NEXT PROGRAM BEGINS JUNE 2011

APPLICATIONS DUE MAY 6th, 2011!

The Mentorship Program

The Mentorship Program is a UMEC initiative to promote and strengthen a collaborative alumni network within the entertainment industry, by connecting aspiring graduates with established entertainment professionals for one-on-one face time and guidance.

The program is open to all University of Michigan alumni with career interests in the area of film, television, new-media, music, and sports entertainment.

Format

The UMEC Los Angeles Mentorship Program is a six (6) month program, where paired mentors and mentees dedicate two (2) hours each month to meet and undertake activities to foster the mentee’s career development.

This typically takes the form of a series of monthly meetings or phone conversations, where relevant industry topics are discussed, work is critiqued or introductions are made.  For more detailed information please read the porgram overview (click on link below).

UMEC_Mentorship_Program_Overview

Here’s what previous participants say about the UMEC mentorship program:

What aspect of the mentorship program was most rewarding?

“Meeting with my mentor to discuss my writing and being given notes and walking through the process”

“One-on-one discussions with someone who works in my field”

“I obtained useful insight into the way the film industry works”

“Thank you so much for this opportunity! It provided direction to my writing career”

“It was all in all a great experience that I am thankful for. I think  the key is having a great mentor which mine definitely was.”

Mentors’ comments

“From the mentor standpoint, I’d say that it’s dependent on the relationship and the goals seth forth by both members. I can see how some may not have gotten a lot out of it if they didn’t have specific goals to work towards. In the case with my mentee, it was our goal to complete a spec script. We met to discuss how he should start, met once again with story ideas, met after his outline, and again after his first draft. That’s something that’s easy to quantify.”

“While the mentorship program should be only a six month  or year long commitment, ideally the relationship should go on indefinetely. Long term professional relationships are very important in networking.”

“I think it  might be disadvantageous to force anymore structure on the program as everyone’s case is different in what they want to achieve, and how much time they have to give to those goals.”

“It was a pleasure to help and do what I can for my mentee. The relationship is ofcourse a 2-way street, and takes both to be active. I feel we met and talked as much as possible, given that my mentee works in production and only has so much time to give. I would check in on him if I hadn’t heard from him in a while. I was able to take him through a first outline and give him notes. Just because the program time is over, doesn’t mean our relationship is. I’m more than happy  to continue to meet with him , read his writing, offer any help I can.”

“The ”x”  factor of these mentorships depends on the realistic expectations of the mentee and his or her seriousness of purpose. For example,  if one wants to be a writer, he or she needs to write  so it becomes challenging  to assist a would-be  writer who is not working  on their own to create  a body of work.”

The next round of the Mentorship Program runs from June to November.

Application Process

Both Mentors and Mentees are asked to submit a short application that outlines their area of experience/interest.

Mentees are additionally asked to provide a short statement of purpose or list of goals, so that we may better understand what you want get out of the program.

The mentorship committee will then do their best to pair each Mentee with a relevant Mentor. Unfortunately, there is traditionally a shortage of Mentors, so we cannot guarantee that we will be able to find a match for all Mentees. However, we encourage all interested Mentees to apply, and we will do our very best to find you a Mentor.

Application may be submitted by mail, by email, or online.

Applications are due May 6th, 2011.

Requirements

As a pre-requisite, we ask that all Mentees Join UMEC to help subsidize the cost of operating the program.

This is not a requirement for Mentors — although, active UMEC membership is encouraged — and participation of non-alumni Mentors is also encouraged.

Apply Online

Apply to be a mentee here: Mentee Application

Apply to be a mentor here: Mentor Application

Mentorship Program Documents