We recognize the importance of mentoring in Human Centered Design & Engineering career development work to provide mentorship to as many students who request this service. Past and current mentorship programs include:
2021-2023: Mentor Pod Program
Our goal for the 2022-2023 academic year is to group every student in a mentor pod that meets routinely with an external mentor from January through May, 2023. Student sign up will be available here in early November.
In the 2021-2022 academic year, HCDE paired 54 industry mentors with 200 students to create monthly pods that meet for virtually on a regular basis. Topics include portfolios, interviewing, networking, and general Q&A. Learn about the evolution of our unique Mentor Pods program and hear from participating students here.
Interested in serving as a mentor?
Pods meet virtually, once per month from January through May 2023. Meeting times are determined based on the mentor's availability. Discussion topics might include interviewing skills, portfolios, LinkedIn profiles, whiteboarding practice, navigating job descriptions, salaries and negotiation, networking techniques, UX titles, pivoting to UX from other industries, and other topics of interest to the specific pod. Sign up to mentor a pod here »
2017-2020: Microsoft Mentor Program
The UW’s Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering (HCDE) and the Microsoft Cloud + AI Studios team piloted a year-long mentorship program that matched students with Microsoft mentors for one-on-one career coaching. Students gain real-world perspective and career guidance from working professionals in user research, UX design, content strategy, and product management. Mentors add enhanced value to students as they begin their own professional careers.