Tisch 2024 Mentor Program Application

• This program is exclusively for members of the Class of 2024 (December 2023/January 2024 and May/August 2024 graduates) who are being awarded a bachelors or masters degree from Tisch. Individuals with Tisch minors who are receiving bachelors or masters degrees from other NYU schools (e.g. Steinhardt, Gallatin) are ineligible. Eligibility will be verified with each applicant’s academic department.
• This program runs for six months, beginning in May 2024. 
• This program is open to all Tisch majors. However, be advised that the majority of the available mentors have careers in film, tv/digital, technology, and theatre (and industries related to those fields).
• The mentor program is conducted primarily via Zoom so mentees can be based in any location.

MENTOR GROUP MEETINGS:
All registered mentees are notified of the Mentor Group Meetings schedule by early May 2024 via email. Please be sure to add tisch.career@nyu.edu to your Safe Senders list and keep an eye on your spam filter to avoid missing communications about the schedule.

Mentor Group Meetings are held throughout Summer 2024 on Zoom. Sessions are based on individual mentor availability so the schedule will vary from week to week but we anticipate most will be held around lunchtimes, evenings, or weekends. Sessions will NOT be recorded.

Mentees can attend as many sessions as they wish; however, attendance at a minimum of two sessions is required to be eligible for the One-on-One Chats.

ONE-ON-ONE CHATS:
In July 2024, all mentees who have attended at least two Group Meetings will be sent a list of mentors who are available for One-on-One Chats, along with detailed application instructions for how to request a meeting. The application will consist of two essay questions: 1) how would this meeting supplement what they learned from the Group Meetings  and 2) what they specifically want to ask their requested mentor.

Mentors will select their own mentees, in consultation with TOCD. Due to the limited number of available mentors, matching is NOT guaranteed.

Mentees who are selected for the One-on-One Chats will be notified in late August/early September. Your mentee spot is contingent on timely and official confirmation of your acceptance, including a signed Mentee Contract confirming your understanding of mentorship best practices.

TOCD will introduce mentees to their mentors via email but after that, all subsequent meeting arrangements and communications will be the mutual responsibility of the mentors and mentees. 

The first meeting with your mentor will last at least 45 minutes and occur in September/October 2024. 

Mentors and mentees commit to at least one more follow-up meeting, to be held before December 2024. 

The meetings will be conducted virtually via phone or video/Zoom/FaceTime. However, in-person meetings may occur if the mentor and mentee are in the same geographic location.

• The mentors are all volunteers who understand what it's like to be a new Tisch graduate! They're here to serve as knowledge sources and sounding boards so that you're ultimately empowered to forge your own career path.
  
  
• The mentors are alums from almost every single Tisch department but the majority are from Undergraduate Film & TV and the Interactive Telecommunications Program. However, be aware that alums often have experience in multiple disciplines and are open to sharing their insights with everyone regardless of major!
  
  
• Past mentors have ranged from members of the Class of 1978 to the Class of 2021 but the majority have graduated within the last 5-10 years.
  
  
• Most mentors are based in the NYC and LA area but we also have mentors located all over the US and around the world. 

To participate as a mentee, you must submit essay answers via a link that appears at the bottom of this webpage during the registration period. (If you do not see a registration link at the bottom of this page, it means that submissions are not currently being accepted.) Mentee participants must also submit a resume.

ESSAY QUESTIONS:
The Mentor Group Meeting topics will be based on your essay answers so please put thought into what you write! The more detail you provide, the easier it is for us to ensure that we’ll have mentors who can address your concerns. There is NO WORD LIMIT.

1. Please describe your career goals. Where do you see yourself five years from now? Ten years from now? Btw, don't worry about listing specifics (e.g. job titles) if you're unsure about your long-term plans! Abstract ideas are okay. It's also okay to list both practical and dream goals.
   
   
2. What are you looking to learn from the mentor program?
   
   
3. What's one question you'd ask a mentor about your career? This should be something that results in an actionable step. (e.g. "How do I get an agent?" "How do I get funding for my EP?" or "How do I create a start-up?")
   
   
4. What's one question you'd ask a mentor about managing life after graduation that ISN'T specific to your industry? (e.g. "How do you manage a work/life balance?" or "What is the best way to address time management when you no longer have a class/internship schedule?")
   
