Mentoring provides an opportunity for an exchange of ideas between professionals at different stages of their careers and a possibility for mentors to get acquainted with the world of today’s students in the field. Mentoring is a learning process that benefits both mentors and students.

Mentoring Program 2025

Application: The application process for mentees is open, apply from this page!

The mentoring program is intended for students in the final stages of their studies as well as recent graduates (no more than 5 years since graduation).

Note: If you are not yet a member of PI, you need to apply for membership to participate in the mentoring program. Join here.

Mentor applications are open year-round through the mentor application form.

Kick-off Events: February-March 2025

Kick-off meetings will be held in different locations for students and recent graduates in those areas (Espoo, Turku, Tampere, Oulu, Lappeenranta and Savonlinna).

Midpoint Meeting: May 2025

Mentor-mentee Meetings: Held approximately every 4-6 weeks, about 2 hours each. Meetings can also be conducted fully virtually. Meetings between different mentor-mentee pairs are also possible. The program will be on break during the summer.

Closing Event: November 2025

The 2025 mentoring program will be organized so that each partner university location will have separate kick-off meetings, and mentor-mentee pairs will be matched with mentors close to the mentee's school location or with school alumni. The midpoint meeting in May will be held in the Helsinki metropolitan area, and the closing meeting will rotate between different locations.

 

What is mentoring?

• Open and confidential, private relationship which aims to career development

• Guidance and support from a more experienced colleague to a person interested and able to develop him-/herself (at the beginning of his/her career)

• Mentor is a coach, who’s sharing his/her own experiences but doesn’t give direct answers

 

Examples  of the discussion topics

• How to finish studies, masters thesis work

• Job hunting, getting employed

• Career goals & possibilities, career planning

• Networking

• Working life

 –Adjusting to the working community

 –Leadership

 –Requirements of working life

• Internationality

• How to combine work (study) life and free time / family life

• Self-knowledge

 –Setting targets and achieving them

 –Personality tests

• Self-improvement

 –Further education, learning at work

 

Experiences from the previous mentoring project:

“It was great to talk with the mentor and hear their opinions on the field, the career, and work.”

“The mentoring project developed my confidence and I believe that it helped me to get a job that really suits me at the moment.”

“Having interesting conversations and thinking about different issues also helped me to realize new aspects of my own career.”