Undergraduate Mentorship Program Wins Award

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

The Carlson School Undergraduate Mentorship Program recently received a Program Extraordinaire award from the University of Minnesota Alumni Association (UMAA). The award recognizes exceptional alumni programs sponsored by a collegiate unit, alumni society, or geographic center.

The mentorship program was formed 21 years ago and is currently housed in the Undergraduate Business Career Center. For the past two years, it has been managed by Career Coach Amanda Duffy. The program’s main objective is to connect undergraduate business students to Carlson School alumni and friends to gain another perspective on industries of their choice.

The program began with 100 participants and has grown to more than 580 in the last 21 years, with 181 mentors who are Carlson School alumni. The program is one of the largest undergraduate mentoring programs in the nation thanks to the help of Alumni Relations, Institutional Advancement, the Office of Undergraduate Programming, the Undergraduate Business Career Center, and the Carlson Global Institute.

Eligibility for the Program Extraordinaire award is based on the creativity, innovation, and effectiveness of a program that engages alumni with the University of Minnesota Alumni Association and collegiate unit, alumni society, or alumni chapter. Also, programs must demonstrate volunteer involvement in the planning and execution of the program and must show measurable growth in alumni membership and program participation. The award was presented at the UMAA banquet on October 20.