Frequently Asked Questions

Mentoring is the sharing of knowledge, skills and life experience to guide another towards reaching their full potential. A confiding relationship with a trustworthy adult is one of the single best predictors of wellbeing for young people facing adversity.

A mentor can really change the course of a young person's life, and research shows that quality mentoring increases a young person's confidence and self-respect.

Raise delivers youth mentoring in high schools across Australia. A qualified Raise Program Counsellor facilitates a group of mentors and mentees with one-to-one mentoring, followed by a mentor support session.

Mentoring programs run from April to October during school term. Volunteer mentors are required for two hours each week during this time to attend mentoring sessions at their selected school program location.

The first hour comprises some group activity, followed by one-to-one mentoring. The second hour is the mentor support session with mentors and the Program Counsellor.

The day and time each program will run is determined by each school and stays the same for the duration of the program, (eg Epping Boys High runs every Tuesday from 10am-12pm).

You don’t need to be anything other than a great listener with an empathetic nature and a genuine interest in supporting young people.

We provide youth mentor training to ensure you are skilled and ready to mentor.

Our best-practice youth mentor training is offered to volunteers free of charge. 

Training consists of 8 modules of online training, followed by a one-day group mentor training session either online or in person.

Our online modules can be completed at a time that suits you and take up to about 30 minutes each to complete.

Through activities, discussions and role play, group mentor training puts into practice some of what you learned in the online modules and helps prepare you for mentoring. 

Upon completion of training, you will receive our Raise Youth Mentor Training Certificate of Completion and will be ready to begin your mentoring journey.

You will need a printed copy of our ‘Mentor Training Activities’ which can be accessed via the Resources tab in the Raise Digital Village. Simply click on ‘Raise Mentor Training Activities’ and scroll to bottom of the page to download the document.

At the same location you will find our ‘Raise Mentor Handbook’. Please have access to this during the session preferably on another device (tablet/phone) or print it out if you'd like.

Please note: You'll need your Raise Digital Village login details to complete the final assessment quiz at the end of the group training session to become a qualified mentor.

On the day of your virtual group mentor training, please sign into your training 5-10 mins before the session start time so that you can check all is working before we begin.

Please click here to access the ‘Raise Virtual Mentor Training Tips & Tech Checks’ document before your training session. 

This document gives you tips to help you to prepare for, and get the most out of, your Virtual Group Mentor Training session. 
  
If you would like to book a ‘tech check’ with us where you can see if everything is working prior to your training sessions please contact us via training@raise.org.au. 

Alternatively, you can run a check via zoom by clicking on http://zoom.us/test and following the instructions. 

The Raise Digital Village is your portal for everything you need on your journey to become a Raise youth mentor.  

Your login gives you: 

• up to date information and next steps for each stage of your mentor journey
• access to the online Raise youth mentor training modules
• information and links to apply for and upload your Mandatory Checks
• access to book your Raise Virtual Group Mentor Training session
• answers to Frequently Asked Questions

When you submit your online application to mentor with us, you will be asked to select your 3 preferred program locations (schools convenient to you) where you would like to mentor.  
 
We will try to accommodate these preferences as much as possible.  On the rare occasion we cannot accommodate your preferences, we will contact you to discuss an alternative program in the hope you can mentor there.  
 
Mentoring programs are held on the school grounds during school hours. To see where these programs are located, please visit https://raise.org.au/school-program-locations.

Each week you will meet at the school along with the other mentors and the Raise Program Counsellor.  Our aim is to fill each program with 15 mentors so we can invite 15 young people to attend.

The first week of the program begins with a session called 'Mentor Orientation' — this is where you meet the other mentors in the program and the Program Counsellor. 

The second week is called 'Jitters' where you meet the young people for the first time, take part in fun activities and ‘get to know you' games. This helps the mentees and Program Counsellor match everyone with a mentor. 

From then on, the first hour of mentoring will be your one-to-one session with your mentee followed by morning/afternoon tea as a group. Once the young people head off, you stay with the other mentors for a mentor support session with your Program Counsellor.

The Raise Youth Mentoring Program is structured with weekly topics designed to provide the skills and knowledge to help empower young people to build resilience and confidence to better cope with challenges and feel more hopeful for the future.

These topics are set out in the Mentee Handbook and each week the Program Counsellor explains the topic, its purpose and benefit. A group activity followed by a one-to-one activity from the workbook helps apply the concepts and make them relevant and actionable for the young person.

The Program Counsellor emails a short overview of each week’s topic for mentors to review prior to the next week’s session. No additional pre-work is required.

As with in-person mentoring, you will meet each week with the other mentors and the Raise Program Counsellor, however, it will be online using an agreed platform (Zoom). Our aim is to fill each online program with 12 mentors so we can invite 12 young people to attend.

The first week of the program begins with a session called 'Mentor Orientation' and this is where you meet the other mentors in the program and the Program Counsellor. 

