Ford teams up with Wayne State University to speed mentor engineering students

Wayne State University's Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and Ford Motor Company's Women In Manufacturing (WIM) groups joined together for Wayne State University College of Engineering's first Speed Mentoring Event on Thursday, Jan. 23.

Eighteen professionals from various organizations who hold careers in engineering in the Detroit area mentored almost 40 Wayne State University students ranging from freshman to Ph.D. level. Nine out of the 18 mentors were from Ford Motor Company. To everyone's delight, men also attended the event.

The event had a full agenda starting with a tour in the engineering building of the facility's lab and ending with an intimate Q&A session between the mentors and students.

The speed mentoring sessions were the highlight of the evening. During the sessions, students and mentors had just three minutes to learn as much about each other as possible. Event coordinators Rachel Kast, SWE faculty advisor, and Carmen Gamlin, engineering career services consultant, used this unique forum to help connect students to industry experts who gave insight on internship and career choices, and enabled them to start building their professional networks.

Kast and Gamlin were not intimidated by the overwhelming numbers in attendance. They kept the event fun and entertaining for all by flashing the lights in the room and ringing a bell when the three minutes were up during the speed mentoring rounds.

"This event was wonderful. Engineering students ranging from freshman through Ph.D. met with our guests to learn about their engineering careers and opportunities in the field," said Gamlin. Kast added, "We are already planning for next year's speed mentoring event as this was such a success."

The mentors also had their own perspectives on the event. Dee Skinner, launch and quality manager at the Sterling Axle Plant said, "It was a great opportunity to meet young adults and share my experiences with them. Although it was sponsored by SWE, we were delighted that several men attended as well. This type of event is a great opportunity for everyone."

Ford was also represented by Michelle Zhang, lead business analyst, who added, "It is great to see such a good turnout from both the volunteer mentors and the engineering students. I am glad I could be there to represent Ford to share my perspective on IT and learnings from my work and life experiences."

Nimisha Shah, IT representative, simply stated, "The best help we can offer the youth of today is to prepare them for tomorrow." This sentiment was certainly embraced by both Ford and Wayne State through this wonderful networking event.

Article by Ford Communications Coach Suzanne Cutway, posted originally on Ford website