The Mentoring Program

The mentor’s role is to support students studying in Hamburg far away from their families and friends outside of the university context as personal contacts and advisors. Above all, they are to provide students with an opportunity to get to know the everyday life, culture, customs and habits of the country. The mentor’s commitment makes the student’s stay in Germany more comprehensive and his or her ties with Germany more intensive, more varied and more personal. 

Flexible Time Frame

How often mentors and mentees meet is for them to decide. Once a month would be optimal but can at times be difficult to achieve due, for example, to examination periods. The aim of the program is to enable the students to take part in the in the ordinary daily life of the mentor’s family. Mentors invite them round for an evening meal, share their hobbies and interests and take them to a soccer match or concert or on an outing to the surroundings of Hamburg, inviting them whenever possible to visit on high days and holidays.

Annual Gatherings at the NIT

Mentors and students meet twice a year at the NIT. In December they meet for Advent coffee in the foyer of the NIT building and in summer the NIT arranges a barbecue for the mentors and mentees. A new evening event is also planned in the spring to provide information about developments at the NIT and for mentors to share experiences. 

The Benefit is Mutual

People who have taken part in the mentoring program in the past have been particularly appreciative of the shared experiences and cultural exchange. Many feel the program has been personally enriching and have made friendships that have been maintained beyond the end of the student’s studies. Both mentees and mentors have also profited from the opening or creation of new networks.

Become a Mentor

If you would like to take on this commitment for a student, you are very welcome to join us as a mentor. We will be happy to take your wishes into consideration with regard, say, to the student’s country of origin. It will be a pleasure to answer any other queries that you may have.