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Get a mentor

Arts Emergency provides 16-18 year olds with free mentoring, advice and opportunities to help you pursue a career you’re passionate about. Applications to get a mentor are now closed until September 2024.

Applications to get a mentor are now closed until September 2024. Subscribe to our Round Up Newsletter to be the first to hear when applications are open.

Let Elisha and some of our 2022 mentees tell you all about having a mentor, or scroll down to read about it instead.

Video edited by Lilla Nyeki

What does being a mentee look like?

As a mentee with Arts Emergency, you will get a year of 1:1 support from a trained mentor who works within the creative industries. We will match you with a mentor based on your interests and the career you may be hoping to go into in the future. You will also be able to meet industry contacts and have the opportunity to gain experience in the workplace. Our mentors can support you with guidance, career insight, higher education and networking.

You can find out more information on mentoring on our FAQ page.

Who can apply?

Applications to get a mentor is now closed.

The programme is available to young people living in London, Brighton, Greater Manchester or Merseyside who are preparing to take their first steps out of compulsory education and thinking about a future in the creative or cultural industries.

After completing a year of mentoring, mentees get access to professional networking and development opportunities until their 26th birthday.

We try to work with young people who most need the support of an Arts Emergency mentor, and therefore every mentee must meet at least one of the criteria below:

  • Your parents or carers haven't studied at university in the UK or abroad
  • You are or have been eligible for free school meals
  • You are currently in receipt of the government's 16-19 bursary
  • You would describe yourself as Black, Asian or from an ethnic minority background
  • You consider yourself to be disabled
  • You consider yourself to have a learning disability or special education need
  • The postcode of the home address at which you spent the most time between the ages of 0 and 18 was an area of deprivation*

*For example if you lived at five addresses before you turned 18, we'll use the one you spent the most time at to check your eligibility against this criteria

If you are not sure about your eligibility for the mentoring programme and would like to talk to a member of the team please get in touch.

Applications to get a mentor are now closed until September 2024. Sign up here to receive our Round Up Newsletter to be the first to hear when applications are open.

Highlights from the Mentoring Celebration 2023. Filmed at edited by Ayah Khan