Mentor
For more than 60 years, SEO has been striving to create a more equitable society. Every year, our SEO Scholars program seeks out passionate and dedicated individuals to mentor our talented group of high school juniors. This is your chance to help them navigate the college admissions process and develop the professional skills they need to succeed in the workplace… and beyond.
Our Support
Our project-based mentoring model supports the development of critical life skills, encourages relationship-building, allows mentors to share their own experiences, and provides students with the tools they will need to navigate the last two years of high school and their future college experience.
Mentors are provided with a goal to complete each session with their mentee. Topics include:
- Researching and applying to summer enrichment programs
- Beginning the college application process (how to demonstrate interest, review of application processes, mentor guidance, and storytelling)
- Building professional skills (soft skills workshops, including interview training and networking)
Your commitment
New York Mentors (250 Mentors)
- Attend 10-12 Saturday sessions (five/six per semester) for two hours each in the afternoon (downtown Brooklyn)
San Francisco Mentors (120 Mentors)
- Attend 12 Saturday sessions total, four in person (two per semester) and eight virtual mentoring sessions in either downtown San Francisco or Oakland
North Carolina Mentors (30 Mentors)
- Attend three in-person Saturday Community Day sessions in Greensboro, and seven virtual mentoring sessions throughout the year
Application Timeline
- Applications open in May for SF and NC, and June for NYC
- Applications will be reviewed starting in the middle of June through July
- Rolling interviews from the end of June through September
- Notifications will go out in September
Railyn D., SEO Scholars High School Class of 2018
“From the start, Olivia was determined to help me succeed. She asked me about school and my family and seemed genuinely interested in someone she didn’t even know. She was set on helping me build up my confidence and getting me into a top school, like I had always dreamed of. Throughout our relationship, she has encouraged me to step outside my comfort zone, helped raise my SAT score just in time for college admissions, connected me with alumni from the school I’ll be attending, stayed up late editing my college essays, and most importantly, showed me that the circumstances in which I grew up in do not define me or my future. I’m thankful for Olivia, thankful for SEO, and I hope that more adults decide to play the role in a Scholar’s life that Olivia has in mine.”
Evelyn, SEO Scholars, High School Class of 2020
“My parents are immigrants who did not attend college in the U.S. and do not have experience with the college application process. I’m happy to have another adult at SEO to get advice from in addition to my program manager and instructors. I can ask Wes my questions and feel reassured that things will be okay.”
Read Evelyn and Wes’s Full Story Here!
SEO Scholars mentor candidates should be:
- College graduates located in New York City, San Francisco, or North Carolina
- Willing to submit to a background check conducted by SEO
- Passionate about education and providing opportunities to public high school students
