The Mentoring Scheme has been running for 14 years now and this year (19 March) we headed back to the offices of Montagu Evans in the Can of Ham Building at 70 St Mary Axe in the City of London. It was great to be joined by Nick Maclean OBE RD FRICS, the new (and 144th) President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) who kindly opened the evening with some words of encouragement for the students. Thanks also to Josh Myerson (mentor) and Emma Buxton (a student mentee and now a mentor) for their words of advice on how to make the most of the Mentoring Scheme.
Nick Maclean, Josh Myerson and Emma Buxton (l-r)
Thanks to Montagu Evans once again for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came. This year we matched 75 students with mentors. Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor should contact: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk
The Mentoring Scheme has been running since 2013, successfully matching more than 1000 students from the BSc Real Estate and the BSc Property Development and Planning with one of our alumni. That's a lot of networking. The Mentoring Scheme is managed jointly by OBREMS (our alumni association) and the School of the Built Environment and is open to second year students as well as students on the MSc Real Estate. In early February we will open applications to the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme 2025 for second year undergraduate students. So why should you take part? Some quotes from students, alumni and mentors...
The Mentoring Scheme was certainly useful and the networking launch event was a great illustration of how important networking is within Real Estate. Thank you.
Brilliant, and we will keep in touch after the scheme ends.
Helpful - as it improved my CV massively, which helped secure a job.
Amazing, my Mentor was extremely helpful and the scheme provided fantastic contacts.
I think the mentoring scheme was a brilliant way to get us in touch with industry professionals. For me it has opened many doors and built my CV by getting work experience through the scheme. I think its a brilliant initiative, in which I hope I'll be able to take part in when I am working.
Speaking to 3rd year students at the Real Estate society socials, and other sports activities, the Mentoring Scheme has helped people in many different ways, that might not seem like the obvious choices. For example, just putting people in touch to help find a room in London, where they secured a summer internship. I also think that a lot of the property industry is about building connections, which the Mentoring Scheme can also assist with.
Having benefited positively from the Mentoring Scheme myself as a student it has made me realise how important continuing that contact is and the benefit of maintaining the alumni community as it's great for meeting new people and being able to help students out.
This year, the mentoring period for undergraduate students will start at the end of March 2024, with a launch event kindly hosted by Montagu Evans at 70 St Mary's Axe (the Can of Ham Building) on the evening of 27 March (6pm to 8pm). The launch event will include guest speakers and a chance for networking and meetings between students and mentors.
There are a wide range of mentors who volunteer to take part, from recent graduates to CEOs - and a lot of our younger mentors took part in the Mentoring Scheme themselves when they were students. All our mentors are alumni of Oxford Brookes (Real Estate or Planning and Property Development) and are also volunteers. Students - please remember that if you sign up to the Mentoring Scheme you must be prepared to make use of your Mentor and initiate contact. Our Mentors sign up to the scheme as volunteers because they want to help and they enjoy being part of the scheme - when students sign up and then drop out, we end up with disappointed Mentors and a wasted opportunity for the student. There is a lot of help on offer and it's up to you to make good use of it.
This is the 12th year of the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme which offers students a unique opportunity to be mentored by one of our alumni. The launch took place on 20 March at JLL West End in London - where we first launched the scheme back in 2013. Thanks to JLL for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came. It was a great evening - the networking was made even better without the old table format. It was especially good to see those who took part in the Mentoring Scheme as students return as mentors. This year we matched 65 students with mentors and there was a great turnout at the launch as you can see from the photos. Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor should contact: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk
Thanks to Michael Clarke (mentor), Harriet Costello (one of the first student mentees in 2013 and now a mentor) and James Mohsen (student mentee in 2018 and now a mentor) for their words of advice and finally from Rebecca Gee (programme lead for BSc Real Estate at Oxford Brookes):
It is in your hands now how much you make of the opportunity but you have the chance to build a relationship that will not only benefit you over the next 12 months but throughout your career as well. Do let us know though if there is anything we can do to facilitate further if required.
To the final year students who have had the benefit of the scheme last year don't let the relationship stop now. That was an overwhelming theme of the talks yesterday evening and many of the mentors were discussing how much they have relied on a mentor across their whole working life.
To all first year students, I hope you are looking forward to the opportunity next year. All I can say is grab it with both hands as it is an invaluable chance to get support with both your dissertation and the job application process as well as throughout your future career.
And now for the photos...
Finishing off the evening with more networking at The Glasshouse in Soho
What were we doing with the spaghetti and marshmallows? When student numbers were smaller we had a few team building events. The winning team from 2014.
