Blogs and YouTube videos can only take you so far in terms of job guidance and training. If you’re in the early phases of your software engineering career, it won’t be long before you run into a problem that requires a genuine, personal, human response—but who do you turn to in those situations? That’s where a mentor comes in.
A software engineering mentor can play this position by providing less experienced developers with advise and insight that has been cultivated over many years.
Mentors guide and encourage you as you traverse the early stages of your profession, assisting you in avoiding typical traps and blunders. They may assist you in developing your abilities and industry meta-knowledge, as well as introducing you to new individuals to help expand your network and establish the groundwork for future chances. Having a software engineering mentor essentially grants you access to information attained only via expertise and experience.
To help you learn more, we’ve provided some tips on mentorships, where to find them, and how to ensure you have a rewarding experience.
How do I Find a Software Engineer Mentor?
Keep in mind that not all mentorships are formal and official when looking for one. While some people are appointed a formal mentor at work, others may encounter a senior developer online who performs the role but never explicitly commits to mentor them.
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Both sorts of mentorship are completely appropriate and equally valuable, so don’t worry about titles or formality. Here’s a list of places you might be able to find a mentor.
Workplace
If you already have an entry-level software engineering position, your first stop should be within your current organization. Many technology organizations have formal mentorship programs that match senior engineer mentors with more novice engineers, so inquire around and see what your company has to offer.
Don’t be discouraged if there isn’t an established mentorship program. Mentorship is a recognized and cherished aspect of the engineering training process, and most of your experienced colleagues will have benefited from it when they were younger. This means that many people will be open to the idea of becoming a mentor themselves or assisting you in finding someone appropriate.
Bootcamps With Mentorship
If you already have an entry-level software engineering position, your first stop should be within your current organization. Many technology organizations have formal mentorship programs that match senior engineer mentors with more novice engineers, so inquire around and see what your company has to offer.
Don’t be discouraged if there isn’t an established mentorship program. Mentorship is a recognised and cherished aspect of the engineering training process, and most of your experienced colleagues will have benefited from it when they were younger. This means that many people will be open to the idea of becoming a mentor themselves or assisting you in finding someone appropriate.
Your Network
Another technique to locate possible mentor candidates is to think about people you already know. If you’ve already spent some time working in the sector, you’ll have met a lot of people who might be able to assist you. Here are some suggestions for connecting:
Reaching out to respected engineers on LinkedIn is an excellent strategy to begin a long-term mentor connection. When contacting someone, consider their talents and the job they perform that interests you so that you may pose questions and be clear about what you want to learn from them. This is more likely to elicit a positive response than asking someone, “Will you be my mentor?”
- Online Communities
As a software developer, you can join a plethora of online communities, ranging from Slack and Discord servers to subreddits and forums. These groups are populated by everyone from newcomers to the most senior of seniors, and they’re all there because they like sharing and discussing their work.
This makes online forums an excellent location to discover informal mentoring, and even if the relationship is entirely virtual, you can reap the same benefits.
- Industry Conferences
Attending conferences is an excellent method to meet active and passionate members of the engineering community, as well as the type of people that make excellent mentors. In-person events are better for networking than online events, but you should attend all you can to maximize your chances.
Hackathons
Hackathons can also take place both online and on-site, but either works well in this scenario. Because these events are about collaborating with other participants to develop a new idea in a short period of time, both online and in-person versions require collaboration.
You can create long-lasting relationships with your coworkers and, hopefully, discover a senior engineer who can serve as an informal mentor.
Dedicated Mentorship Websites and Opportunities
It is also feasible to select a mentor from a pool of persons who have already applied for the position. Sign up for the following programs to be assigned to mentees all around the world if you wish to share your skills and expertise.
- MentorCruise
MentorCruise functions similarly to an online tutoring service, but for mentors. Professionals with experience sign up, create a profile, and set a fee for their services. As a mentee, you can browse the site for potential mentors in your profession and specialities that interest you, and then pay the price to begin your mentorship.
- Meet-a-Mentor
There are also free mentoring services, such as Meet-a-Mentor, where mentees and mentors are matched and introduced over Slack. The service merely serves to connect people, therefore it’s up to you to make the introduction count and transform it into a long-term correspondence.
- Women in Tech®
This is a paid formal mentorship program for women in technology that comprises of a three-month mentorship with an experienced mentor in your sector. It includes career and leadership skills, software development, digital marketing, project and product management, business analytics, and UX/UI design.
Professional Associations
Joining a professional group can help your career in a variety of ways, but it’s also a fantastic location to meet other engineers. Many organizations provide online forums for its members as well as actual networking events where people may meet and engage with others in their field.
Cold Outreach
This strategy may require more luck than others, but it is also possible to reach out to people you are unfamiliar with. You might read a blog written by an experienced engineer, follow someone talented on social media, or perhaps have a favorite author or industry figure.
