Pre-university students often struggle to chart their future academic and professional pathways, making it difficult to navigate existing ECG programmes. Many also have minimal awareness of ECG and mentorship initiatives beyond school.
How can we help pre-university students define their ambitions and enable them to navigate relevant mentorship opportunities?
SGExams aims to help pre-university students define their academic and career goals, and subsequently enable them to navigate ECG and mentorship opportunities.
The team will develop a mentorship program where mentees will be paired with 1) a primary mentor who will guide them in setting clear, actionable goals for further education and their first career and 2) a secondary mentor who will help them work towards specific goals such as applying to university or securing internships.
Initiatives such as digital content and webinars spotlighting different career pathways and facilitated panel discussions between mentors and mentees on career/academic interests will also be planned for community building.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
The purpose of a secondary mentor
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
The matching to appropriate mentors is helpful.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Being able to shadow someone in their job
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in,I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Mentorship
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future,I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Allow me to have clear goals and evoke my interests.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment,Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Something that awakens the lightbulb and spark in me that I am a good fit for this sector
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
It\'ll be clearer cos it\'s a targeted one 2 one session
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment,Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
user interviews can be great since they are more specific to your needs
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future,I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Planned programme timeline
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
The different arrays of mentorship panels and outlets that I have access to.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
NA
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Low mentor to mentee ratio for pairing - 2 mentee to 1 mentor
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Listening for what the person actually needs and probing questions to help stimulate thinking
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Mentorship
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
They could set clear agendas and tell us what they can offer us. Coz at the moment all I get is confused as a lot of ECG tell different things.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Internships or mentorship in industries that I might be interested but am unsure how exactly is the work life or career prospect it has.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Mentors under my relevant sector that is niche
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
24/7 question
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
providing insights to the industry and how to reach my goal
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Having a list of courses/industries that correspond to what I\'ve studied in JC/Poly would be good.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Option to select mentors based on rating
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
The secondary mentor seems like a good idea as many pre-university students are ignorant on how to apply for further studies and career paths. Even if they know what they want to do in the future, most of them do not know how to get there. Having someone experienced to guide them through is definitely useful.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Personalisation
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
To be sure of the career I am keen on as the mentor will be able to share their experience and how the mentee can enter the industry.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
outreach is v important i think!
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Being able to talk to industry professionals so that students can be more informed of how to improve their portfolio and education pathways to take and
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Connections
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
guidance by and rich experiences of the mentors
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Internship and networking symposium, mentorship opportunities
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Job shadowing
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Attractive
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Helping me to understand a little more than overview of industries.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Learning about job opportunities in relevant fields and potential pathways i can take past certain milestones in my life.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Gives me a general outlook on the career and education pathways that are available to me.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about,I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Mentorship towards the career i want to join and how i can secure a job in my industry of interest, also perhaps starting mentorship at a younger age for awareness
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future,I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about,I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
A reflective worksheet that is actually helpful in making us think
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
If there would be online portals to educate me on the different types of universities whether local or most importantly overseas. Which would be good it is easily accessible to allow me to understand which universities has which courses. Because going to a mentorship one to one may be uncomfortable to those who do not like talking to new people.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Investment
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Opportunities for attachments or internships at any particular field that I may be interested in so that I can get an understanding of the field itself, instead of just looking for information and advice online.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about,I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in,I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
reliability
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Helps me in my career choice
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
2 mentors so 2 perspectives
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time,Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Job simulation/real world job shadowing
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
Existing ECG and/or mentorship programmes don\'t meet my needs,I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Allowing me to understand the choices available and which one is best for me, instead of just looking at a sustainable future that I do not really desire. (eg. 9-5 low skill job)
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
The option to explore a few pathways, rather than just focus on 1.
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I know exactly what university, course, and industry I want to pursue
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
ECG and/or mentorship aren\'t important to me at the moment
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Embarking on real life projects
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I\'m clear about my target universities and/or courses and roughly know the industry I want to work in
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Having a dedicated mentor to really tell me more about the university application processes, scholarships as well as what are some potential viable career options from the course that I choose in university
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I don\'t know what I\'m interested in studying or working as in the future
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I don\'t have the time
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
Realistic advice from those in relevant industries
In response to "Which of the following best describes where you are currently in your ECG journey?"
I have a range of universities, courses and/or industries I\'m interested to learn more about
In response to "Which of the following factors may prevent you from engaging with ECG and/or mentorship programmes?"
I\'m not aware of any available ECG/mentorship programmes to join
In response to "What is one feature of an ECG mentorship programme that would be useful to you?"
