Volunteer

I’ve just signed up with a volunteer agency to mentor technical students on career choices. Funny how it all came together just yesterday. I met up with an ex-colleague to pass her some TCM cough medication since she’s been dealing with a lingering post-flu cough. It had been a while since we last caught up, and at some point, I mentioned how challenging it has been to clock my coaching hours. That’s when she asked if I’d be keen to mentor technical students on career choices and job hunting.

You know, there’s a certain level of social stigma around ITE students and graduates. They’re generally seen as less academically inclined and often come from tough family backgrounds. People are also quick to associate gang activities and petty crimes in news reports to ITE students or graduates - many times, unfairly and without evidence. That said, I found the idea of mentoring them pretty interesting. Career coaching is something I’m good at, and if I can help these students find their footing in the job market, why not? Plus, it’s a great way to clock my coaching hours while sharpening my skills at the same time. So, I agreed to explore it further with the programme coordinator.

Had a really interesting chat with the programme coordinator last evening. From the details shared, the programme reminds me a lot of my volunteer work with SG Enable a few years back. This time, I’ll be working with technical students who have recently graduated or will be graduating from ITE soon. One of my key questions for the coordinator was whether the students actually wanted to be part of the programme or if they were just forced into it. I was relieved when she said they signed up voluntarily. That says a lot about their motivation - they know this is good for them and want to be part of it. So, the challenges I’ll likely face will be more on the surface, like playfulness or communication struggles, rather than deeper issues like unwillingness to engage. 

Looking forward to seeing how this goes!