Alumni Mentor Guide 2020 Alumni-Mentors-2020_A5-digital_march_v5 | Seite 14

Mentoring Policies
and Procedures
The Role and Responsibilities of a Mentor
As a UNSW Business School mentor, your role is to
challenge, inspire, encourage and support your mentee
to achieve their goals around their career development.
Mentors are expected to
• Be committed, trustworthy, a good communicator
• Provide honest and constructive feedback
• Maintain appropriate and professional boundaries
• Act ethically and with respect to all participants
• Maintain student confidentiality unless appropriate
• Adhere to relevant university policies and procedures
outlined in this Guide.
Mentors are not expected to
• Provide guidance on all topics discussed especially
if you are not comfortable in that area. Your role
as mentor is not that of a friend, personal counsellor or
academic advisor.
• Provide your personal history, problems, animosities,
failures etc. unless they are constructive to the
mentoring conversation.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Career Mentoring Program is an inclusive and
diverse program with the aim of enhancing employability
skills and building connections in an environment
that is free from discrimination, harassment, bullying
and sexual harassment.
Intercultural Communication & Awareness
The Career Mentoring Program is a culturally diverse
and inclusive program for alumni and students. You may
find cultural differences in eye-contact, personal space,
greetings, postures and gestures during your mentoring
relationship. For example, eye contact is considered a
sign of openness and honesty in Australia whilst people
from other cultures may avert their gaze as a sign of
respect or deference.
Code of Conduct
When expressing an interest in the Career Mentoring
Program, alumni participants must agree to abide by the
code of conduct, as outlined in UNSW’s 
Staff Code of ConductPolicy as well as Sexual
Misconduct Prevention and Response Policy. UNSW
alumni are considered to be affiliates of the University
and must abide by the same policy as staff as well as the
policies and procedures listed.
All volunteers engaged with the University are expected
to conduct themselves in a manner consistent with
UNSW’s Workplace Bullying Policy. Any breaches of
conduct will be dealt with as per the policy guidelines.
Reporting a breach of conduct
If a serious breach of the Code of
Conduct occurs (i.e. bullying or harassment by a
participant) participants must report the incident to the
Mentoring Program Coordinator in writing with details
of the time and date of the incident. Program managers
will keep a record of the incident and review potential
actions in line with University policies.
Insurance Policy
Enrolled students are covered by the University’s insurance
policies when engaged in approved UNSW activities. This
extends to mentoring meetings, site visits and work-
shadowing off-campus. Please contact the Mentoring
Program Coordinator if you need clarification.
Health and Safety
Mentors should be aware of all relevant health and safety
issues if their mentee visits their workplace. Mentees
should be inducted into safe working procedures during
office or site visits. This does not apply if you are meeting
on campus or in a public place.
Privacy
Participants must handle all Personal Information
(including contact details) received from UNSW in
accordance with the privacy principles that govern the
handling of such information by UNSW, including the
UNSW Privacy Management Plan and the
Privacy Act 1988.
Evaluation
The UNSW Business School strives to continually
improve the Career Mentoring Program for both students
and alumni mentors. A formal evaluation survey is
usually undertaken at the end of the mentoring program.
However, feedback is always welcome and appreciated
throughout the program.
Mentoring Program Coordinator
The Mentoring Program Coordinator
is the main contact and support for mentors.
Mentors should contact the Program
Coordinator as soon as possible if you
experience any of the following:
• If you experience any uncertainty or
discomfort within the mentoring relationship
• If a mentee discloses information which
makes you concerned for their welfare
• If your mentee is unresponsive or is
displaying lack of commitment to the
mentoring relationship
• If you are having difficulty keeping the
mentoring relationship going and need
new ideas or topics to discuss
• If a mentee is becoming overly
dependent on you.
Grievance Procedure
In the first instance, participants
should discuss the issue with the Mentoring
Program Coordinator. Complaints and
grievances will be dealt with according to
UNSW Complaint Management Procedure.
Contact Details
Mentoring Program Coordinator for 
student mentees
[e-mail]
Mentoring Program Coordinator for 
alumni mentors
[e-mail]