The second week is called 'Jitters' where you meet the young people for the first time, take part in fun activities and ‘get to know you’ games. This helps the mentees and Program Counsellor match everyone with a mentor. 

From then on, the first hour of mentoring will be your one-to-one session with your mentee and once the young people head back to class, you stay online with the other mentors for a mentor support session with your Program Counsellor.

All programs are facilitated each week by a qualified Program Counsellor from Raise. Your Program Counsellor is there to provide ongoing support and encouragement throughout the program.

The mentor support session is your opportunity to 'debrief' with the other mentors and the Program Counsellor. Mentor support takes place on the school grounds and provides you with an opportunity to ask for extra support and information. 

There is also the opportunity to have a one-to-one talk with your Program Counsellor. Your wellbeing is important to us, so your Program Counsellor is there for you to talk through any worries or concerns you may have so that at the end of each session, you don't take these concerns home with you.

Programs are mentee-focused which means that you'll be there to assist your mentee with whatever area they are looking for help and support in. 

Young people are facing a variety of challenges. During online training and group mentor training, you will learn more about this and become equipped to discuss most issues. 

Your Program Counsellor will always be there during your one-to-one session with your mentee, so if you do come across any difficult topics, they can support you both. 

We work closely with the school’s wellbeing team to ensure the young people in our school programs are carefully selected.

These young people are invited to participate in the program by the school’s wellbeing team and they opt in if they'd like to be part of the program.

They also obtain parent/carer consent. So, the good news is they have chosen to participate and want to be in the program.

Parents or guardians of a young person who has been invited by their school to participate in the program are asked to review and sign a Parental consent form confirming their approval for their child to participate in the program.

We encourage you to mentor in a school where you are unlikely to know any of the students.

We want our mentees to feel as comfortable as possible in the mentoring environment - if they recognise a mentor, it has the potential to impact their experience. 

It would be worth picking another school in your area if there is a chance you might know a young person at your preferred school.

Time out is really important. If you’re planning a holiday, you can still mentor providing the dates don’t clash with the program dates and you miss no more than 2 sessions. 

We don’t run the programs during school holidays which is when our mentee and mentors have the opportunity to enjoy a break.

We know how important the mentoring relationship is to both the young person and you, so we strongly encourage full commitment for the duration of the program. 

We also understand that life happens and there may be instances where you are unable to make it to a mentoring session. In these instances, just notify your Program Counsellor.

The more notice you can give the better. Please note, if you have known absences of 3 or more sessions during the program, we won’t be able to match you with a young person. 

Our current mentoring programs run during school hours in term time.

Many of our mentors work full time. We would encourage you to speak with your employer to see if they would support you to take the time out to give back to your community.

Mentors who volunteer with us through their organisations report a range of benefits:

• 98% felt a sense of pride in their employer for partnering with Raise

• 85% said they were able to apply mentoring skills in the workplace — this includes listening and communication skills, empathy and increased mental health awareness

• 78% reported improved leadership skills as a result of mentoring

The Volunteer Engagement Team can provide you with a letter of support, discuss options and even speak to your employer. Simply contact us and we'll send you a personalised copy of this letter.

We finish our programs with a celebration and a graduation ceremony. 

This is when you can share some kind words with your mentee and say your final goodbyes. The mentoring relationships end once the programs are finished.

Many of our mentors continue with us and go on to mentor in following years.

Please let us know as soon as you realise you can’t commit to starting the program. You can tell us by emailing mentor@raise.org.au.

We would still love for you to stay in our village. If you’re interested in hearing more about other volunteering opportunities with Raise, please contact people@raise.org.au.

If you are keen to mentor but have known absences of three or more sessions, we encourage you to sign up as a relief mentor.

You go through the same training and steps as a matched mentor, but you are in the program as a relief mentor to fill in on an ad-hoc basis when required.

If you’re a previous applicant wanting to return to complete your training to mentor, please log in at raise.org.au.

Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions. Just Contact Us and a member from our Volunteer Engagement Team will get back to you soon.

Visit the Raise Digital Village login and follow these steps to reset your password:

• Click 'Forgot Your Password?' - this will open a new page which asks you to enter the email address associated with your profile.
• Enter your email address and click 'Send Password Reset Email' — you will be sent a time-stamped email with details of how to reset your password.
• In the new email you receive make sure the email you open is the most recent email you received by checking the timestamp (date and time) in the Subject Heading.
• Click on the link and you will be redirected to create a password.
• You should now be logged in.

When applying as a student mentor, there are two options to choose from; a 'student mentor' or a 'student placement mentor'.

As a student mentor, you can be studying in any field, however you must be 21 years or over when programs commence in April.

Students studying in a relevant field can be 20 years old or over when programs commence in April (see below for further information).

For more information, please Contact Us and a member of our Volunteer Engagement Team will get back to you soon.

We would encourage you to speak with your educational provider and placement coordinator to see if the role is a suitable placement opportunity.

We have many students complete placement hours with us through volunteer mentoring. Students studying in a relevant field can be 20 years old or over when programs commence in April.

