Mentoring
Our mentorship programs provide an opportunity for industry professionals and students to connect. These programs are based on direct requests from employers to have more opportunities to connect with students, from students who want to have a formalized method to meet and learn from people in industry, and from students interested in gaining experience.
EXPERIENCE CIRCLES MENTORSHIP CIRCLES
Experience Circles Program - Mentors
The Experience Circles program provides funding, resources, and mentorship to support undergraduate engineering students in completing personal projects and research goals. This program empowers students to delve into their personal engineering interests while gaining practical skills and real-world experience through project-based learning guided by an employer (or faculty) mentor.
Each circle, which will contain 1-2 mentors and 1-3 students, will be organized by student projects. Each mentor will only support one project.
Please sign up online here.
Questions? Email engrjobs@uark.edu.
You can help Engineering Career Connections by signing up to become a project mentor or subject matter expert (SME)!
Each mentor-student pair or group will have a structured timeline with preset milestones to ensure progress. Each mentor will be paired with 1 - 3 students and will only mentor one project.
As a SME, you will provide ad hoc support to circles as you able and based on their needs.
- Mentors will receive swag valued at $100 for their time and expertise.
- Opportunity to network with other industry professionals and students.
- Be part of a supportive community dedicated to engineering excellence.
By becoming a mentor, you will have the opportunity to guide and support students by:
- Helping students develop skills such as project management, business readiness, and communication
- Providing feedback and support
- Answering questions relating to the scope of their project
- Offering your expertise by sharing your knowledge and experience
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Mentor and Student Orientation: Tentatively Tuesday, September 16th from 5:30 – 7:30 PM
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Program Duration: September - April
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Spring Showcase: All project participants will be invited to showcase their project or research at the end of the year event (tentatively scheduled for April 31, 2026)
- Please note that signing up does not guarantee your participation in this program. Final mentor and student pairings will be confirmed by early September.
- You do not have to be an alum of the university or local (in Northwest Arkansas) to participate as a mentor.
Mentorship Circles - Mentors
The Fall 2025 Mentorship Circles is a 3-month program that connects students with employers in industry who have volunteered to mentor students and develop their career readiness skills.
Each circle, which contains 2-3 mentors and 4-6 students, will be organized by student classification (sophomore, junior, senior), major, and/or affinity group to ensure that students benefit from each other’s questions.
Please sign up online here.
Questions? Email engrjobs@uark.edu.
As a mentor, you will meet with students twice a month to discuss career readiness-based topics.
We will host two circles this semester:
- Biomedical Mentorship Circles
- Sophomore Mentorship Circles
Mentors will be people currently working and who have a bachelor's degree. Topics of conversation may include:
- Networking
- Exploration
- Importance of Internships
Please sign up online here.
To participate as a mentor, we ask that you meet the following eligibility criteria:
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Have a bachelor’s degree in STEM (You do NOT have to be a U of A alumnus)
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During school, studied on a student visa
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Commit to participating in entirety of program
- Mentor and Student Orientation: Tentatively Tuesday, September 16th from 5:30 – 7:30 PM
- Program Duration: September – November
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Capacity for this program will be limited so not all who submit the registration form will be selected.
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You do not have to be an alum of the university or local (in Northwest Arkansas) to participate as a mentor.