1 to 1 guidance to make the mentorship more specific
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
1. 2 mentors for each individual seems like it would be a little inefficient. Perhaps go for that option only if 1 mentor is inadequate. 2. Having 2 mentors would also affect the relationship between the user and the mentor. 3. Give the user option of choosing the portfolio of the mentor(s).
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
May need to calibrate and see how best this differs from other mentorship programmes.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Why can\'t both intended functions, namely (a) setting clear, actionable goals for further education and their first career and (b) working towards specific goals such as applying to university or securing internships, be fulfilled by a single mentor? What does team envision as the value add of the proposed approach over other mentorship schemes?
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Go further by having talks and sharing through zoom sessions or go to schools and share to students.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Maybe host physical booth talks at JC/ poly levels
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I would prefer if the primary and secondary mentor is the same person personally cos I would have developed a sense of trust with the first one, and will be more comfortable with the same one thruout
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I feel like most students don\'t even know where to start by knowing their ambitions and future goals. probably getting to know more about them through a survey online and then through analysis by the mentor can help better lead the students by prompting them instead of asking students to \"tell me more about yourself\". I think key is to not let students always take the lead in this case because they are probably as lost as me, I don\'t even know where to begin to say what I want or what I don\'t. Good luck!!!
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
one point to take note of is that some might have a clear goal but do not know what are channels out there can help them. Thanks for having such a great idea on making ECG mentorship sound fun as it seems like able to open the world of oysters to pre uni students. As I really believe work VS study the path way sometimes is hard to decide in a short time period after receiving results. I am one of them that is like after results then think it was way too late .
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
What are some of the ways you can can help the rest of the TA that don’t know which direction they can head to. Most often it is because they don’t know what to do in the future that’s why they end up not know how to move forward in life. What kind of content can you create (with KOLs, professionals) that don’t require an attendance to things and the TA easily have access to. Start a Channel or Network perhaps?
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
The number of students interviewed is too little (10+). Try increasing this number, the information you get from talking to someone and surveying is very different. Hopefully, you\'ll get more clarity once you talk to more people. Jiayou guys.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Great idea from the team and see how you guys may have faced similar issues on your ECG journey that led to this proposed solution. From my experience in SMU\'s Alumni Networking, it\'ll be great to only have 1 mentor instead of 2 mentor (Primary and Secondary) as each mentor have to understand what the other has shared with the mentee. Sometimes the advice may clash and further confuse the mentee. As such, I recommend sticking to one mentor to give clear advice for the mentee. Perhaps for students who are unsure of which university, industry and career they want to embark on, there can be a series of webinars/seminars to professionals to share their career experience - give insights to students an idea for each industry. Also, you can consider having an internship option, for students to try out what they think they would want as a job. After the internship, they have more clarity if they want to stick to that job or maybe try out another.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Recommend platforms for others to read about different career paths in the workforce
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Perhaps can expand to include candidates that are intending to make career switch, but plans to get the necessary qualifications first before doing the switch. The programme could assist in finding the relevant programmes and mentors for these group of candidates. Understand that currently the programme focuses on students who are interested in business. Perhaps could consider Fashion Business Management as another aspect, and potential partners to help with this can be Design Orcharfs and TAFF (Textile and Fashion Federation Singapore) where they have The Bridge Fashion Incubator initiative that candidates can be a part of.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I appreciate you guys doing this especially as a student who is struggling to see my aim clearly. I feel like the existing ecg talks do have a lot of information with them. But they are not organised enough. Sometimes I feel like there isn’t enough information on topics like GAP year and what not. So I would really love to see that feature on your digital content.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
A website that brings down relevant scholarships/ available or past internships for a sector (eg: built environment)
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I\'m not sure how this really differs from existing career guidance provided by schools
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
more slots for mentorships and the range is quite limited
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
For myself what stops me from signing up with many of these programs it seems like a very professional kind of thing which turns me away as a scared student. Previous experience with pre-university talks also give me the idea that talks like these are not very useful as it only gives me generic information which I already know or do not really help me in my decision making process. Maybe something that is more personal, or with mentors who aren\'t that much older than me could help? And more specific / targeted talks rather than broad ones.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
have better criteria to get passionate mentors on board
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Many schools already do offer ECG counselling also vague. A partnership with schools or MOE can be a great way to introduce this project and use counsellors to refer students to this project.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Can open up program to all schools. Many students from neighbourhood schools also will be keen to participate. Can get more mentors to participate as everyone have different experience to share.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
are there any guidelines for the mentor to follow?
