Mentorship

MENTORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

The Ascend Scholarship Fund also pairs scholarship recipients with mentors who can help guide them through the college experience as well as the career exploration process. Our goal is to help make their transition from high school to college as seamless as possible. We aim to match our scholars with mentors who have experience with similar academic and professional pursuits.

Mentorship includes ongoing interaction with the scholars, as we believe that building strong relationships with our scholars can make a significant impact on their success. We promote annual in-person visits, with supplemental emails and phone calls as appropriate.

Responsibilities:

  • Serve as a mentor to an AEF Scholar, a graduating high school senior – the aim is to mentor them through the process of transitioning to college and beyond
  • Meet with the mentee in person at a minimum 2x prior to their first college semester
  • On an ongoing basis, email and call your mentee to help guide them in course selection, organizational involvement, career decisions, etc
  • The AEF Mentorship Chairperson will check in formally on a quarterly basis and more regularly on an informal basis for status updates.
  • Brainstorm events and workshops that will benefit the mentees
  • Participate in group mentorship activities, including educational and social activities. Please note that AEF aims to provide programming that will benefit the Scholars, and aims to keep the costs of such programming low, however there may be costs associated with certain activities for mentors.

Prospective Mentors should email mentorship@ascendfundny.org

Each prospective mentor is required to complete an application which is reviewed by the Ascend Educational Fund Mentorship Committee Chairperson(s).

Depending on the number of applicants and their eligibility, a brief, in-person or telephone interview will be given to all or most applicants.

Mentors are selected in May/June based on an appropriate fit across professional endeavors, educational backgrounds, personality, location, and other similar criteria.