular field that a student is interested in, we will do our to best to match the two together.

Due to the volume of mentors and students, we cannot guarantee that students will be pursuing a career in the same field in which the mentor is working.

One of the main methods of tracking progress for this program is through having students complete reflections. These reflections will be thoroughly analyzed by the advancement and student engagement teams to determine whether the program is effective and creating an impact.