Volunteer Opportunity – Shoulder to Shoulder Erskine

Mentoring Support for Ex-Service Men and Women and their Families
TimeBanks’ new Shoulder to Shoulder Erskine project is working in partnership with the charity Erskine, to offer one to one volunteer support for ex-Service men and women (veterans) living in Glasgow and Edinburgh who are recovering from mental health issues – and to help their families adjust to civilian life.

Volunteer mentoring can be a powerful tool to reduce the risk of social exclusion in veterans and family members, to signpost them to services and build supportive social networks; therefore strengthening the family unit as a whole.

As a volunteer mentor you will have the opportunity to meet other mentors and engage in a rewarding volunteering programme. You will help in the recovery of veterans and help their family members to lead independent lives, to identify goals and build confidence.

We ask that mentors provide support once or twice per month, over a period of three to nine months. You don’t need any special experience – just time, patience and an understanding of the issues that are most important. TimeBank provides full training and you will be required to join the PVG (Protection of Vulnerable Groups) scheme – you need to be 21 years and over to be a mentor.
If you’d like to volunteer as a mentor, you can complete our online application at:
http://timebank.org.uk/shoulder-to-shoulder-scotland
Or call Ali, the project co-ordinator on 0141 814 4510, mob: 07437 437 867 or email ali@timebank.org.uk

UWS Employer Mentoring Programme for 3rd & 4th Year Students

If you’re a 3rd or 4th year student and match the eligibility criteria, our Employer Mentoring Programme is a great way to develop key skills for your future and boost your confidence.

What is Employer Mentoring?

• A professional person gives their time to share their experience of work with a mentee
• It is designed to motivate and inspire students

Why get involved?

Previous participants felt that it helped them to feel more confident about:

• The skills and experience they already had
• Potential directions/options open to them
• How to address their weaknesses
• Their interview skills

To find out if you are eligible and more information about the programme visit: www.uws.ac.uk/careers  and click on Employer Mentoring in the menu.

 

UWS Careers & Employability Service pilots Employer Mentoring Programme

We are celebrating the successful completion of an exciting new initiative: the UWS Employer Mentoring Programme.

The project was inspired by Edinburgh Napier University’s award winning Big Lottery-funded programme.

Mentoring enables students to explore the knowledge and skills employers look for, gain feedback on their CV and interview skills and build confidence in embarking on their graduate job search.

The aims of the project are:

• To improve the employability of UWS students and encourage them to gain graduate level employment
• To help students build confidence in applying for jobs and develop interview skills
• To give undergraduates an insight into the workplace
• To offer a developmental opportunity to Mentors
• To build links between UWS and graduate employers
• Long term – to develop a resource that will enable future UWS students to access employer mentoring

At the end of 2011, eight 3rd year Business Students were matched with Mentors from a range of sectors and they have been meeting regularly since that time.

Feedback has been very positive:

Quote from a Mentor: 

“The UWS mentoring programme is a great way to give students, nearing the end of their studies, support from people already working in business.”

Quotes from Students:

“It allowed me to gain confidence”

“I think it really helps the transition from student to corporate life”

“Do it. One of the best things I’ve done at university so far.”

On Friday June 22^nd UWS Careers & Employability Service will celebrate, with employers, students and UWS staff, the successful completion of the pilot.

If you are attending the event and use Twitter please use #uwsemp if Tweeting about the programme before during or after the event.

 

If you would be interested in mentoring a UWS student please contact anna.selwood@uws.ac.uk for more information.

Interested students should watch out for further information at the start of the new academic year.