Mentorship program:
You've just started an exiting journey!
It’s the start of another phase in your life. Everything might seem really new and you just might be wondering how you’d make it through the next four years. Fret not, we are with you every step of the way. We’d pay for your education and provide you with all the guidance you need to succeed. You are in good hands.
September
Hangout with Older Students and Peer Mentors - We are happy to have you aboard the Brighter Scholars Program. We’d love to meet you, interact with you and understand your needs and concerns. We would also be happy
This is your first year at the university and the beginning of your journey towards a great future. The first step however would be for you to get to meet with and build relationships with other amazing people in your university. To make this possible, there’d be a freshers’ hangout where you would meet other students just like you. At the hangout, you’d meet senior students with whom you may share your experiences and expectations for guidance. You’d also meet other junior students with whom you can start to build sustainable relationships with. This month, you’d be required to do the following;
Tasks:
Join the Whatsapp Group for your school. Do check your email for a custom link
Attend the Freshers’ Hangout.
Student Deliverable:
Feedback form
October
Developing a Study Plan - It is your first year at the university and it is very easy to get carried away with all the extra-curricular activities that come with college life. However, you are in school to get a degree and having good grades will impact positively on the achievement of your career goals. This is why you need a study plan to help you excel in school. To develop your study plan, you would have to work closely with your mentor to accomplish the following tasks;
Tasks:
Determine your academic goals for the year. What grade/GPA do you intend to have at your point of graduation? What courses are most relevant for your chosen career path?
Complete this test to find out what type of learner you are.
Develop a study plan. (The plan should be based on your academic goals and your study style). Click here for more information on how to go about developing a study plan.
Student Deliverable:
Study plan
Feedback form
November
Preparing for First Semester Examinations- To excel at school, you will need to do well in your exams. This happens to be your very first examination at the university and what you do with the first always has a lot to do with the rest. Good grades however do not by just wishing for them. You can only do well if you take time to prepare for your examinations. While you prepare for your exams, it would be great that you discuss any problems you may face and worries you may have about your upcoming exams with your mentor. Below are some resources to guide you.
Resources:
Student Deliverable:
Feedback form
January
Evaluating for Success -It’s a new semester and the time to put strategies in place to improve on the results gotten last semester. There were things you did last semester that helped and things you did that did not help. It is time to identify these things and decide what things you’d keep doing and what things you’d stop doing. This month, you’d be evaluating the previous semester and putting strategies in place to improve on key performance indicators where your academics is concerned. To this end, you’d be required to work hand in hand with your mentor to accomplish the following tasks.
Tasks:
Make a list of things you did last semester that you are proud of.
Make a list of things you did last semester that you hope to improve on.
Write out your goal(s) for this semester.
Make a plan to make this semester better than last semester.
Student Deliverable:
Self Improvement Plan.
Feedback form
February
Learning the Basics of Resource Management (Time) - Time is an essential resource for which you need to gain mastery if you must excel in your academics. This month, you’d be reading on different ways to effectively manage your time and meeting with other students at BCM to discus the strategies you’re using in managing your time.
Based on what you learn, you’d be required to draw up a time quadrant in which you’d segment the different aspects of your life and daily activities into urgent, important and not so important. You’d be required to work closely with your mentor to accomplish the tasks below.
Tasks:
Take this Time Management Quiz.
Read the Ultimate Guide to Managing your Time as a College Student.
Learn the basics of how to plan your week and have less stress here.
Create a time plan using this template.
Student Deliverable:
A Time Management Plan.
Feedback form
March
Learning the Basics of Resource Management (Money) - So you get stipends every month! But your needs seem to be on the increase. You wonder at the end of the day where all the money went and it’s like five days to the end of the month and you can’t wait for the next stipend to drop. Financial sufficiency and independence is not necessarily about how much you earn. It is much more about what you do with what you earn.
This month, you’d be learning the basics of money management and exposed to the rudiments of drawing and sticking to a budget as well as how to save no matter how little you earn. You’d therefore be required to work closely with your mentor to accomplish the tasks below.
Tasks:
Read this Complete Guide to Managing Money as a College Student.
Check out the 31 Money Saving Tricks for Students.
Use the Guide to create a budget for yourself.
You may also use this template to create your budget.
Student Deliverable:
A Sample Monthly Budget.
Feedback form
April
Preparing for Second Semester Examinations- This happens to be your second major examination at the university. By now, you should already have an idea what university examinations entail. You’ve also come to understand that preparation is key to coming out tops. This is why this month you’d be focusing on getting prepared for your end of semester examination. While you prepare for your exams, it would be great that you discuss any problems you may face and worries you may have about your upcoming exams with your mentor. Below are some resources to guide you.
Resources:
Student Deliverable:
Feedback form
June
Volunteering - Volunteering is great! It gives you the opportunity to gain experiences that would transform you as a person and prepare you for the world of work. What’s even greater is that having these experiences nicely crafted on your resume will help you stand out, make you seem like a real-life, three-dimensional person, and give hiring managers a better idea of what makes you tick.
So this month, you’re going to be identifying a volunteer position and signing up for one.
Tasks:
Read about the five reasons why volunteering is great for you here.
Learn how to apply for a volunteer position here.
Identify an organization that does something you love and that you would like to be a part of.
Send out an expression of interest/ cover letter to your identified organization.
Volunteer
Student Deliverable:
A Report on your Volunteering Experience.
Feedback form
August
Introspection and Reflection - After a long year, it would be great to take some time off to analyze how the year went and plan for the upcoming year. Be sure to work with your mentor to take stock of the year. This would include all activities undertaken including successes and failures. Together with your mentor, be sure to work on the tasks below.
Tasks:
On a scale of 1 to 10, how well did you do. Rate yourself.
Write out what did you do well this year that you are happy with yourself for?
Write out what didn’t you do well this year?
Write out how you hope to make next year better?
Student Deliverable:
A Report on Findings from Self-Assessment.
Feedback form