Mentorship works both ways

I recently completed the Standard Chartered Singapore × Nanyang Technological University Singapore LevelUP! Structured Mentorship Programme. It ran for four months, and I joined as a mentor. I came away with new perspectives myself.

Experience starts the conversation

The programme created space to share experiences with people preparing to enter the workforce. That is useful on its own. It can make the next step feel less abstract when someone describes the choices, detours and working habits that shaped their own path.

But the useful part was the exchange. New people entering the workforce carry a different view of what is changing, what they need from work, and where old assumptions no longer help. Mentorship has room for that too.

Closing the loop in person

We ended the programme by meeting in person. After four months of conversations, that was a good way to close it: a chance to put faces to the stories and mark the end of a shared stretch of learning.

I joined to offer experience. I left with a clearer reminder to stay curious about the people coming next.