The PR Net is pleased to announce the 2023 edition of the BIPOC Mentorship Program, a mentorship and career development program led by industry founders and senior executives, to advance BIPOC students and recent graduates in the field of marketing and communications.
Now open for applications, the program will offer invaluable mentoring and coaching by leaders in various practice areas, with a view for program participants to gain practical skills to aid their careers and secure paid employment upon completion. The mentors will leverage their connections and make introductions for job positions following the course.
With the third round commencing in June 2023, it is an 8-week program, with one to two-hour-long weekly sessions between mentors and their mentees. The syllabus will cover topics that prepare mentees for entering the workforce, educate them on current industry conditions and best practices, offer assignments and practical work experience, and provide a real-world, empirical understanding of how to break into and progress in the industry.
Participants can select from their preferred specialty areas and will be matched with a suitable mentor. These include a variety of sectors within marketing and communications, such as fashion, beauty, wine and spirits, architecture and design, corporate communications, event planning, and experiential marketing, among others.
Applicants must identify as BIPOC and should ideally have either recently graduated (up to 2 years out), or be undertaking their final two years of college or university studies in a field relating to marketing and/or communications. They may also have equivalent work experience in the field.
Applications for 2023 are now closed.
Who are the mentors?
Mentors for the 2023 PR Net BIPOC Mentorship Program include marketing and communications leaders from a diverse range of sectors such as fashion, beauty, wine and spirits, architecture and design, corporate communications, and experiential marketing, among others. This year's cohort consists of:
Celia Jones - Chief Marketing Officer - FINN Partners
Olita Mills - President - LaForce
Steven Wilson - Co-Founder, Co-President - Scenario PR
Daphne Barahona - Vice President & DEI Specialist - Sling & Stone
Melissa Duren Conner - Partner - JBC
Deidrea Miller - Head of Communications for Christie's Americas - Christie's
Philip V. Ramirez - Managing Partner Real Estate - Optimist Consulting
Richard McLeod - SVP, Brand - Canada Goose
Priyesh Shah - Executive Director - Exposure