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Enable students to know of job openings, get more connections within the industry. Btw, advisory does something that is similar to this.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
reaching out to students and work together with Universities. Knowing students strength and weakness and being able to guide students on what type of jobs suits them, connect students and working firms
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I appreciate how SGExams is helping pre-university students better understand their own ambitions and help them to access mentorship opportunities. One concern that I have is that most students at the pre-university stage might not know what are industries that they may be keen in - perhaps more research could be done here to see if this is true. without industries in mind, the students will not be able to leverage on mentorship opportunities to advance specific academic and professional pathways. Maybe one thing that the team can consider is to provide exposure to different industries through short-form content and dialogues on industries that are of interest to most students. Also, there are existing initiatives that are doing similar programmes such as Advisory. the team can do a landscape study to map out possible collaborators. also, this can help reduce duplication of efforts.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Utilise social media to publicise these mentorship initiatives - such as r/SGExams, which the team seems probably involved in as well
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
create a convenient platform which can allow easy access of available attachments/internships for students to explore.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
There may be a lot of hard work convincing people to enrol in your program. This may be due to the timing involved. Hence, it\'s important to start early. However, many students may still be thinking about getting the exams right at that stage.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
If it is not being done yet, you all may perhaps make use of the various personality tests such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) or the Big Five Personality Test to better identify suitable career and education pathways for students. It might be useful if other non-traditional career pathways are also suggested. For instance, jobs like being a YouTuber or professional gamer might be very suited for a particular individual but may not be recommended to him just because it is rather uncommon in Singapore. This may lead to the individuals being pigeonholed in conventional jobs and hence not allowing him to find his true calling.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Would like the team to consider factors leading to students avoiding or not going for ECG even when they know about it. It is a sense of pressure that comes with the word mentorship... What kind of feeling does this word have on the student? I believe a change of tone or language for students to feel comfortable in that space is crucial to the success of this project.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
The programme requires the mentee to be fully committed. Some mentees would want to give up half way as some are unsure of what they would like to do or are fickle in general. Maybe if the programme could allow one to choose which aspect they would want help in short-term or long-term or to inquire on some areas, the mentee would definitely feel more comfortable and receptive to the programme. Anonymity and survey options will be good too as this batch of students who apply to universities are more introverted and less committed. Like the questions on this page to survey one on what they need help with would definitely facilitate the process better to find out what the mentee needs.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Form up more partnerships for mentorship and community-building. If there are no mentorship and/or community-building groups for the job sector(s), engage with MOM, its relevant statutory board and/or community partners working with MOM to get workers, professionals and/or managers to form the relevant groups. This would create more unity in the sector and provide awareness for pre-university students on most (if not, all) job sectors, especially since most pre-university students are always lacking a clear direction as to how they can contribute to job markets with their interests.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
The biggest challenge to such an initiative may be matching the right mentor to the right mentee, irrespective of the field of interest that the mentee may have. This is because the knowledge put forth by the mentor may not be what the mentee is looking for in the first place. Finding a framework to match mentors and mentees would therefore be critical in mentees gaining any value from such an initiative.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
panel discussions must be neutral, some may have prejudice towards some courses. show survey results of course preference and career goals. let others see the survey results to learn trends and act on it. they can even discuss it with mentors for what data u gathered.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Perhaps we could have virtual shadowing, where we can follow a person with a certain job through an entire day at work and learn about all the work that the job entails to have a clearer picture of that role.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I like the concept of a primary mentor to give me directions, and it will be great if I can have more than 1 secondary mentor to help me explore different pathways, rather than just focus on 1.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
- Industry talks or visits for students - Experiential learning (job shadowing or job attachments)
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I think that SG exams can be improved by having only one dedicated mentor instead of having a primary and secondary mentor. Having two mentors might be unproductive as students might not have the time for bi-weekly meetings or mentoring sessions and things could get complicated and messy as well. Having a single mentor can solve all of these issues and it is paramount to seek quality mentors instead of having huge quantity of mentors who might not be well positioned to give advice. Also, I feel that having partnerships with all the local higher institutions in Singapore would be helpful as they can invite professors, teaching staff to give talks on potentials pathways and courses which students might be interested in, which could be a win-win situation for all involved.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Can open up mentorship to current university students too so less generation gap & more relevant experiences
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Mentors can be university students already studying in the courses the mentees are interested in as they will have more knowledge on the entrance requirements, additional things theyll need to do for higher chances of admission etc.
