Mentor program applications for Spring 2024 are now closed. Read below for details on the program and check back to apply for Fall 2024.
Students and a mentor discussing a job site next to the Milwaukee river.
Based on your background and interests, we’ll pair you with a professional geoscientist mentor working in the public or private sector. Successful applicants who fully complete complete a series of defined, career-related exercises with your mentor will receive a $200 stipend.
Don’t know what type of job you want yet? No problem! Your mentor can help you learn more about different fields and types of jobs. And you can repeat the program each semester with a new mentor with a different type of job.
Who is this for? Any UWM Geosciences major, minor (intended or declared), or graduate student. Please carefully read more about the program requirements and application process below, and then fill out the application here.
Questions? Send an email to lets-geo@uwm.edu or talk to any of your instructors.
Program Description
Current undergraduate and graduate students are paired with a mentor who is a professional geoscientist. Each mentor/mentee pair is required to meet (virtually or in-person) for a minimum of two hours each month and complete the required exercises (typically these will focus on planning career goals, discussing readings on mentor relationships and topics in the geosciences, etc.). You, the student, will submit a document each month that shows completion of the meeting goals.
- Eligibility: ALL UWM students who are officially intended or declared Geosciences undergraduate majors (either BA or BS), undergraduate minors, and graduate students (MS or PhD). You do not need to have taken many classes yet or know what you want to do for your career!
- Student Selection: Students will be selected based on available spaces in program, available mentors, and responses to the essay questions in the application. Priority will be given to BS and MS students closer to their graduation dates with strong grades and/or relevant research, volunteer, or other geosciences experiences.
- Time Commitment: Once per month for 3 months, you are required to meet with your mentor for 2 hours. You should expect to spend 1 hour each month preparing for the meetings. This totals 3 hours per month x 3 months = 9 hours. Flexible days and times.
- Extra Incentive: We know that you will gain valuable career advice and skills from these meetings and want to make sure you take advantage of the opportunity. As extra incentive, every student who completes all the required meetings and documents will receive a stipend of $200 at the end of the semester.
- Application Deadline: 11:59 PM on Wednesday, September 20, 2023.
How to Apply
Prior to starting the application, you will want to collect a pdf of your unofficial transcript (if there is a hold on your transcript or you otherwise cannot access it, please contact us at lets-geo@uwm.edu for help).
- Transcript: Please obtain your transcript prior to starting the online application form. You will need to upload a pdf of your transcript.
- How to request an undergraduate unofficial transcript
- How to request a graduate unofficial transcript
- Please contact us at lets-geo@uwm.edu if you are unable to access your transcript due to a hold on your record.
- Other Geoscience Experiences: You should use a word processor to write the following (you can later copy and paste into the online application form).
- List and provide and brief (1-2 sentence) description of undergraduate & graduate research projects
- List of presentations at research symposia or conferences + publications (include full citation information including: Authors, Year, Title of Presentation/Publication, Name of Conference or Journal)
- List of geosciences related volunteer experiences and extracurricular activities
- Short Essay Questions: You should use a word processor to write answers to the following questions (you can later copy and paste your answers into the online application form).
- List of geosciences related volunteer experiences and extracurricular activities
- What attracted you to geosciences?
- What are your career goals? (your best ideas now, these can change!)
- Why do you want to be part of the mentoring program?
- What qualities or experiences are you looking for in a mentor?
- What are the most important considerations for you when choosing a job post-graduation? Your answer can include information about job duties, employment sector, mix of field/lab/office work, location, or other factors.
- Fill out the online application form which includes a place to upload your transcript.