   
5. What are you most concerned about for the next 12 months?

RESUME:
Please only submit your resume as a doc, docx, or pdf file. We are unable to open files in a Pages format.

Please upload your resume to Google Drive and set the sharing to "Anyone at NYU with a link can view." The application form will include a place for you to list the shared link for this file. Please do not send the shared link or your resume directly to the Tisch Office of Career Development without also filling out the registration form - if you do, it will not be considered an official submission.

Participants must submit their essay answers and resume through an online form via a link that will appear at the bottom of this webpage during the registration period. If you do not see the registration link at the bottom of this page, it means that the Mentor Program is not currently open for submissions.

Once you’ve filled out the registration form, you’ll receive an acknowledgment within 5 business days.

Decisions regarding the Mentor Program and One-on-One Chat mentor/mentee matches are final. No One-on-One Chat application feedback will be provided but if you apply and are not matched with a mentor, the Tisch Office of Career Development will provide you with alternate career resources.

How are mentors matched with mentees?

• For the Mentor Group Meetings, mentees decide which sessions they’d like to attend! A schedule of all available sessions will be shared with the mentees in late April/early May. Please note that these sessions will NOT be recorded.

• For the Mentor One-on-One Chats, the mentors will select their own mentees through a second application process that will occur in August. (The application will consist of two very brief essays.) Decisions are made in consultation with TOCD and based on shared interests and mentees’ specific career-related concerns; shared geographic location may also be a consideration.

Wait, I’m still confused about this One-on-One Chat application. How does that work?
Detailed information about the One-on-One Chat application will be sent to all eligible mentees in July. But the quickie answer is that if you’ve attended at least two Mentor Group Meetings, you may apply to have an individual meeting with the mentor who led one of those sessions. The application will consist of two brief essays: 1) how this chat would supplement what you learned from the Group Meetings and 2) what you specifically want to ask your requested mentor. The mentor would then review all of their requests to select their mentee. Note that not all Group Meeting mentors are available for One-on-One Chats, but there are also several mentors who are available to meet with multiple mentees.

I’ve got a schedule conflict and won’t be able to attend any of the Group Meetings this Summer. Does this mean I’m not eligible for the One-on-One Chats?
Unfortunately, you must attend at least two Group Meetings to be eligible for a one-on-one meeting with a mentor. This is to ensure that you have developed a baseline understanding of the industry from the Group Meetings and are using the One-on-Ones to delve deeper into how that knowledge can be applied to your specific career strategy. The requirement also ensures that you are not wasting the volunteer mentor’s time by making them repeat info they’ve already shared through the Group Meetings.

Will the mentors help me get a job?
The Tisch Mentor Program is not a job placement program and mentors are not required to recommend mentees for career-related opportunities or provide them with work. That said, mentors CAN help you by offering advice on job search strategies.

Is this the same thing as the Violet Network?
Nope! The Violet Network is an online platform hosted by the NYU Wasserman Center to facilitate networking, mentoring, and knowledge sharing between students and NYU alumni. The mentoring available through Violet Network is more informal than the Tisch 2024 Mentor Program and includes NYU alums who didn’t attend Tisch. We encourage you to use Violet Network to find additional mentors and increase your support network! For more info and to register, go to violetnetwork.nyu.edu.

I heard there was a Tisch LA Mentor Program. Is this the same thing?
Nope, this is different from the mentor program run by NYU LA, which is only available to students who are currently enrolled in that Global Study Away program.

I’m planning on applying for other mentoring programs. Is this a problem?
Sure, it’s completely okay to simultaneously participate in other mentor programs. However, if you are planning to participate in the One-on-One Chats, you will need to 1) attend at least two Group Meetings and 2) commit to meeting with your One-on-One mentor twice.

I missed the application deadline! Can you still let me in the program?
For logistical reasons, late or incomplete registrations will not be considered. No exceptions will be made, so don’t wait until the last minute to register!

I'm graduating in December 2024. Why can't I apply now?
This program is intended to support those who have completed their studies at Tisch and are no longer students. If you're graduating in December 2024, you'll be eligible to apply for the Class of 2025 cycle.