BECOME A MENTOR
(FOR SCIENTISTS AND SCIENTISTS IN TRAINING)
HOW IT WORKS
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Sign up as a mentor and answer some questions about yourself.
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We'll add your information to our mentoring database. (For more about how we use your information, please see our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.)
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Wait for an invitation to virtually talk with a group of students or individual mentee. Teachers and mentees will search the database for mentors and contact you to explain the mentoring event they are planning.
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Decide if the invitation is a good match for your interests and availability. If so- enjoy!** If not, decline and wait for another opportunity.
**Follow any instructions given by the teacher or group leader as to specific trainings (usually quite short) or forms required to interact with their students. These laws differ by state and by school.
We do not require a minimum time commitment. Participate in as many or few mentoring events as you would like whenever you have time. We appreciate all of your hard work to make STEM more inclusive and welcoming.
WHO CAN MENTOR?
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Anyone who is currently or was previously enrolled in a STEM program at a college or university. This includes undergraduates, nurses, doctors, industry workers, professors, lab techs, graduate students, engineers, etc.
Our goal is to expose both mentors and mentees to diverse STEM fields, ideas, and career paths. We therefore are not going to nit-pick whether a specific area is a “STEM” field or at what stage someone can be considered a mentor.
We are excited to provide mentees with a wide range of mentors who can provide conversation and guidance on anything from applying to college to working on a specific science project.
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You do not need to consider yourself to be in an underrepresented group to mentor.
For more information on the importance of supporting DEI, even if you aren't a minority, check out our list of readings here.
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FIND A MENTOR
(FOR TEACHERS, COACHES, CLUBS, INDIVIDUALS*, AND FAMILIES)
HOW IT WORKS
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​​Sign up as a classroom or group and tell us a bit about your students and what kind of STEM mentoring you're looking for. (For more about how we use your information, please see our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.)
(ex: help with specific science projects, college or career advice, exposure to STEM topics).
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We'll send you our mentoring database (currently just an Excel doc) and answer any questions you have about choosing mentors or brainstorming an event.
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Use the database to find mentors with scientific interests and personal identities that can best help your students learn and grow.
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Reach out to the selected group of mentors to schedule a virtual mentoring event!
**Be sure that you obtain necessary permission slips from parents/guardians and follow any other rules set by your school.
Teachers/group leaders and their students have total say in what mentoring events look like.
Our philosophy is that teachers + group leaders know what will most benefit their students way better than we can. We're here to provide the tools to make STEM mentoring more accessible for everyone.
Don't have time to design a mentoring event or need ideas? No problem- we provide example lesson plans used by other teachers for our program that you can use directly or modify.
what is a "mentoring event"?
The short answer is that it's up to you!
Events can be stand-alone or involve reoccurring conversations between specific mentors and mentees.
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Check out lesson plans designed by other teachers + group leaders for our program.
Feel free to directly use or modify them. If you have ideas you want to share with other teachers, please send them our way!
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Common types of mentoring events:
“Traditional” mentoring:
Mentors and mentees speak in smaller groups (or one on one) about a specific science project or have reoccurring conversations (over days, weeks, or months) about various topics.
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Topic talks:
A few mentors form a panel to answer questions from a group of mentees. Usually these are themed, such as a panel to talk about a specific field of research or aspect of being or becoming a scientist.
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Mentoring mixers:
Timed or free-form events in which mentees rotate between different mentors for brief conversations about a specific topic.
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If you are an individual student (not part of a class, club, or other group with adult supervision) and still want a mentor, please contact us. We are more than happy to help you!
OTHER WAYS TO GET INVOLVED
DONATE
We are incredibly grateful for any monetary or material donations that help us reach more students.
Donate or learn more about how your donation will be used.
SPREAD THE WORD
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Tag and mention us in your posts about STEM diversity, DEI, mentoring, and more!
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Share our information and/or fliers with schools and teachers! Most of our new partnerships come from mentors connecting us with their own schools or communities.​​
COLlABORATE WITH US
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Ask your STEM field colleagues to sign up as mentors- it's an incredibly rewarding and simple way to make a difference in the lives of future scientists, engineers, and medical professionals!
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We also are happy to work with community organizations looking for STEM volunteers for events. Contact us for more info!