Consider These Veteran Mentorship Programs

Finding the right people to help with your transition, education, and career isn't always easy. It would be much easier if someone had the answers to your questions, right? Here's where mentorship comes into play. You may have had a mentor in the military, and now it's time to find one for the next stage of your life. 

Kinds of Mentoring Programs

Before selecting a mentoring program, consider what kind of mentoring you're looking for. Consider how much time you want to spend with your mentor and your goals before deciding between the options.

One-on-One Mentoring 

This traditional form of mentoring is the most popular, as you work closely with a carefully selected mentor to achieve your goals.

E-Mentoring

In-person mentoring may be a challenge for veterans for many reasons. These mentorship relationships can occur online, over the phone, or through emails.

Reverse Mentoring

Veterans looking to move into a new career after their military service may find that a younger professional in that field is a good match for mentoring them. When the younger person is the mentor, it's called reverse mentoring.

Group Mentoring

You can learn a lot from a group, especially when it gives you access to a high-profile professional who may not have time to mentor many people one-on-one. A group mentorship program allows everyone to learn from each other, benefitting all members.

Peer Mentoring Groups

Like with group mentoring, a group of peers can also be a helpful mentoring tool for a veteran. Working with other veterans or colleagues at the same professional level can be very beneficial, eliminating the hierarchy with an official mentor leading the group.

Veteran Mentoring Programs

There are several options of mentoring programs specifically for veterans and military spouses, which may be a great starting place. But don't rule out programs that aren't tailored to veterans either. With an open mind, you can learn from them just as much. Here are a few options.

Veterati

Since 2015, the team at Veterati has been working to make mentoring easier and more effective for the military community. Veterati makes it easy to be a mentor and to find mentors. Over 10,000 people have participated in the program, with mentees calling in about four times each and 98% of mentors wanting to do it again. For more information, check out their website.

ACP

Offering a yearlong mentorship program, ACP connects Fortune 500 professionals with service members, military spouses, and veterans for a one-on-one mentorship program conducted chiefly online or over the phone. Topics that are discussed include career exploration, networking, and leadership. Veterans can apply for the program here.

Veterans in Residence

This program -- available for military spouses and veterans -- works with Bunker Labs, which brings entrepreneurs together. It's a great example of a peer group mentorship program and launches a new six-month cohort each January and July. You can join the waiting list for the next cohort here.

Mentorship programs are a great way to advance your career and, in turn, help others when you're transition is complete.  

Learn more about GI Bill® benefits and other resources available to veterans and military-connected students.