A white man smiling and interviewing someone at a desk.
A white man smiling and interviewing someone at a desk.

How to get a mentor

A mentor is someone who can provide you with advice and support which can help in your role or career

A mentor can support, advise and guide you, helping you to gain experience, develop skills and achieve your full potential. 

Benefits of using a mentor

A mentor is a trusted colleague, member of staff or friend with experience who can:

  • help you develop your skills and knowledge
  • share their career story and introduce you to others to build your network
  • help you start or move up in your career and find job opportunities
  • support you to set goals and take action 
  • help you to look at challenges in a new way
  • signpost you to advice and further help if you need it 

Having a mentor can be useful at any stage of your career or education.

How to get a mentor

You may be able to sign up for a formal mentoring scheme at your:

  • school
  • college
  • university
  • training centre
  • workplace

If you are unemployed, your local Jobcentre Plus office may have advice on local schemes.

You can find out more about mentoring by talking to:

  • a careers leader, personal tutor or training provider
  • a Jobcentre Plus employment coach
  • a careers adviser in school, college, university, or from the National Careers Service
  • a line manager or supervisor
  • the human resources (HR) department at work
  • a union learning link, if you're a member

Find a mentoring scheme

There are mentoring schemes run by charities and commercial organisations. Some are for specific groups like disabled people or people from Black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds.

Some examples include:

  • The Prince's Trust - Mosaic scheme, usually organised in schools
  • The Windsor Fellowship - has several schemes for young people and graduates from diverse communities
  • UpRising - offer mentoring for young people in 4 areas of England
  • City Disabilities - offer support to students and disabled professionals, working or aiming to work in London

Some mentor schemes encourage people from under-represented groups to enter a particular career or sector.

For example:

You can search online or ask a careers adviser for information on other schemes available in your area of work or to meet your particular circumstances.

Create your own mentoring opportunity

You do not have to be part of a mentoring scheme to benefit from mentoring. Depending on your situation, you could find a trusted person who has the skills you'd like to gain or who is in a role you aspire to be in.

If you’re in education, you could ask a teacher or tutor for help. They might be able to find a trusted person who could support you.

If you’re employed, you could ask someone in your organisation to be your mentor. Being mentored by someone who is 2 or 3 steps ahead of where you are now in your career can be a good strategy.

If you’re not in work, you could speak to a friend, family or a Jobcentre Plus work coach. You can also speak to a careers adviser for advice on getting back into work.

How to prepare for mentoring

Think about your long and short-term goals and what you want to gain from the mentoring experience. Plan a rough outline of what you want to cover before each session and prepare some questions.

You might be expected to take the lead in how the sessions are used. You’ll also need to agree with you mentor on:

  • the amount of time you can both commit to meeting
  • how you will use your time together
  • when you will meet and whether it will be face-to-face or online

You could create an action plan to help set your goals. You can take this along to your first session to prompt your discussion.

What to expect from mentoring

At the start of a mentoring opportunity, you will have an initial meeting to:

  • introduce yourself to each other
  • share your expectations
  • set any expectations for your mentoring relationship

Your mentor should be able to show that they have been approved to work with you. If you're a young person or vulnerable adult, this means your mentor should have been security checked.

How to get the most out of mentoring

To help you get started with mentoring, you should:

  • be responsible for your own development: your mentor is there just to provide advice, you are there to do the work
  • be open, honest and willing to trust your mentor’s advice
  • expect to be challenged and pushed out of your comfort zone: this is how you develop skills
  • expect to make some mistakes: you will learn from them
  • remember your mentor is volunteering their time so do not waste it
  • try to see things from a new perspective: your mentor may be of a different gender or culture, so be respectful of difference
  • be open to feedback and willing to talk about it, if you disagree - mentors are there to learn from you too

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Understand and develop your skills

How to get work experience

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