Mentorship Programme

Duration Three months
Format Long-term support through six one-on-one online mentorship sessions with an experienced professional from an Open Doors partner.
Skills Development Focuses on a broad range of aspects, such as defining career goals, identifying learning needs, building ‘job readiness’ skills, expanding professional networks, and receiving guidance from professionals.
Goal Setting Mentors assist in defining career goals, creating action plans, and providing professional advice for the mentee's career progression.
Training Both mentors and mentees undergo mandatory training sessions before the programme begins, ensuring understanding of the programme's scope and commitment required.
Matching Process Mentees are matched with mentors based on the mentee’s goals and the mentor’s experience.

The mentorship programme is part of the Open Doors Initiative.

The purpose of the Open Doors mentorship programme is to support job seekers from marginalised groups to meet their full potential and achieve their professional goals.  

These might include

  • Identifying your learning needs and development goals
  • Building “job readiness” skills
  • Identifying up-skilling and training opportunities
  • Receiving guidance and insight from professionals with experience in your sector of interest  
  • Building skills for future goals and milestones

How it Works

Through this free programme, you will be matched with an experienced professional from an Open Doors member company (see all members here). The programme will last three to six months and will consist of six individual sessions of one hour each.

Your mentor will help you define goals for your career and come up with an action plan to achieve them. They will give you professional advice and guidance to help you define the next steps in your career.

Before beginning the Mentorship Programme, all mentors and mentees need to undertake our training session in advance to understand the full scope of what is involved, the format of the mentorship relationship and their commitment required to have a successful result. The training session will last approximately 45 minutes and is mandatory for all participants.

Once this training is complete, you will be asked to fill out a registration form, where you’ll provide details that will help match you with the best mentor to support you. You will then be assigned a mentor and begin your mentoring journey. 

Training sessions for mentees are offered monthly. Please register using the links below:

If you have any questions about the mentorship programme, please email info@opendoorsinitiative.ie

The programme has been running for years with very successful results

4.9/5

is the average satisfaction rate of those who have completed the programme.

60%

have achieved their goals during the programme, such as accessing employment or starting their own business, and an additional 36% feel closer to achieving their goals by the end of the programme.

My mentor has been incredibly supportive and insightful throughout our mentorship sessions. Her guidance has been clear and practical, making it easier for me to navigate the job market and improve my professional skills. She provided valuable feedback on my resume and cover letter, suggested effective networking strategies, and connected me with industry professionals. Our discussions on interview techniques, especially the STAR method, were very helpful, and the mock interview session boosted my confidence. Her mentorship has been really valuable, and I feel much more prepared to pursue my career in the marketing industry. I am grateful for the opportunity to have worked with her and for the structure and support provided by the mentorship program.
Hasti, Mentorship Programme Participant
Open Doors has been a fantastic experience for me. The mentorship programme has been superb. The team have done huge work to help outline supportive care for me in my job search. The programme with my mentor from EY was excellent. She is very knowledgeable with her advice which helps in understanding and making decisions. We have made it through a number of sessions and to our luck we have managed to secure a new role. This is a full-time permanent role which is exactly the goal I was looking to achieve from this experience.
Rory, Mentorship Programme Participant

Join our Mentorship Programme

The programme will consist of one hour worth of mentoring sessions every month for a duration of six months. Please note that a commitment is required to attend all sessions with the mentor during this time.

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What area of mentorship would be most useful for you.

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Who are our Mentors?

Our Mentors bring a wealth of experience in a variety of professional fields to their roles as advisors and supporters. The following companies represent a small selection of the Mentors involved in the programme.

AIB Arthur Cox Dell HubSpot
Kerry Group Northern Trust William Fry