QWISE MENTORSHIPPROGRAM

Program Structure 2019|2020

CONTENTS

2 | Vision and Mandate

1 | Letter from the Directors

4 | General Program Structure

5 | Workshops and Events

7 | Program Goals and Outcomes

3 | Mentorship Outline 

6 | Benefits to our Program

8 | Program Expectation

9 | Other Opportunities through QWISE

10 | Contact Us

LETTER FROM THE DIRECTORSTo an inspiring individual,

Thank you for taking the time to explore this opportunity and showing interest in our

mentorship program. We are very excited about the initiatives we will be taking in the 2019-

2020 school year to connect students from high school to university and university to

industry, so they may further explore their passion for the STEM fields.

Our mentorship team consists of three young women pursuing degrees in a variety of

STEM fields here at Queen’s University. Speaking as female students in these fields, we

recognize the importance of providing students with an opportunity to gain hands on

experience in their area of study as early as possible. It is important that students

understand the complete scope of the options available to them post graduation,

especially in areas they may not have exposure to in class at the high school and/or

university level.

Within the previous year, we launched our mentorship program at the university level and

had great success and participation across diverse fields of study and industry sectors.

Students and industry professionals have the opportunity to connect with one another and

develop long lasting professional relationships. Our goal for both mentors and mentees is

to become active members of the WiSE community and work towards promoting the

advancement of women in STEM fields. This year, we hope to improve our program by

expanding upon the high school stream, gaining more industry participation and hosting

more networking events and workshops for participants. This will ensure that our network

experiences growth while preserving the community aspect of our WISE chapter.

We invite you to join us on this journey towards streamlining the transition from secondary

to post secondary education and post secondary to industry as part of WiSE and our

mentorship program.

Our Best RegardsThe QWiSE Mentorship Team Ashlyn Secord | Divya Kuruvila

OUR MANDATE

Our objective is to form a network of students, scholars and professionals in the Science,

Technology, Engineering, and Mathematical fields, engendering the participation and

advancement of women in these disciplines. We are able to achieve this mandate through

different community outreach opportunities, programs, and events designed to support

young female students in realizing excellence within their area of interest.

Queen's Women in Science & Engineering is a nonprofit, student run

organization associated with the Engineering Society and Alma Mater Society at

Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario.

FOUR PILLARS INQUIRE

COLLABORATE

INITIATE

FOSTER

Encourage thought-

provoking, open ended

conversation to gain insight and

promote self-discovery through

a variety of diverse

individuals and

interactions.

Identify common interests

and contrasting ideas and/or

traits to facilitate learning through

shared personal experiences

and opinions, broadening

overall perspective.

Take the initiative required

in communications to learn

and build a network, furthering

understanding and achieving

self-driven career goals.

Create meaningful

relationships through

encouragement, guidance and

support to build confidence

and inspire individuals to

take on new

challenges!

MENTORSHIP STREAMS

HIGHSCHOOL PROGRAM GRADUATE | INDUSTRYPROGRAMHigh school students are paired with

current undergraduate students pursuing

a degree option that meets their interests.

Mentee-Mentor communications are self-

guided while structure in the program

arises from different events and

workshops hosted through QWISE

mentorship and other outreach portfolios.

This allows for program flexibility while

maintaining a common goal.

Undergraduate students are paired with

graduate students or industry

professionals with similar career goals.

Graduate students also have the option

to take on a mentee role and be paired

with industry leaders.

Similar to the highschool program,

Mentee-Mentor communications are

self-guided while structure in the

program arises from different events and

workshops hosted through QWISE

mentorship and other outreach

portfolios. This allows for program

flexibility while maintaining a common

goal.

Post- Secondary Student

Undergraduate Student

Graduate Student

Industry Leader

MENTORSHIP STREAMS

PROGRAM INVOLVEMENT -OPTIONSIndustry Leaders - Mentor

Graduates - Mentor | Mentee | Both

Undergraduates - Mentor | Mentee | Both

Highschool Students - Mentee

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

1

2

3

4

5

Applicants are initially

paired with a mentor using

criteria such as career interests,

educational background, personal

interests and goals. Mentees may attend

additional events/workshops on

campus to promote professional

development.

