Mentorship

Students are eager to put their education, passion, and skills to use to solve real-world problems, but often they need someone with specialized experience to help them along their way. The Office of Innovation matches students to mentors in the community who play an essential roles in student projects and research efforts by providing real feedback, input, and knowledge to students throughout their education, research, and other career-advancing endeavors at UNE. Mentors act not only as sounding boards to bounce ideas off of, but they also help to empower students to become autonomous learners and the true change makers they seek to be. 

Here are a few examples of what our students are doing through the Mentor Program:

• Working with engineers from Pratt & Whitney on the design of an autonomous boat
• Helping Southern Maine Medical Center provide health care to refugees
• Designing an interactive experience using augmented reality and projection mapping with the Maine design firm Perch Made
• Learning about app design in custom workshops by Portland Webworks

If you are a professional who is interested in becoming a mentor, visit the Makerspace blog for more information and to access a sign-up form.

To learn more about how the Office of Innovation can support student research and innovation projects, explore the P.D. Merrill Makerspace blog or email Justine Bassett, director of the Office of Innovation.