1. The mentorship experience will begin in your second semester in the program.  It will last a minimum of 10 days (80 hours), divided into two sessions. (We try to accommodate the needs of students.  However, we cannot guarantee a specific site.)
2. The first segment of the mentorship experience must be a minimum of 5 consecutive days onsite at a FIRST YEARS mentoring site.  Participants cannot use their place of employment as a mentorship site.  It is an important facet of learning for the student to observe and participate in a program that provides a model different from the one in which they participate every day.  The student is responsible for all expenses incurred for participation in the mentorship experience.  The student, in coordination with the mentoring site, must arrange housing and transportation.
3. The second mentorship segment for the remaining 5 days can be completed in these ways: 
• The mentor can observe the program participant in his/her work setting.
• The program participant may return to the mentor’s site.
• A combination of both of the above (to be decided by the mentor and student partcipant).
4. To create a record of competency development across the course of the program, the participant must provide 3 videotapes of intervention sessions: the first, submitted following admission; the second, submitted after the the first week of mentored experience; and the third during the last course.   The objectives of requiring three videotapes include:
1. obtaining a baseline record of intervention skills;
2. evaluating changes in intervention over time;
3. providing written feedback and suggestions; and
4. ensuring that skills reflect FIRST YEARS minimal competencies upon completion of the certificate.

• Mentorship:  Getting Started
• Video Tape Information
• Release Form
• Competencies Checklist (Word document)

To learn more about the student's mentorship requirements, see Participating in the Mentorship Experience.

If your school or center is interested in hosting one or more students during their mentorship experience, please fill out this form below and return it to Kathryn Wilson, Project Director, either by mail or as an email attachment.

Mentorship Site Application (Word, 300KB)
^{The application is designed to be completed online using Word.} 

Kathryn Wilson, M.A., CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert. AVT
Program Director, FIRST YEARS
CB #7190
Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Email: kathryn_wilson@med.unc.edu
Phone: (919)966-0103
Fax: (919)966-0100