Mentors/Mentees meet in

person, by phone or video

chat platforms with flexibility to

discuss career/educational

development. There is option to partake

in additional social events run

throughout the semester

with different WiSE

portfolios.

Each participant is given a

profile, accessible by the QWISE

mentorship team. These profiles are

used to pair participants and keep track

of all enrolled in the program to

connect individuals. Our goal is to

create a network, connecting

women across all areas!

Mentors/Mentees are

invited to a networking dinner

event to hear different keynote

speakers and partake in a panel

discussion. At different points in the

year, new initial points of contact

are made .

Applications are open to

students for the 2019/2020 school

year early first semester. Students will

specify which mentorship stream

they wish to pursue.

Graduate to Industry

Undergraduate to Industry

Undergraduate to Graduate

Highschool to Undergraduate

STREAMS

WORKSHOPS & EVENTS

INDUSTRY AND GRADUATE PROGRAM: COFFEE MIXER

WORKSHOP: NETWORKING AND LINKEDIN

WORKSHOP: THE TRANSITION TO INDUSTRY

PROGRAM SOCIAL: QWISE COLLOQUIUM

QWISE MENTORSHIP: NETWORKING DINNER

This will be a general mixer event to take place after the recruitment and pairing process for our graduate and

industry stream. This event will allow mentees, graduate mentors and industry mentors in the area to network

and get acquainted, officially commencing the program. The mentorship team will give a welcome and a

short presentation on mentorship structure and etiquette over light refreshments.

This workshop will provide participants with a presentation regarding networking as well as an informational

tutorial on how to create a professional LinkedIn profile. Participants will then be given an introduction to the

QWISE Mentorship Linkedin group in which would serve as a platform for participants to connect and share

their experiences with one another in the realm of industry, academia , travel etc. This would help to sustain

the community/network feel in which QWISE values.

If possible, this workshop will be a partnered event with Queen's University Career Services and will focus on

providing students with information regarding the Queen's Undergraduate Internship Program (QUIP) that is

offered to domestic and international students in the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Faculty of

Arts and Science, and School of Computing. Previous internship students from diverse areas of study will

share their experiences with participants. and Q&A will follow.

This social will allow undergraduate and graduate participants who are currently pursuing a thesis the

opportunity to share with other participants their current work and research as well as any valuable

experiences they have had while in the realm of academia. This will hopefully help prospective individuals get

more insight into the academic opportunities available to them in upper years of undergraduate education in

terms of summer research or honors theses as well as insight into pursuing post-graduate education.

This will be a dinner and networking event to which all program participants from all streams are invited to

participate in a dinner speakers series, followed by an engaging panel discussion and a final closing

ceremony from our mentorship team to officially conclude the 2020 Wise Mentorship Program. This event will

allow all three tiers of our program to interact and converse and will hopefully be of great value to high school

participants especially as they begin to navigate the world of post secondary education/ specialization.

BENEFITS TO OUR PROGRAMFOR THE MENTOR

FOR THE MENTEE

Provides a conduit for an individual to "give back" - to both the organization and

to their community by providing valuable insight on industry practices.

Strengthens an individuals active listening skills.

Gives industry professionals insight on current educational practices and skill-

set building within the upcoming generation of post secondary students prior

to graduation.

Strengthens interpersonal relationships

Allows an individual to further diversify their network with exposure to students

of multiple backgrounds/areas of study.

Can provide an additional sense of purpose, responsibility and fulfillment!

Helps to further develop ones professional skill-set or competencies.

Improves confidence in ones ability to define their career scope and navigate

different career paths/courses of action to achieve set goals.

Helps to improve communication and interpersonal relationships.

Gives practice in accepting constructive feedback from a consistent source.

Teaches an individual how to form and maintain professional relationships.

Expands an individuals network of contacts within academia and industry.

Provides a crash course on the different types of company cultures that may

exist in the professional realm and how this may be subject to change over

time.

GOALS & OUTCOMES

To help WiSE participants grow their professional

network of contacts and gain valuable

mentor/mentee relationships, insight and feedback

on current industry practices. Allow one to further

define career goals and scope prior to graduation.

