Females Leading Aggies as Mentors in Engineering is a mentorship program within the Society of Women Engineers that matches female engineering majors with female professionals who have careers in the fields in which they study.
The program, which was started in January 1998 to enrich students by providing mentorship, has about 80 students and 28 mentors.
Ishita Mandhan, SWE president, said speaking with another woman who has been through similar experiences is extremely beneficial.
“They’ve gone through the same things that we’re going through in college right now,” Mandhan said. “They’ve had the same questions, they’ve gone through the whole getting used to the workplace. They’ve gone through that transition process that we’re going through right now. I think a lot of people also get answers to a lot of the industry-specific questions that they might have.”
While many of the mentors are engineers, Mandhan said students get paired with someone who holds a career they are interested in — even if it’s outside engineering.
“I was actually a pre-med engineering student, and I had a lot of questions on my mind, and one of my mentors was someone who was currently a doctor but was also a biomedical engineer,” Mandhan said. “She gave me a lot of really good advice, and I think that was one of the most fruitful experiences from the the program.”
From casual days to luncheons, members are encouraged to keep in contact with mentors to build both personal and professional relationships. Scheduled luncheons are held twice a semester, one in Houston and the other in College Station.
Mordi said the luncheons are an opportunity for students to interact with mentors other than their own.
“The luncheons are an opportunity for students to meet other mentors, as well as other students and it is a great networking opportunity,” Mordi said.
FLAME mentor Alison Weber said she enjoys the program because it allows her to work on her own skills as well as give advice to others.
“I enjoy being a mentor because it’s a great opportunity to improve upon my own mentoring skills and also enables students and myself to network and make connections that you’ll have through your entire career after you graduate from college,” Weber said.
Mordi said the FLAME mentor pool is growing through A&M graduates and personal contacts. She said FLAME always looks for new mentors to join the program, and said anyone who is interested should reach out.
Mordi said FLAME helps realize SWE’s goal of supporting the career aspirations of women in engineering by allowing them to interact with women who have similar academic and personal goals. Mordi said the unique perspective and professional connection the mentors offer helps members become successful in school and career.