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CAREER MENTOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How do I become a Career Mentor?
What does a Career Mentor do?
What kind of time should I expect to spend on the program?
How often can I expect to be contacted by students?
How much time should I plan to give to participants?
I don’t work in HR, and I’m not a recruiter. Will students think I’ll be able to get them a job at my organization?
How will I know when my profile has been viewed?
Can I volunteer to share specific kinds of career-related information?
When should I expect to be contacted by a student?
How do I become a Career Mentor?
To register as a mentor, the applicant must access the mentor login page at https://www.myinterfase.com/utsa/mentor.
New mentors must click the [Click here to Register!] link to create a new account. Completion and submission of the Personal, Employment and Education Information sections serves as application to the program.
After a mentor clicks on the Save button (completes the registration), the record will have a Pending status until an Administrator activates the record.
Once a record is activated, the career mentor applicant will be notified electronically. Students will now be able to access the mentor record.
What does a Career Mentor do?
A Career Mentor is an alumnus, employer, parent, staff member or friend of the University who volunteers to network with current UTSA students or other alumni for the purposes of career exploration and professional development. In addition to responding to e-mails you may also want to provide resume critiques, informational interviews, job shadowing opportunities or assistance with interviewing preparation. Mentors can provide the link between a student’s academic major and the world of work. Click here for a downloadable Mentor’s Guide.
What kind of time should I expect to spend on the program?
Each Career Mentor will spend different amounts of time on the program. It’s entirely up to you and what your schedule allows. It could mean answering one e-mail a week to volunteering to come to campus and give a presentation about your career field to meeting once a month with your mentee. You decide your level of participation – and this may vary from semester to semester based upon your work and personal commitments. When you initially set up your profile you can determine the number of new students able to contact you per month, so you can set that number to reflect the amount of time you are able to give.
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How often can I expect to be contacted by students?
When you create your profile online, you determine how many times new students can contact you per month. Once this limit is met, your profile will no longer be accessible until the following month rolls around. Any students who have previously contacted you also have the option of continuing a relationship with you.
Other schools who use a Career Mentor program have noted that, generally speaking, only 30-40% of searches for mentors result in actual contacts being made. Keep this in mind when setting your number of contacts per month since often students are “just looking” and may initially contact you but not be interested in an ongoing relationship. Don’t be discouraged if you aren’t contacted immediately – this is a new program and it may take some time for students to begin using it.
How much time should I plan to give to participants?
Participants are advised to be respectful of your time. As a Career Mentor, expect a couple of hours throughout the semester as a rule. Of course, if you are in a hot field or job market, you may be contacted more often but you always have the option of limiting the number of people who may view your profile by changing your mentor profile.
I don’t work in HR, and I’m not a recruiter. Will students think I’ll be able to get them a job at my organization?
Participants are advised not to use the Career Mentor Program to directly solicit employment from Mentors. It is also made clear that while resume critiquing, internships, job shadowing, and informational interviewing are possible outcomes of a student/mentor relationship, they cannot be guaranteed and should not be expected. If you encounter problems in this area, please feel free to contact the Coordinator of our Mentoring Program, Shirley Rowe (shirley.rowe@utsa.edu)
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How will I know when my profile has been viewed?
Unfortunately, there is no way for the career mentor to know if their profile has been viewed or not. You have to wait until the student/mentee contacts you.
Can I volunteer to share specific kinds of career-related information?
Yes. You can choose the type(s) of guidance you’re willing to provide: employer information, career advising, regional information, or resume review. You can also choose the type(s) of volunteering you would like to do: job shadowing, informational interviews, mentoring, classroom speaking, and serving as an internship site. Click here for a downloadable Mentor’s Guide.
When should I expect to be contacted by a student?
The Career Mentor Program is a new addition to the other career services’ offered at UTSA, so participation in the program may take some time as word begins to circulate. Similarly, the time it takes for a student to contact you once he or she has saved your information may take longer than expected due to the numerous activities that students are involved in, particularly as each semester begins. Oftentimes, the information you provide in your profile may be sufficient for the student.
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