Highlander Mentor Connection

White Female mentor smiling and pointing at her computer while talking to a American American female who is smiling back and jotting down notes on her notebook with a pen

Highlander Mentor Connection

Co-sponsored by UC Riverside's Human Resources, Staff Assembly, Leaders of Excellence and Distinction (LEAD) and Academic Management Professionals (AMP); the Highlander Mentor Connection (HMC) provides UCR staff with professional development through peer-to-peer mentorship. This program is open to all UCR staff, serving in the role of either a mentor or mentee.

2027 Winter Program

Application Period: November 9-December 7, 2026
HMC Information Sessions (open to all staff interesting in joining the program):
- November 13, 2026 | 11:00am-11:30am | Zoom
- December 2, 2026 | 1:30pm-2:00pm | Zoom
Program Kick-off (in person): Orientation | January 25, 2027, 1:30-4:30pm
NEW HMC Workshop: Focus On Your Talents with CliftonStrengths | February 23, 2027 | 9:30am-11:00am
Program Close (in-person): Culminating Session | May 13, 2027 | 2:30pm-4:00pm

Apply Now

Who is Eligible

All current UCR staff who have successfully passed their probationary status are eligible. We’d also like to emphasize that anyone can be a mentor, and anyone can be a mentee.

For example, even if you’ve been working here for 20+ years, you can still be a mentee and learn something new. Similarly, even if you’re just starting out in your career, you may possess valuable skills that you can pass on to a fellow staff member via mentorship.

Why Should I Join

The mentorship program provides a supportive structure in which participants can cultivate contacts, explore challenges and enhance effectiveness as they design their personal growth and career paths.

This program promotes an environment conducive to learning, developing and growing, which not only benefits individual participants, but the campus as a whole. The program also empowers staff to be active contributors to UCR’s culture of collaboration so that each staff member can best support the mission of the University of California.

Time Commitment

We recommend that all mentor-mentee pairs meet a minimum of once every two weeks. Suggested topics for discussion include getting to know each other, sharing experience, goal-setting, areas for development, resume review, mock interviews and networking opportunities.

There is a lot of room for flexibility in where and how often you meet. You can meet over email, Zoom/Microsoft Teams, phone, or in-person. You could even meet outside of business hours if that works better for your schedules.

How to Apply

Once applications are received, the HMC executive committee will assign mentor-mentee pairs based on several criteria including professional experience, shared interests and goals.

For questions, please contact Highlander Mentor Connection Committee at hmc@ucr.edu

Apply to be a HMC Mentor/Mentee