To grow the Queen's University WiSE chapter

network of contacts and create a more diverse

community through maintaining these relationships

and inspiring young mentees to remain involved in

the WiSE community throughout their careers.

To create more long-lasting partnerships with

affiliated university organizations such as The

Engineering Society Professional Development

portfolio. This will allow a sharing of resources and

mutual support of operations for the years to come.

Undergraduate 53.2% Graduate

35.1%

Industry11.7%

2018 | 2019 NUMBERSWithin the 2018/2019 inaugural year of the QWISE

Mentorship Program, we exceeded expectations

with 77 participants across diverse areas of STEM.

Mechanical

Planetary

Electrical Mining

Computer Programming Chemistry

Aerospace

Geology

Oil & Gas

Energy Renewables

Environmental Mathematics

Physic

s

Nursing

Medicine

Psyc

hology

Pathology

Physio

logy

Epidemiology

Neuroscience Genetics

Biology

Kinesiology

Civil

2019 | 2020 PROGRAM INITIATIVESExpand our program further into the high

school level of education by introducing our

new high school mentorship stream in which

we pair high school students with

undergraduate students in hopes to gain

further understanding in a particular area of

study.

Organize more professional

development/networking opportunities for

participants to build a strong sense of

community and build upon individual skill sets.

Release a monthly newsletter to participants to

inform them of upcoming events through both

mentorship and other facets of WISE.

Increase industry participation and support.

Work harder to create partnerships with

existing clubs and organizations at Queen's

such as Queen's Alumni Association, EngSoc

PD and more.

PROGRAM EXPECTATIONS

MENTEES

MENTORSMentors are able to provide

contact information along with a

short portfolio description to be

accessed by mentees prior to

pairing.

Mentors can be communicated

with via phone, video call or in

person by mentees for meetings

as their schedule sees fit.

Mentors are able to provide

mentees with constructive

feedback on career goals and

maintain confidences with

mentee.Mentees show initiative and

commitment, attending workshop

and networking events planned by

WiSE.

Mentees are prompt in their

communications with mentors,

setting meeting times and keeping

any commitments made.

Mentees approach all

communications with professional

conduct and approach each

encounter with focused goals,

motive, ideas and questions.

Mentees provide WiSE with contact

information as well as a detailed

portfolio outlining background and

education as well as personal and

professional career goals.

QWISE OPPORTUNITIESThe mentorship portfolio is only one of the many opportunities offered through QWISE.

We are a multi-faceted organization, promoting increased involvement of women in

STEM through a variety of events and outreach programs. Some of our key initiatives

include:

DINNER AND BRUNCH WITH INDUSTRYQWISE hosts the annual Dinner with Industry and Brunch with Industry events, where we invite

women professionals from all areas within science and engineering to speak with students about

their experiences in their field. Students of all backgrounds and years are invited to a reception and

dinner/brunch providing a unique opportunity to explore potential careers in the sciences or

engineering. For students who have a particular career in mind, this is a great chance to benefit from

the experiences of women who have succeeded in their field of interest.

BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBThe WiSE Boys and Girls Club Outreach Program works with this Kingston after-school program to

promote an interest in science, and an awareness of global scientific initiatives by providing activities

bi-weekly within the club’s Education Centre. Engineers Without Borders and researchers at

Queen’s University also conduct activities through the education centre. Emphasis is made on

creating a stable environment for the children by maintaining a regular schedule with the same

individuals. Volunteers delve into topics the kids find interesting, instead of repeating topics included

in the Ontario curriculum.

HIGHSCHOOL OUTREACHWiSE consists of a large outreach sector that aims to reach out and make a difference in

the community. The High School Outreach program visits local high schools and speak to students

about their potential options in Science and Engineering as post-secondary topics of study.

Although the program is especially geared for girls, these presentations are helpful for boys as well

and they are more than welcome to attend.

CONTACT USThank you for taking the time to learn more about our program. Please feel free to visit

our website or email us at: wise.mentorship@engsoc.queensu.ca

Or reach out to a QWiSE team member if you have any questions or feedback.

www.queenswise.engsoc.queensu.ca

ASHLYN SECORD DIVYA KURUVILAMentorship Director Mentorship Director

ashlyn.secord@queensu.ca 14dsk2@queensu.ca