Initiated and ran by NUS College of Design and Engineering (CDE) Office of Alumni Relations, the Alumni Mentorship Programme was officially introduced to Batch 9 of participants on the 10th of October 2022. Thirty-six pairs of them will be engaged in this seven-month-long programme. e-Certificate of participation will be awarded to mentor and mentees upon completion of the programme.
Associate Professor Teo Chiang Juay started the session with a warm welcome and Associate Professor Kua Harn Wei joined him to breakdown programme into details. The NUS College of Design and Engineering Alumni Mentorship Programme is an initiative to build a strong and dynamic relationship between the alumni and student community, one that is mutually beneficial to both parties professionally. Students guided by experienced design and engineering alumni from various industries on their life skills and personal development. Since 2018, the programme aimed to provide opportunities for students to learn about work and life outside university, from established alumni of NUS College of Design and Engineering. Mentees are the best match for mentors based on Academic Specialization, Career Aspirations, Job Exploration and Personal Interest. Through this programme, we hope students would gain a realistic overview of the workplace, acquire relevant interpersonal skills, and expand their network. This programme also serves as a platform to keep alumni connected to the faculty. Both professors expressed appreciation for Batch 8 participants’ engagement and invited them to update their contact on database.
Besides the speakers from the Alumni Relations Office, it was our pleasure to have Ms Ramya Bhaskar, who has extensive volunteer experience in Corporate Social Responsibility, to offer genuine guidelines to kick start the mentorship process this year. A holistic, quantified approach with two-way communication was suggested. Students are encouraged to keep a journal of the mentorship experience, to track their personal development as they move through the programme. The sharing made by mentee like Mr Ethan Kwong, who have participated in the programme for more than once, is also invaluable. It facilitates the provision of leadership, professional and industry‐relevant advice to students. A long time and close friend of CDE, Mr Lim Kim Cheong, was also present. Mr Lim is a distinguished guest from Mentorship Programme Batch 1 who has continually contributed to the development of undergraduates of CDE, and we are grateful to all the mentors for their efforts to enable our students to be future-ready.
More about other alumni events and initiatives can be found at http://www.cde.nus.edu.sg/alumni.