Is this program online or in person?

Since we will have university students from all across Canada, the program will be online.

No. One of the pillars of this program is building community, and part of that is engaging with students from other universities! We will have a Discord community where mentees can reach out to other mentors for university/program specific advice.

The weekly topics range from everything related to job search (resumes, interviews, projects) to extracurriculars to imposter syndrome. We want to open discussion on things that aren’t talked about in university lecture halls, and build a community of women in computer science who support each other.

There is a 1:2 mentor-mentee ratio. The meeting time will be coordinated between the three individuals at a time that works for everyone.

Am I experienced enough to be a mentor? I don’t think I’ve done anything impressive and I’m not that good at coding.

If you are second year or above, you already have worlds of experience beyond an incoming freshman. It is preferred that you have at least one previous internship experience, as that will be covered in the topics that are discussed. However, volunteer and club experience is just as valuable as well! It is not expected that you’ve mastered coding by any standards, but it does help to having project experience as you will be guiding your mentees through their coding project. If you are passionate about giving back to the community and meeting other WiCS, we encourage you to apply!

This is a volunteer position, however, we are planning on having an appreciation day for the mentors to get together to celebrate and acknowledge their contributions.

We know how busy university is, so we just expect mentors to meet with their mentees once a week around 30 minutes. The time that you meet with your mentees will depend on your own schedules, but a weekly commitment is required. The weekly panels/workshops are open to the mentors, but not mandatory.

We will have a topic and guiding questions that we will share with you for each week. The mentor is expected to lead the conversation by sharing their experiences in line with the topic. Nonetheless, these topics are for guiding purposes and it is completely fine and encouraged to talk about anything else! As a side note, mentors should also ensure that mentees are meeting their coding project checkpoints.

I don’t have any coding experience, is that fine?

Of course! The purpose of the program is to help you navigate your studies and career in computer science, and the coding project component is just a part of that. We have suggestions for beginner friendly projects, and your mentors will guide you on what resources you can take advantage of.

No. This is not a coding bootcamp, and you will be the driving force in your coding project. You are responsible for learning any technical material necessary for the project, but you can ask your mentor for help or resources.

Your mentors will lead the discussion by sharing their experience with the weekly topic. It it your responsibility to actively engage in the conversation and ask any questions you may have about their experience or in general.

Mentees are expected to have weekly meeting with their mentor for around 30 minutes. Mentees are also highly encouraged to attend the workshop/panel of the week which will be around an hour. The time commitment on the coding project will vary according to the mentees coding level and their project difficulty. However, a good amount to spend on the project would be 3-5 hours/week.

We’ll ask in the application whether you would prefer to work solo or with a partner. If you are paired with a partner, we will do our best to pair you with someone at a similar skill level.