Does IET Mentoring Cover Broader Technical and Career Development?

Hi Gareth,

No, unfortunately (unless someone from the IET mentoring service says otherwise!) IET mentoring is strictly only focused on professional registration.

This is why I resigned as an IET mentor! The explanation we were given a few years ago (at the point where I resigned) was that it would conflict with the IET's charitable status if we gave wider advice. Very frustrating.

It's a really good question to ask, some companies have in house mentoring but many don't. And of course in house mentoring can only focus on development within that company, whereas particularly (but not only) for people early career it would be really useful to have completely impartial mentoring advice available. Of all the professions I feel it's particularly important in engineering, as it's probably the profession with the least structured career entry of any - you finish university / college and then it's just up to you to make your own way. 

It'll be clear from this that I wish the IET did offer such a service...there's a huge need for it, and to me it feels like it should be a core part of our remit.

Good luck, keep asking around, and also keep taking advice from any engineers you meet who are happy to give it. Don't believe all of it though, or more accurately don't feel it all necessarily applies to you, there are many many paths through the world of engineering and the challenge is to find the one that suits you. Some people want loads of money, some want deep technical challenges, some want to be important (or be seen to be important!), some want lots of travel, some want a steady job where they can clock off at 5:00 each night and forget about the day job. I'd definitely suggest that every time you meet an engineer doing a job where you think "that's where I'd like to be in X years time" try to find out from them how they got there. 

Cheers,

Andy

HI Gareth,

The IET Mentoring service does currently focus on professional registration with the engineering council and as Andy has said, it would be outside of our charitable remit to provide Careers Advice.  There is a networking opportunity here within the Engineering Communities if you have specific questions but we don't offer one to one personal mentoring or business mentoring.

Regards

Kathryn 

Indirectly, the IET does cover some aspects. The IET provides this website and events where anyone (not just members) can network with others and have the opportunity of sharing information. Although that isn't a formal mentoring or coaching relationship, it is a way of getting advice and guidance assuming you are asking something that people are willing to share.

I have seen some helpful answers posted up on here to others queries and I'm sure there are discussions that head into private communications.