Students and academic staff from the School of the Built Environment, external mentors from industry, recently attended an event at the The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors office in Edinburgh to mark the end of this year's CEMENT (Culture of External Mentoring) mentoring scheme.
The CEMENT scheme was founded in 2011 by Dr Fiona Grant, Director of Quality at SBE and chair of RICS Scotland. The scheme was set-up to provide students with an opportunity to engage with industry so that they can reflect on their learning at university and get industry experience.
The overarching aim of the event was to reflect on the students' and mentors' experience of the scheme. Overall, the students rated their experience as very positive and they valued the opportunity for engagement with industry. Students found that participation in the scheme helped in building their confidence and gaining a better understanding of their career path in industry. Some students were able to identify an opportunity for a potential summer placement.
Students who participated in the scheme said:
"Working with my mentor has helped me to understand my career options" Moyra Coutts
"I found the relevance of measurement classes when my mentor was talking about the day-to-day tasks that are part of her job" Christina Noble
"I found my mentor very friendly and willing to help - providing comprehensive answers to my queries" Ben Saward
"My mentor gave me advice on dissertation topics and I also attended few CPD events with my mentor" Jonathan Gregory
Furthermore, mentors had an opportunity to make suggestions for further development of the scheme, which included a structured approach for the mentor-student relationship management, and an event at the beginning of the year with all mentors in-attendance.
For further information about the CEMENT scheme please contact Dr Mohamed Abdel-Wahab