What is Nexus?
Nexus, sponsored by the Humanitarian Wealth Distribution Fund, is a mentorship program devoted to
creating network opportunities for high school seniors and CEGEP students (mentee) to connect with
current students from university, alumni, or young professionals (mentor).
The objective of Nexus is to:
- Facilitate the transition between secondary school and university by allowing young motivated
leaders to provide their insight, tips and best practices for success in higher learning - Aid in exploring and developing a student’s communication and “soft skills” with a focus on career and occupational development
- Provide some academic and tutoring support for areas where a mentee may be struggling or having difficulty learning.
As such, the mentor serves as a role model and a coach. It is important to note, that the relationship
with the mentor is defined as a friend; not an authority figure; teacher; or preacher.
Although the goal of the program is not to presume university or graduate level education as the
preferred path for every student, it is never discouraged. We realize that in this dynamic world, students
have a wide variety of passions, careers and hobbies that pique their curiosity.
The purpose of the program is not to serve as a substitute to tutoring or formal education, but
moreover, to provide an additional set of tools to help mentees succeed throughout their university
studies.
Our Approach
There are five unique traits that define Nexus from other mentorship initiatives. Although other
mentorship programs have their merits, we felt it was important to separate ourselves from the bunch.
The Nexus program puts strong emphasis on relationship fit, effective mentor screening, the mentor’s
defined role, our training program and administrative involvement.
Relationship Fit. The program’s major differentiating factor is based on the term: “fit”. Unlike many
prominent programs, Nexus evaluates its mentors based on a psychological test, and interview of the
candidate to analyze the mentor’s personality in order to properly pair them with a child that suits their
personality, interests, and occupational ambitions.
Effective Mentor Screening. Mentors are screened using a proven method of selection which includes
a security back check; psychological profile (NEO 5 Factor Model); an interview process; and will need
to abide by the program’s policies and code of ethics. Mentors are chosen based on their former
experiences with mentoring, coaching or volunteering; their sense of ambition; a proven academic or
professional track record; and strong perceptive and emotional skills.
Continual Mentor Training. Nexus mentors have a continual educational requirement in order to
maintain their ability to handle conflict and other unexpected issues around their interactions. This
is achieved, first and foremost, through our panel of accredited mentor trainers and the program’s
Mentor Handbook. The latter outlines the basic do’s and dont’s for mentoring including communication
boundaries and relationship development suggestions.
Ongoing Communication. Lastly, program administrators will be in continuous contact with mentors,
mentees, parents and the educational institutions to provide a dynamic and customizable program
structure. By doing this, we can ascertain the quality of the program and allow for feedback from all
constituents.
Our Mentors
The Nexus program’s strength lies in its ability to select intelligent, capable and devoted mentors.
Because of the emphasis on education, our majority of mentors are selected from the University
system. Furthermore, in order to ensure our pool is fully diversified, we select students from varied
educational backgrounds such as law, medicine, engineering, political science, business, life sciences,
and psychology. Having mentors from different backgrounds, we believe, will further enable us to create
a match between both mentors and mentees and, as per the goal of the program, establish a stronger
pre-determined fit between both parties. Through this approach, students can benefit from learning
the important aspects to pursuing specific career/academic oriented goals while maintaining a fulfilling
mentor relationship.
The mentor will ideally be in his/her second year of a three year program at University (or the
equivalent in a four year program). We will also be accepting recent graduates, up to three years
removed from graduation.
Mentoring is often misconstrued by many: It is not a tutoring program, nor is it a substitute for
parenting; it should always be seen as a supplementary aid to parents and teachers to help guide the
child on his/her life path. The ideal mentors should display all of the following qualities: considerate,
mature, fantastic listener enthusiastic, supportive, humorous, committed to developing long term
relationships, open-mindedness, patient, and above all, kind.
Our Beneficiaries
The Nexus program’s ideal mentees are high school students in grade 10 and 11 or first year CEGEP
students (grade 12 if applicable). Although the program will not discriminate based on age alone,
potential mentees can be selected from earlier grades, provided their needs and interests are aligned
with those of the program. We believe that a student is much more open to receiving career and
academic support during these transitional years.
The mentee selection process, unlike the mentor selection process, is completely dependent on the
prospective mentee. As such, participation in this program will be conducted on an opt-in basis. We will
not under any circumstance accept a potential mentee that is being coerced into joining the program,
regardless of the demands of the student’s parents or his/her school’s administration.