E-mentoring opportunity - just 20 minutes per week

The NOGLSTP Mentoring Project, in partnership with The MentorNet One-on-One Mentoring Program, is a chance to make a big difference in the life of a student in as little as 20 minutes a week.

NOGLSTP members who are science and engineering professionals in industry and government, either currently active, on leave, or retired, are invited volunteer to mentor engineering and science community college, undergraduate, and graduate students, particularly LGBT people, women and underrepresented minorities, who are interested in pursuing a professional future in the fields of engineering and science.

NOGLSTP members who are tenured faculty members are invited to mentor LGBT graduate students, postdocs and untenured faculty pursuing faculty careers.

Though mentors volunteer their time to benefit the protégé, they can also find a rewarding experience for themselves. “I hope [my student] is getting as much out of it as I am,” is how one MentorNet mentor puts it. Well over 90% of participants would recommend MentorNet's e-mentoring programs to a friend or colleague.

Mentoring relationships last 8 months. Because mentors and students communicate entirely by email, they can communicate wherever and whenever they choose. MentorNet’s research-based programs have proven effective by providing "real world" information, encouragement, advice, and access to networks for students, and particularly for those underrepresented in engineering and science fields. “My mentor always gives me the encouragement that I need,” says one MentorNet student. “Sometimes those few words make a big difference to me.”

How can you volunteer to be a mentor?

1. If you are a NOGLSTP member, make sure your membership status is current. You can do this by examining the date code on your most recent newsletter label, or check with the NOGLSTP Office. If you are not a NOGLSTP member, you may join now online.
2. Request your personal noglstp.net email address from the NOGLSTP Office. Please use your workplace email address when placing your request so we can confirm your credentials.
3. Register as a member of the MentorNet® community, using your @noglstp.net email address, and create a mentor profile. This may involve submitting references that will verify your employment and expertise status.
4. Wait to be notified of a potential protégé match.
5. When notified of a potential match, confirm your availability. Please note: your matches will be based on the priorities and interest areas you indicate in your profile, not necessarily exclusively with LGBT people.

Since 1998, MentorNet has matched almost 15,000 protégés and mentors with strong results. We hope you will join them!

MentorNet’s sponsors include Alcoa Foundation, Argonne National Laboratory, AT&T Foundation, Bechtel Foundation, Cisco Systems, GE Global Research, Guidant Corporation, Hewlett-Packard Company, IBM Corporation, Intel Foundation, Knight Ridder, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Lockheed Martin Space Systems, National Science Foundation, Naval Research Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Schlumberger, S. D. Bechtel Foundation, and Symantec.

NOGLSTP is grateful to IBM Corporation, a Founding Sponsor of the NOGLSTP Mentoring Project.

Return to The NOGLSTP Mentoring Page