Announcement
The International Rescue Committee in Elizabeth offers a professional mentorship program to refugees, asylees and other humanitarian entrants. The program pairs clients with professional volunteer mentors in the community to receive valuable advice and attend networking opportunities while searching for jobs in their field in the US.
Hulms, an IRC client in New Jersey, has been working with Teri, her volunteer professional mentor, since January of 2018. Hulms and Teri shared their experience in the mentoring program and reflect on their time together, in an interview that has been edited for length and clarity.
What made you decide to participate in the IRC mentoring program?
Hulms: I wanted someone to help me, to guide me for decisions for school, for work, for everything that I wanted to do in the future. Because when I came here, I was a little bit lost. Even if I made a lot of research online, there are still a little bit of things that I did not catch. So I always wanted somebody to tell me, to advise me about what I am supposed to do.
Teri: I wanted to participate to be able to provide advice on how to make your goals happen. Just basic things: contacting universities, finding out about deadlines for applications. I just wanted to be able to help as a native speaker. Things like real world advice on education and jobs, drawing on my own background to provide guidance.
Hulms and her mentor, Teri, meet together at the IRC in Elizabeth.
Photo: Claire Balani
What have been some of the most interesting things you’ve learned during this mentoring relationship?
Hulms: I can say everything that I learned was important or was interesting for me. Especially with the person who taught me things. Teri was a really, really good mentor for me. So every advice that she gave me about school, about work, about every other basic thing that I have to do, was really interesting for me.
Teri: I would say just how motivated Hulms is. And how much of a self-starter you are. You have two jobs that you found in less than a month. To be able to tackle applications to first Rutgers and then the two community colleges, and the financial aid applications, and bringing in forms, and ask questions from me when you needed it. On top of working full-time, it’s been very impressive.
I think it’s interesting that you were just saying today that ‘When you come from my country, you need to really work hard to get somewhere,’ and you’ve brought that with you here. I think that’s what made you find success so far, and I think that’s just going to continue.
What advice would you give to future participants in the mentorship program?
Hulms: This program will always require to have both people to get really involved. Because if only one of you is doing everything, and the other person is not really interested, it’s not going to go too far. But when you want something, you fight for it. And the other person who is helping you will have some encouragement to do better. So that’s why I will encourage future participants to work with the mentor, and not let only the mentor do everything.
Teri: I would second that. I think staying in close contact is important. If you are unable to meet in person, which in this mentorship, we really weren’t past January. Because of her work schedule, we weren’t meeting in person. Ultimately it didn’t really matter because we emailed and texted regularly. You knew you could reach out, and I knew that if I reached out to you, I can get in touch within 24 hours. That’s very important.
Is there anything else that you’d like to share?
Hulms: My experience with Teri was one of the best experience that I ever had. Because when I came here, I asked God to give me someone to guide me in my decisions for school, for work. It’s not something that I’m willing to do myself. But I knew if I was doing it alone, I would make a lot of mistakes. But with Teri, I can say I’m not too far from my success. And I believe that by next year, I will be in a new power of my life. Here I can realize what I was struggling for.
Teri: I think you’ve done more. You’re giving me way too much credit. But I think part of it is when you know you have somebody to ask, that goes a long way. I feel like you did most of the work on your own, knowing that you could send something to me and have me look at it, like a confusing link for the university. It’s comforting. But I appreciate that you know you can reach out somebody. It gives you confidence, and a good feeling. I’m happy to continue that support. I’m very proud.
If you’d like to support hardworking clients like Hulms, please click here to donate.
If you’d like to mentor like Teri, please click here. The IRC in Elizabeth is currently seeking mentors in education, healthcare & life sciences, engineering, vocational skills, finance, technology, retail, hospitality, tourism, transportation, logistics and distribution. Contact [email protected] for more information.