Sending them an email or a message on social media increases the likelihood that they will answer your queries and assist you.
Is There a Website to Find Mentors?
Here are the seven finest platforms for finding a mentor and accelerating your success journey.
1. Mentor Cruise
Mentor Cruise is an online platform that links mentors and mentees. And it’s mostly aimed at professionals working in technology, design, and business.
Getting a mentor from this site isn’t difficult; the process is straightforward. The website connects you to a number of mentors. You interact with them and pick which one is the greatest fit for you. Finally, you talk about the rates, which are normally determined by the mentors and range between $150 and $250.
After that, you can expect your mentor to answer any questions you have, give you advise, and assist you towards your goal. The mentors will be accommodating and helpful even if you decide to abandon your original goal.
They can also help you prepare for job interviews, review your CV, provide career advice, and schedule one-on-one video sessions as needed.
What you cannot expect from your mentors is for them to be available to you 24 hours a day, to give you an in-depth examination of your work, or to give you extensive lectures. Instead, they will assist you individually. They are all full-time employees and will respond to your questions in their own time.
2. Growth Mentor
This website primarily targets entrepreneurs, marketers, and product managers who want to expand their businesses. By paying a $50 monthly subscription, you can have unlimited Zoom and Skype calls with your mentors and receive responses to your questions from numerous mentors.
On this website, you can utilize the filter option to discover the perfect mentor based on their job title, area of expertise, and skill set. Alternatively, you can just post your query and multiple mentors will apply; you can then select the one you believe is best fit for the job.
Before they can provide their services, all mentors on this site must go through a verification process. Aside from that, they can only charge for their sessions after they have three reviews. If an experienced mentor simply comes in, you can get a free session if you’re lucky.
Aside from that, if you sign up for their monthly subscription, you will have access to their network of founders and marketers. You can use it to expand your network.
3. Pelion
Pelion is mostly aimed at developers. You can connect with more experienced people in your field of expertise from all around the world by using this platform.
The mentors decide the rates, which start at $300. Most businesses use this tool to train their staff, but it also works well for individuals.
Don’t be concerned if you’re a novice who has never done anything like this before. Simply enter your preferences, and the software will choose the best tutor for you based on them. However, if you believe it is not a good fit, their team will personally assist you in locating and connecting with the appropriate mentor.
4. Clarity
Clarity is another platform on the list. This one is a little different from the previous software. Instead of connecting you with someone who will take you for an ongoing session, it is designed to treat any urgent concerns you may be experiencing.
The tutors on this platform charge by the minute and answer your questions over the phone. For example, suppose you’re working on a client’s project and come into an unfamiliar problem. In this case, you can use this platform to connect with more experienced people and receive immediate support to tackle the issue by phone call.
5. Professional Networking Events
You can start a professional connection with an industry expert by meeting them in person, in addition to using tools and websites to identify a mentor.
Professional networking events are an excellent way to begin. Field specialists from all across the city and country attend such events, bringing information, experience, and connections that you most likely do not. It could be a terrific deal for you if you can persuade one of these people to accept you as their mentee.
Attending as many networking events as possible is the greatest method to discover the proper mentor this way. List the ones who meet your mentor’s requirements and interact and engage with them.
Ask them to be your mentor eventually. They’ll agree if the odds are in your favor. Alternatively, they may propose someone else in their network who would be a good fit for this position.
Aside from that, you can consider attending industry events such as conferences, meetups, trade exhibitions, or informal meetups organized by your industry experts. And then repeat the process, or simply use them to expand your network.
6. Existing Network
Another great strategy to locate a mentor is to reach out to someone in your existing network. The benefits of this strategy are that they will not be a total stranger.
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You know what they’ve accomplished, and if that’s what you want to accomplish as well, they’re the person to talk to. Aside from that, you won’t have to spend time connecting and engaging with them in order to establish the foundation initially. They already know what you’re worth.
To get this method to work for you:
- Make a complete list of all the people you know who have achieved what you want to achieve.
- Narrow it down to get the candidate who suits your needs the best or connects with you at some level.
- Then finally, ask them politely but professionally if they can take you as their mentee.
7. Social Media
For more than four decades, social media has brought individuals from all over the world together. So, why not make the most of it?
Based on how these platforms operate, you can use them to choose a mentor. You can, for example,
- Use hashtags on Twitter.
- Tag on Instagram.
- Join and post in groups on Facebook.
- Look out for the right matches in your LinkedIn network.
The majority of individuals are helpful. If they do not agree to be your mentor right away, they may provide you with other useful information or refer you to someone who can.
You may examine their legitimacy and whether they’re a good match for you once you’ve been linked with someone who can take you on as a mentee.
You can undoubtedly achieve your objectives if you are determined and consistent. But, if there are ways to attain them five years early, my suggestion is to seize the opportunity.
You’ll spend that much money on trial and error regardless. Spend those bucks on someone who can point you in the correct direction from the start—your mentor!
