Bespoke Mentor Matching: A case study with real-world examples of employer relations best practices

UBC Okanagan hosts 12000 students in British Columbia that come from across Canada and the world. Situated in Kelowna, a metro region of only around 250,000 people means that’s the University already enjoys strong relationships with all the regions major employers facing limited competition from other Higher Ed institutions

However, only about 30% of our graduates will remain in the region after graduation. How does an ERA professional support students and build relationships with innumerable employers beyond our region?

In 2024 UBCO launched the Global Pathways mentorship program to provide international students more direct connections to professionals within their chosen fields. Unlike most mentorship initiatives, this program did not start with a pool of potential mentors. Instead, this program focuses on building skills for students to develop their own connections and teach them to use the same tactics recruiters use when searching and contacting skilled workers. This translates to “Teaching a student to fish, while giving them the first fish for free”.

By providing students with tailored, rather than generic, mentor matches and providing the skills to replicate that success, it creates a virtuous cycle where ERA professionals can crowdsource connections at otherwise challenging employers. This allows UBCO to engage with a wide geography while ensuring they are aligned with overall student goals.

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