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Become a Student Mentor

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Do you want to use your creative skills to help build confidence and inspire young people? Would you like to take part in a project that will give you valuable experience and highly valued transferable skills? If you answered yes, our Student Mentor role could be perfect for you!

The School of Arts, Media and Creative Technology is committed to providing our students with opportunities that will prepare you for the world of work, while encouraging your creativity and passion for your subject. 

The Creative Mentoring Project will match you with a school or college to deliver a project with pupils in Years 9-12 (13-18 year olds). 

You will receive full training and support, and the project would run across eight weeks with a commitment of three 3-4 hour sessions. 

Find out more and get involved:

What is the Creative Mentoring Project?

It aims to train and support current higher education (HE) students to deliver mentoring sessions for year 9-12 pupils (13–18-year-olds). We want to create an employability resource for young people and support them during the development of their professional career identity. Throughout the programme mentors will work with pupils to create content whilst building their confidence and inspiring young people who may not have necessarily thought about progressing to higher education. Pupils taking part must be studying at a target school and may be living in an area where progression to university or any type of higher education is lower than expected.

What is the purpose of the Student Mentor role?

As a Student Mentor, you will create a comfortable and creative learning environment, whilst changing the pupils' attitudes towards higher education. This will be conducted through a series of at least three group sessions where you will be responsible for preparing and delivering your own lessons. These sessions should be designed for between five and ten pupils and should enable young people to focus on a project related to their discipline (this will be discussed with their school/college), explore their options after school (particularly routes into higher education), and improve their ability to make decisions about their future.

Why should you become a Student Mentor?

In this role you will be able to share positive experiences you have had with higher education, and why you decided to take this route towards your future career. It is also a fantastic opportunity to develop new skills and strengthen your own skillset.

Skills that you will be able to gain through this role are:

  • Creativity
  • Confidence
  • Listening Skills
  • Written and Verbal Communication Skills
  • Social Skills
  • Adaptability and Flexibility

These are the types of skills that are transferable and are highly valued by all employers when you start to apply for graduate roles.

 

What would be your main responsibilities?

  • To work within the safeguarding policies provided
  • To liaise with all stakeholders in the project including outreach staff here at the University of Salford, and school/college staff
  • Use the Creative Mentoring Project materials provided by the institution to create, plan, and deliver engaging sessions whilst sticking to the agreed schedule
  • To recognise the limits of your own knowledge and signpost pupils to other sources of support
  • To act as a positive role model for pupils and to be always an advocate for higher education and the Creative Mentoring Project
  • To support the effective monitoring and evaluation of the project by completing any paperwork that may be required

The project is delivered across 8 weeks (3/4 hours per day for three days), not including the school holidays. Dates will be determined by the school. 

You will also need to complete the Safeguarding Training online before the start of the project.

 

What are we looking for in our Student Mentors?

We are looking for individuals who are: 

  • Currently studying on a University of Salford programme (L5 and L6)
  • Able to relate to year 9-12 learners
  • Able to confidently deliver engaging group sessions
  • Reliable, punctual, and organised
  • Able to meet deadlines for submitting important paperwork
  • Able to communicate with various stakeholders including via phone calls and emails
  • Able to travel to school(s) across Greater Manchester to deliver sessions
  • Willing and able to attend mandatory training workshops

In addition, Student Mentors may be required to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service Check (DBS) to ensure suitability for working with young people.

Is this role suitable for me?

This role could be great for you if you are: 

  • A current student who want to develop their skillset
  • Thinking about perhaps pursuing a teaching career and want to gain some teaching and school experience
  • Wanting to work with young people in the future

Will I get paid?

Yes, the rate is approximately £12.03/hour and will be confirmed on application. 

Any travel to schools and colleges will be covered by SAMCT. 

Interested? Here's how to apply:

Our Creative Mentoring Programme is a crucial part of the School of Arts, Media and Creative Technology’s commitment to employability. We are pleased to see that our students are looking for opportunities to develop transferable skills and be work-ready to face challenges of the future.

To assess your suitability to the role and to match your expertise with the demands of the colleges and the mentees, we will need you to provide further details. Please email the following information to SAMCT-Mentoring@salford.ac.uk 

  • NAME
  • DATE OF BIRTH
  • EMAIL ADDRESS
  • PROGRAMME LEVEL AND TITLE
  • 150 WORDS ABOUT WHY YOU ARE THE MOST SUITABLE CANDIDATE FOR THIS POSITON
  • 5 WORDS TO DESCRIBE YOUR INTERESTS

For applications received from September 2024, we will aim to reply to applicants by mid-October 2024.