Mentorship Program Pairing Alumni with Students Already Changing Lives

The NC State College of Veterinary Medicine’s pilot mentorship program has been a rousing success, connecting more than 35 current students with 12 alumni mentors for learning, laughing and critical relationship-building.

The brainchild of Amy Merritt, program manager for the college’s Alumni Relations and Career Services, the program divided the eager students into six groups, each with two alumni mentors. With one-on-one mentoring situations often losing steam, Merritt had the idea that a group-based program might be more sustainable and helpful. 

“We thought this structure might give everyone some flexibility,” says Merritt, who received her master’s in clinical mental health counseling from NC State in 2023. “If something unexpected happens with a student’s schedule, there’s still four more students who can show up. If a mentor experiences an emergency, OK, no problem. The co-mentor can still be present for students. As a bonus, mentors have the opportunity to network with one another.”

Having two mentors per group also allows the students to hear more than one veterinary viewpoint.

“I think it has really helped set the program up for success,” says Merritt, who plans to expand the pilot this fall. “If they’re going to talk about cases, students get to benefit from two perspectives based on differing specialties, experiences and training.”

When Merritt surveyed NC State CVM alumni last year to gauge their interest in mentoring veterinary students, she was thrilled when more than 60 veterinarians responded. For the pilot, she concentrated on involving alumni mentors within an hour’s drive of Raleigh, but she expects the geographical boundaries to grow with the program. The groups can decide whether to meet in person, via Zoom or in a hybrid of the two.

Dr. Cindy Stubbs, NC State College of Veterinary Medicine Class of 1995, was excited to help. Stubbs, who was a veterinary radiologist in Atlanta for many years, now owns a farm in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Her mentee group of five first-year veterinary students also is led by Dr. Daniel Carreno, a veterinarian with Smithfield Foods in Johnston County, North Carolina.

“Daniel does production medicine, all swine, which is completely different from everything I’ve done,” Stubbs says. “It gives our students great perspectives on everything, and he and I never would have crossed paths without this program.”

Merritt set up the program with the expectation that each group would meet at least once a month. Stubbs’ group has met for dinner in restaurants and most recently spent time together on her farm.

“The students always have such good questions, and it’s such a mixed group as far as interests,” she says. “We don’t even have to have questions planned. It’s been very natural how conversations have rolled, and how Daniel and I go back and forth has given them different perspectives. It’s been very, very good.”

Dr. Jay Chambers, NC State DVM Class of 1987, spent his veterinary career in general practice in Charlotte and moved to Raleigh when he retired. He immediately contacted Dean Kate Meurs to see how he could contribute to the college, he says.

“That’s what gets me out of bed every day, to have a chance to truly just give back, looking for nothing in return, just to help people put fears aside, encourage them, lift them up,” says Chambers, whose mentor partner is Dr. Caroline Tyndall, who owns West Pine Animal Hospital and Raeford Animal Hospital in North Carolina. “This world is geared the other way, and I have no patience for that.”

Chambers and Tyndall have been meeting with four students, two first-years and two second-years.

“Every one of them has been so positive and energetic,” Chambers says. “I’m so proud of them. Just being with them, getting to know them, understanding some of their challenges and being able to help with those challenges, it’s very rewarding. It’s just been a joy to me to be a part of it.”

Lauren Dyer, Class of 2026, is part of the group.

“Dr. Chambers and Dr. Tyndall have been fantastic mentors so far,” Dyer says. “It is evident that they both care about the well-being of veterinary students, as well as our personal and professional growth. It’s been great hearing about their experiences as veterinarians, what to do and what not to do as recent graduates, and we have even discussed cases together.”

Opportunities for mentorship are always one of the top priorities of veterinary students while they’re in school and also when they’re looking for their first jobs, Merritt says.

“If we look at AVMA survey data, if we look at our senior surveys, mentorship almost always emerges as the most frequently selected factor influencing students’ decisions to accept an offer,” Merritt says. “Salary usually comes after that, and that’s sometimes a surprise to our employers. It’s an important consideration, but new graduates consistently express mentorship as an important value.”

During the pilot program, Merritt says, it has been rewarding to see that all of the participants are benefiting from the bidirectional exchange.

“It’s not only what the students are getting out of it, which, of course, we love and appreciate our alumni donating so much of their time and expertise,” Merritt says. “But I also see that our mentors are enjoying the excitement of hearing about the students’ experiences and what that’s like in 2024. They’re interested in the science and technology, changes to the curriculum and clinical training and how students’ experiences are similar and different to their own time at the CVM.”

In preparing to expand the program, Merritt plans to reach out to the students arriving this fall as the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine Class of 2028 to help set up more students for success even earlier in their educational journeys.

“The hope is that this will benefit students, this will benefit alumni, this will benefit employers,” Merritt says. “So many of the alumni I’ve been lucky enough to talk to recently are thrilled to give back. They are so excited to help bring that next generation of veterinarians into the field. I’m so excited to see where this goes next.”

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