Stephanie, a single-parent mother of two children and student at Camosun College in Victoria, is currently matched under the program with Adaline, a counsellor and art therapist. As a result of Adaline's guidance and advice, Stephanie has an increased awareness of the opportunities that exist. Her career goal is to become a social worker, however, at this point, she is examining all of the career possibilities in that field, in light of her interests.

"It is exciting to know that there are resources available to us, we don't have to go along in the dark. As a result of my contact with Adaline, I realize that there are so many avenues that I can take to achieve my goals. Adaline has introduced me to other people and I have established a very good support network to draw, upon when pursuing my personal career goals. It is a valuable program."

During the course of their six-month mentorship, mentorees may be introduced to other professional women in a similar field, taken along to association meetings or introduced to their mentors' workplaces, among other activities.

Preliminary guidelines for the British Columbia Mentorship Program were developed and implemented through the cooperative efforts of Lisa Harney, Women's Programs, Province of British Columbia; Cobina Herrington, Wendy Nielson and Dawn MacDonald representing the Status of Women Committee, Zonta Club. Upon completion of the proposal, representatives from School District 61, including high school counsellors, and Camosun College assisted in the promotion of the program within the community.

The pilot project commenced in May 1985 for an eight-month period, concluding in January 1986. Although the program is for women of all ages and from all backgrounds, the pilot project was targeted to young women in grades 11 and 12. After the initial matches were completed, the pilot project was expanded to include women re-entering post-secondary institutions and the work force. The pilot was limited to thirty matches, involving a total of sixty participants. The goal was exceeded and there are thirty-two matched pairs in the pilot project. The career areas of the matched women range from nursing and physiotherapy to pharmacy and aviation.

Matches are made on the basis of occupation and specialty, as indicated on the mentor and mentored applications. Application forms are submitted to Women's Programs by potential mentors and mentored, which identify three occupational choices. Each mentorship is six months in duration, however, at the end of this period, the women will have options for further participation in the program.

Some women are reassessing their career goals and are pursuing careers other than those originally selected, which indicates that the program is achieving its objective of encouraging women to pursue occupations of their choice. The majority of the mentored are still seeking information and advice on the careers chosen upon commencement in the program.

Mentoring is of value to women who may be considering entry into new careers, contemplating career changes or preparing for upward mobility in a current career. It is our hope that the British Columbia Mentorship Program will eventually become a model for a nation-wide program sponsored by Provincial Status of Women departments across Canada, to be implemented in cooperation with women's organizations, professional associations, school districts, colleges and universities and community groups.

The purpose of a formalized program is to raise the awareness of women with respect to the value of mentoring in career planning and to encourage mentoring to become a very natural process, a way of life. Eventually, women will not need a formal program, they will be able to identify and select their own mentors to assist them in achieving their career and even personal goals, and to establish personal networks to draw upon for support and advice.