Mentoring Programs
College Alumni Mentoring Series
The College Alumni Mentoring Series engages College students and alumni in mentoring relationships to help students determine how their current academic paths coincide with career aspirations. The series is composed of three types of events that help to facilitate students’ understanding of life beyond Penn:
- • Mentoring Lunches (intended primarily for sophomores and juniors, brief paragraph of reasoning will be required)
- • Themed Evening Programs(welcomes all College students interested in the topic)
- • College of Arts and Sciences Career Institute (by application)
These meetings are not intended to be job interviews or a means to securing an internship, rather are intended to build a relationship with an alumnus/a who wants to share his or her life experiences and advice with current students. We would hope that mentors and students maintain an on-going dialogue without expectations of future employment opportunities.
Students who are further along in their academic pursuits are best suited for the mentoring lunches, whereas other students may explore academic options through the evening programs listed below. The Mentoring Lunch allows eight students to share a meal with an alumnus, and later have a chance to talk individually about their interests and goals. Larger Themed Evening Programs give students the opportunity to experience a spectrum of career opportunities within a specific field by interacting with a larger group of alumni in a panel and small group format. Finally, the College of Arts & Sciences Career Institute will be an intensive educational experience intended to expose undergraduates to strategies for job searches, interviews and a successful career over a two-day period.
Major Advising Program
The Major Advising Program (MAP) is a peer advising system that helps students with their search for a major. Junior and senior students who have declared their majors volunteer through MAP to introduce their fields of study to students still investigating potential majors. Any College student can access the online database of peer advisors, representing nearly every major within the College of Arts and Sciences.
MAP advisees are generally College freshmen and sophomores. However, any student who has yet to choose a major or would like to explore additional major options is welcome to use the system. Students don't have to be "lost" to take advantage of MAP, just curious.
MAP advisors are students who have already declared their major (sophomores, juniors, and seniors) and gone through the MAP advisor application process. Most importantly, they are enthusiastic and eager to share their experience and knowledge with students considering a major in their department.
Students who wish to make use of the Major Advising Program should visit the website (PennKey required) and follow the instructions to search the database. Contact information for all advisors is easily accessible and advisees email advisors directly, without any intermediaries.
Graduate-Undergraduate Mentoring
The Mentoring Program through the Graduate Student Center connects current Penn undergraduates with members of the Penn graduate and professional student community. The goal is for undergraduates to learn first-hand about preparing for, applying to, and succeeding in, graduate school.