Relevant fields include students currently undertaking studies in Psychology, Counselling, Social Science (Psychology), Social Work, Criminology & Psychology.

For more information, please Contact Us and a member from our Volunteer Engagement Team will get back to you soon.

If you are studying in a relevant field (for example, Psychology, Counselling, Social Science (Psychology), Social Work, Criminology & Psychology) but your education provider is not on the list when you apply, please enter your provider's name in the space provided.

If we have an agreement with them to provide placement, we will let you know. Alternatively, speak to your educational institution’s advice counsellor to see if Raise would be a good fit for a placement opportunity.

We are always happy to hear from potential placement partners.

Yes! If you’re not studying in a relevant field, you are still able to mentor a young person as a student.

When completing your application to mentor, just select your mentor type as 'Student - Engaged in Study not looking for placement'.

Please note that you need to be 21 years or older when programs commence in April.

We would love to chat with you about having you and your colleagues mentor with Raise.

Please contact Rachel Zandberg, our Volunteer Engagement Manager, for further information on partnering with Raise.

Raise Foundation is a youth safe organisation. This means we adhere to strict guidelines around the safety and wellbeing of the young people in our programs and the volunteer mentors.

Every volunteer and staff member with Raise is required to have current Mandatory Checks. These checks are a valid Working with Children Check and a Police Check.

To get a Working with Children Check (WWCC), simply log in to the Raise Digital Village and navigate to the Mandatory Checks menu at the top of the page.

From there, click on the blue link under Don’t have your checks yet? for information and how to apply for your checks. You will need to select the state that you live in as each state has different processes.

Mentors living in border towns will need to apply for a WWCC from the state they will be mentoring in.

Please note that Police Checks when using our partner organisation CrimCheck are $23.10. WWCC or WWVP checks are free for volunteers NSW, QLD, SA, VIC and ACT. The cost in WA is $11 and in TAS $22.44.

Note: For WA mentors, the process for gaining a police check is different, you must have a NCCHC provided by the Depart of Education WA. Our Engagement Team will provide you with directions for how to apply for this.

Getting your Police Check is a quick online process and usually only takes 1-2 working days to come through. If you have the same name as someone else, or your police history has changed, this will increase the time to 10+ working days.

The cost to get a Police Check is $23.10 through CrimCheck.

To get your Police Check, log in to the Raise Digital Village and navigate to the Mandatory Checks menu at the top of the page. From there, click on the blue link under Don’t have your checks yet? to apply for your Police Check.

Once completed, your Police Check will be emailed to the address you provided. Please download your Police Check and save it as a PDF document and upload it under the Mandatory Checks tab in the Raise Digital Village for verification. Verification takes 24-72 hours.

No, we accept Police Checks from other accredited agencies as long as the check:

• is provided by an Australian agency
• covers supervised access to children and/or vulnerable people
• is no more than 2 years old
• includes the following personal information:
  • full name and any other previous names
  • date of birth
  • residential address
  • the date of issue/record date
  • the outcome/result of the police check

Note: For WA mentors, the process for gaining a police check is different, you must have a NCCHC provided by the Depart of Education WA. Our Engagement Team will provide you with directions for how to apply for this.

All mentoring is under supervised access and a qualified Program Counsellor is in the area/visible at all times.

All you need to do is provide us with the checks you have – as long as they are still valid.

If you have a WWCC that is due to expire during the mentoring period, we will prompt you to renew it well in advance.

If you have provided us with an existing Police Check, it needs to cover supervised access to children and/or vulnerable people and be no more than 2 years old.

To provide your Mandatory Checks, please log in to the Raise Digital Village and navigate to the Mandatory Checks menu at the top of the page. From here, just follow the links to upload your checks.

Just log in to the Raise Digital Hub and navigate to the Mandatory Checks menu at the top of the page.

From here, just click the orange Next button and follow the prompts to upload your checks.

You will need to have your WWCC number and expiry date information and a PDF copy of your Police Check to upload.

Mandatory reporting is in place to keep young people safe. It is required whenever a child or young person is at risk of significant harm. This means the circumstances that are causing concern for the safety, wellbeing of the child or young person are present to a significant extent.

Raise Foundation Program Counsellors are mandatory reporters for any mentees who disclose that they or someone they know is at risk of significant harm.

Raise Foundation has a clearly defined process in place to manage mandatory reporting.

This process, the steps involved and mentor obligations are included in the Raise youth mentor training.

Now, more than ever, young Australians need trusted adult mentors to guide them through these challenging times.

The safety and wellbeing of the young people in our programs, the school staff, our volunteer mentors and our staff continues to be Raise Foundation’s top priority.

For more information on our COVID response and its impact on mentoring, please see the Raise COVID-19 Policy.

There were several mentor program delivery options developed in response to COVID-19, however, how the program is delivered is set by each school.

In programs that opt for virtual mentoring, it will continue to be run during school hours and term times.

Please click here for current program locations, days and times.