This is the 11th year of the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme which offers students a unique opportunity to be mentored by one of our alumni. The launch took place on 22 March at the HQ of CBRE in London. Thanks to CBRE for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came. It was a fantastic evening and it was especially good to see those who took part in the Mentoring Scheme as students return as mentors. This year we matched 74 students with mentors and there was a great turnout at the launch as you can see from the photos. Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor should contact: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk
And now, a few words of advice offered by the of mentors (Andrew Whitehead, Jo Jackson, James Vivian and John Gilder) who presented at the launch:
As a student mentee it's up to you to reach out to your mentor. If they don't reply immediately, don't be put off - they have busy jobs, don't be afraid to be persistent - you WILL get a reply!
As a mentor, our job is to listen and give advice, the benefit of our experience, guidance and reassurance - we've all been through what you're going through and will be going through as you enter the world of work. Make good use of us.
We can offer all these things, but in the end it's also up to you to make the effort.
We can help you with networking and through our contacts who probably know someone who can help you with a particular issue.
It's a unique opportunity and one which doesn't need to stop at the end of a year - many mentees and mentors keep in touch for a long time which can be hugely beneficial for both (offering useful advice for the APC process and beyond). The industry is all about people and building networks - this is a great place to start!
Introduction to the Mentoring Scheme Launch by Elaine Tooke
Finishing the evening off with more networking in the pub...
The launch of the Mentoring Scheme in 2019 - hopefully we'll be back in a central London venue for the launch in 2002
This year (2022) will be the 10th year of our Mentoring Scheme! The Mentoring Scheme is managed jointly by OBREMS (our alumni association) and the School of the Built Environment and is open to second year students on the BSc Real Estate and the BA Planning and Property Development as well as students on the MSc Real Estate. On Monday 31 January we will launch the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme for undergraduate students. The closing date for applications is 25 February 2022 - email rdixon@brookes.ac.uk if you would like to take part.
This year, the mentoring period for undergraduate students will start in April 2022, hopefully with a launch event in central London on the evening of either 31 March or 7 April (we'll let you know which nearer the time). The launch event will include guest speakers and a chance for you to network and finally meet your mentor. There are a wide range of mentors who volunteer to take part, from recent graduates to CEOs - and a lot of our younger mentors took part in the Mentoring Scheme themselves when they were students. All our mentors are alumni of Oxford Brookes (Real Estate or Planning and Property Development) and are also volunteers - they give their time to the Mentoring Scheme free of charge.
This year on the blog, I have collected together some feedback from students who started on the Mentoring Scheme in April 2021 to show their range of experiences so far:
The mentoring scheme has been working brilliantly. My mentor has such a wealth of experience and knowledge that I've been able to benefit from. Having a mentor supporting me has helped give advice beyond the industry at how I can improve my employability.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed time with my mentor. They've been really helpful teaching interview techniques and how I can further my skills in this area. I was invited to an industry open day which was very insightful and my mentor showed me around and gave me more information about the areas in which he specialises. This scheme has definitely helped me focus on areas to pursue.
I have loved being a part of the mentoring scheme. My mentor and I have facetimed a couple of times just to get to know each other better and have been emailing throughout the term and the summer. They have been very helpful on dissertation ideas and keeping me up to date with recent trends in the market that I might find interesting.
The mentoring scheme has been great my mentor has been a big help especially in discussing questions to pose for my dissertation in the interviewing stage and pointing me in the direction of some people to talk to.
My mentor has been a real help from working through my CV and covering letters to helping sort out work experience. We had a working lunch in London last month and it was great to meet face to face and see some sites that they were working on.
I feel the mentoring scheme has been a success so far. After making initial contact, we made a plan to do a video call every other week. While we have missed some calls for various reasons, there has still been a regular line of communication through WhatsApp. It has been great to chat with my mentor, getting their thoughts and insights into the industry as well as getting advice on plans for the future. My mentor has also been able to offer work experience in their office in London allowing me to be flexible to fit around other work experience I have organised later in the summer.
And finally, here are two of our students talking about their experience of the Mentoring Scheme in 2020 - the year mentoring moved online...
If you have any questions about the Mentoring Scheme please email: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk
The first year students on the BSc Real Estate went on a 2-day field trip to learn more about the Great Estates of London on 18 and 19 November 2021.
This field trip is part of the Integrative Project which provides a background to the subjects that are taken in the first year. The module addresses the discipline-based and transferable skills that students will need during their time at university and beyond. These skills are explored and developed through a series of activities which involve viewing real estate from a range of perspectives.
And now for the story of the field trip in photos by Elaine who also measured the field trip in steps (30,000). Click on the red links for more information.
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