Welcome and thank you for your interest in the SZTE Alma Mater Alumni Mentoring Program. If you are a member of the SZTE community, as a former student or employee, you can visit uniszegedalumni.com, where you can contact current and graduated students for professional assistance and collaborative projects.

What is Alumni Mentoring?

Alumni mentoring is an informal collaboration between current and former students or alumni that promises mutual learning, and personal and professional development for both parties. It’s also a great opportunity for individual development and networking.

Alumni Mentoring Program details

The SZTE Alumni Mentoring Program starts at uniszegedalumni.com, where the system suggests the best mentor for the mentored person, with whom they can work for 4 months in the most suitable format and frequency. Although the program has a fixed end date, mentoring can continue as and when required. The duration of the program and priority dates will be announced on unisegedalumni.com and automatic reminders will be sent to participants.

Communication methods

The communication between the mentor and mentee is quite flexible. The meetings can be held in person or online. Partnerships within the program are managed by ticking the milestones that appear under "Mentoring relationships".

Mentor roles and expectations

Who can be a mentor?

Anyone who is an alumnus/alumna of the University of Szeged or its predecessor institutions, or a university employee who is willing to share their knowledge with a current SZTE student and help them start their career with career advice. The mentor's role is to support the mentee and provide guidance on individual problems and issues according to the following "credo":

• Support your mentee by helping to define their goals (advice about CV or job, professional contacts, etc.), strengths, and areas for improvement.
• Share your work and job experiences (good and bad ones too)!
• Motivate your mentee to set achievable goals and encourage them to take the first steps towards achieving them!
• Be a good listener while helping your mentee to realize their potential by creating a safe place for them!

Mentor duties and responsibilities:

During the Mentoring process, we ask from the mentor the following:

• The focus of the mentoring process should be on solving the situation and problems of the mentee.
• Be trustworthy and reliable and build a harmonious relationship with your mentee.
• Set and maintain acceptable boundaries.
• Be encouraging, supportive, patient, tolerant, and inspiring.
• Commit yourself during the program.
• Keep in regular contact with your mentee throughout the program, keep the appointments, and inform your mentee of any changes or delays.
• Inform the Alumni Mentoring Program Coordinator of any conflict or withdrawal from the program.
• Keep the shared information confidential and do not abuse your position.

Start of the mentoring process

Once a mentoring connection has been established on the website, we recommend arranging a first meeting as soon as possible to introduce yourselves and define the framework for cooperation: content, objectives, expectations, frequency, format, etc. This will give you a good basis for a successful program and help you prepare for the next, more substantial meetings.

Objectives:

It's important to get to know your mentee well and help them set visible and achievable goals. Here are some useful questions to help you:

• What areas would you like to improve yourself?
• What challenges and uncertainties do you face?
• Where do you want to be in 5 years? And 10 years from now?
• What are your hard and soft skills?
• Can you tell me what areas you would like to develop and why these are a challenge for you? (e.g. computer skills, patience, teamwork, networking, etc.)

Recommended topics for meetings for Mentors:

Once you have enough information about your mentee's goals and where they are in their career path, you can start thinking about upcoming meetings. It's up to you and your mentee to decide how you structure your meetings, but we also recommend some general, non-specific topics:

• Writing CV and motivation letter
• How to stand out in an interview
• How to negotiate a starting salary
• Networking in a virtual world
• Soft skills every employer looks for in a candidate + how you can strengthen your soft skills
• How to build trust with new colleagues
• Top skills of a reliable leader
• How to lead a team
• How and when to negotiate a pay rise
• Find a new job – yes or no?

FAQ - frequently asked questions

If I have a question who can help me?

Györgyi Gerháth is the program coordinator, these are her contacts:

• You can find her on the website uniszegedalmni.com: Györgyi Gerháth
• e-mail: almamater@szte.hu or gerhath.gyorgyi@szte.hu
• Messenger: SZTE Alma Mater or Györgyi Gerháth
• mobil: 70/459-1795

How would be selected mentee for me in the Alumni Mentoring Program?

The uniszegedalumni.com works with artificial intelligence and matches mentors and mentees based on the provided information. The more information you provide, the better mentee you get. If the student chooses you themselves or asks the program coordinator for suggestions, they can still make a decision based on these.

What happens if you are matched with someone and they never come forward?

If you've already contacted them and they're still not responding, email us and we'll be happy to help you get in touch, or if you prefer, find a mentee for you.

My mentee is not a perfect match, even though we've spoken a few times. What should I do?

While we try to encourage you to try to have a relationship with him or her as much as possible, we understand if it's not perfect. Feel free to write to us with details of your problem and we will try to help or find a new mentee.

My mentee is too enthusiastic and looks for me too often. What should I do?

We love our enthusiastic members, but we also understand your discomfort. Don't worry! Re-explain your appointments and inquiries to him or her, but feel free to contact us and we'll help you resolve the problem.

I have a mentee but I can’t finish the program. How can I exit politely?

Sometimes life interferes. We understand. We advise you to contact your mentee and explain the new situation. Also, be sure to keep us informed so that we can conclude the mentoring relationship smoothly.

Can I find a mentee out of the mentoring program?

Yes! You can easily find mentees on the website out of the program too, feel free to use the infrastructure!