The AHEP mentoring scheme is an opportunity for AHEP members to use the mentor relationship to empower their career journeys, improve their professional practice and support their professional development.
Alice Horncastle, Postgraduate Employability Coordinator in the Faculty of Engineering & Design, shares her recent experience with the AHEP mentoring scheme:
When I joined the University of Bath in March 2024, I was new to Higher Education. Although I had my own student experience to fall back on, I had no idea about working in the sector – there were a lot of gaps in my knowledge! I wanted to find out what it meant to be a ‘HE professional’, to gain self-confidence, and increase my network, so I joined AHEP and applied for their Mentoring Scheme in May 2024.
In June, I was matched with Jake Harding, Student Enrichment Manager for Science & Engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University, and we quickly bonded over our shared backgrounds in Secondary Education. We had our first virtual meeting in July, where I figured out my goals for the scheme, and over six months, we discussed CPD opportunities and career paths. With Jake’s encouragement, I wrote a blog post for Development Monthly (A New Starter’s Guide to Succeeding in HE) and joined the AHEP Early Careers & New to HE SIG. Despite our geographical distance, we also managed to meet up in person. Jake was passing through Bath in August, so I showed him around campus and introduced him to my team, then in January 2025, he invited me to Manchester for a work-shadowing trip.
The two days I spent at Manchester Metropolitan University were invaluable to my professional development and I’m grateful that we were able to make it happen. The trip coincided with ‘Future Me Week’; a week dedicated to career-focused activities. It was an amazing opportunity to see another institution, to compare best practice, and meet new people. When you visit a place, you get a true sense of the culture, how students and staff interact with each other, and I was impressed by MMU’s openness and community feel, considering it’s twice the size of Bath, and spread across a city rather than a campus. One of my main takeaways was their online platform RISE, (their version of UniHub), which promotes enrichment opportunities and almost guarantees engagement through a scoring system. Once they have enough points, students receive an extra-curricular record on their graduation transcript, showcasing their employability.
Overall, my AHEP mentoring experience was a success. I achieved my goals, learnt a lot and made long-lasting connections. I recommend it to everyone, regardless of your career stage, as you can always be a mentor rather than a mentee!
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