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Frequently asked questions
Students FAQ
What is the difference between a coach and a mentor?
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Mentoring is a long-term process based on mutual trust and respect. Coaching, on the other hand, is for a short period of time. Mentoring is more focused on creating an informal association between the mentor and mentee, whereas coaching follows a more structured and formal approach. Coaching is to meet a more immediate need. The goal of this coaching program is to help you in the short-term with questions/guidance with transitions into the workforce or with internships, graduate school or exploring a career interest for example.
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How do I select my coach?
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First, you go to the Instant Coach website. Then, you will find multiple coaches. As you go through the page, you will find their fields on their main profile. Once you find your field of interest, place your cursor on their profile and you will find a more detailed description of their professional biographies. When you identify the coach you would like to work with, feel free to schedule an appointment on their youcanbook.me account.
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How do I make an appointment?
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You go to the Instant Coach website, find the mentor you want to meet with, put the cursor over their profile and click on the top link which will lead you to their you can book me account.
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How can I use this program to my benefit?
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First, set goals: why is this coach the best to help you advance your career goals? What is it specifically about them that will help you grow? After you answer these questions, create a short list of different goals that you have, and begin thinking about your way to get there. Then, think about different questions that you might have about the path towards these goals, and how can the coaches help you answer them (it could be with their specific experience in the field, with their experience as a Latina, or in your conversation, find out different qualities or obstacles that you both might share). Then, when you have chosen your coach, schedule a time to talk to them. Send them an email introducing yourself, tell them what your career interests are, and let them know why you are interested in setting up a call or meeting with them.
If you are enjoying this conversation, try setting up a plan where your coach can help you achieve some short term goals that can prepare you for your bigger goal. That way, you will continue the interaction and hopefully build a relationship with your coach.
Follow-up email: thank your coach for their time, and if you had a productive meeting, try scheduling another time to meet or talk to continue learning more about different opportunities and how to continue to prepare for those.
Recommended video: 10 Ways to Have a Better Conversation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1vskiVDwl4
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What if my coach does not answer my emails?
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If you cannot contact your coach, please contact HOPE’s Youth Programs Director Diana Amaya at damaya@latinas.org. Another option is to find another coach that could also help you reach your goals.
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Can I have more than one coach?
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Yes. Instant Coach is a coaching program that allows people to contact different coaches. The mission of this program is to allow students to explore different careers and prepare you to achieve your professional goals. Thus, there are multiple coaches with different experiences that will benefit you best if you understand each of their perspectives about their path.
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What are the max/min amount of hours I can meet with my coach?
HOPE facilitates the interaction, it will be up to you and your coach to determine how much time you need to accomplish your goal.
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What kind of topics are open for discussion/can I get help on?
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This is a professional coaching program, you may ask questions and guidance about your career, academic journey how to integrate your culture into your careers. We advise you keep your relationship professional unless you mutually decide with your couch to continue your relationship past your one interaction.
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What methods of communication or contact can I have with my coach?
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We recommend that you confirm your appointment via email and that your coordinate method of communication with your coach.
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If I’m meeting my coach in person, how should I dress?
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It depends on the reason you and your coach are meeting. However, it is highly encouraged that you wear business casual clothes if you are having a casual meet. If you are doing a mock interview, you should dress as you would for an interview.
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How can I prepare for my call with my coach?
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You should do some research on your coach so you can have questions prepared about their path, or anything that you are interested in about their experience. If you want help on a specific subject but do not know what to ask, you can search for frequently asked questions on the subject and base your questions off of that.
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What if I don’t like my coach?
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Because this is a one-time coaching experience, if you did not find the answer you were looking for you can contact another coach to help you answer your questions. You can ask a specific coach a question, thank them for their help, and look for other coaches in our pool. However, if you want to have a coach as a mentor, it is the mentee’s job to work on building that relationship.
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COACH FAQ
Where do I find the check-in Survey for after the meeting?
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You will find the check in Survey at Latinas.org page (link it here too)
What if I already have a youcanbook.me account?
It depends on the ideal times you would like students to contact you. If you already have a youcanbook.me account, but you do not want to assign all of that time for students to contact you, we can create another one for you specifically for this program.
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Is this a long-term commitment?
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The commitment for our pilot program is through September, as we test the efficiency of the program. After that, you can choose to continue being a coach, or you may choose to opt out. If at some point between now and September you can no longer commit, please contact Diana (include email)
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Where will my biography be published?
You biography and information will be published in the HCLP Instant Coach webpage. The webpage will be password protected and only students who are part of this program will have access to this information.
How will the students be assigned?
Students will have the option to see the different coaches who are available to help them achieve their goals. After they have read the coaches information, they will choose to contact the professionals with the expertise that they are looking for. They can choose one, or multiple coaches. Therefore, the students will contact you with specific questions, and you may have one, or multiple students that you are working with.
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Will I see the pool of students?
Students short bios will be posted on the webpage if you are interested in accessing them.
What if my student misses the appointment?
Feel free to follow up with them and please fill out the survey for HOPE staff to adequately track program usage.
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What if the student is inappropriate?
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Please contact Diana Amaya, Director of Programs, to her email damaya@latinas.org or her phone number (213) 595-2489.
How can I help my students?
Even though this is a coaching program, there are multiple articles explaining the best ways to be a mentor. In order to prepare our coaches, we could send them these articles about how they can better engage with the students, for them to feel prepared to interact with students and better equip them for this program. Recommended Article: How to Be an Amazing Mentor: 12 Ways to Make a Positive Impact on Others” https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/mentor-tips-positive-impact
After being contacted by your student, you can maybe ask them what their career interests are, and what are some short term and long term goals. Before you have your call or meet, you can make a list of things that you would have liked to know to prepare to get where you are now, different challenges that were presented to you, and how did you overcome these challenges. After this, you can work with your student to set different goals to learn how you can best assist them in this process.