1 in 2 youth who faced barriers accessing a mentor say it’s because it’s hard to access one and they don’t know where to start. And this was true for them earlier in life…
According to Mapping the Gap Report from Mentor Canada, 54% of youth can recall a time during their childhood or adolescence when they wished they had a mentor but did not have access to one.
Youth who faced at least one risk factor (i.e. family interaction with the law, school troubles or economic disadvantage) growing up were 2x as likely to recall a time when they wanted a mentor but did not have one, compared to youth who did not face any risk factors.
Young adults who had access to mentoring while growing up were 53% more likely to report positive outcomes related to their mental health than non-mentored youth.
Youth were 2x more likely to report a very or somewhat strong sense of belonging to their local community compared to their non-mentored youth.
Young people who had access to formal mentors were almost 3x more likely to report good or excellent mental health than their peers who only had access to informal mentors.
71% of young impact leaders said having a mentor has been successful for them presently or in the past.
Youth of all backgrounds can benefit greatly from having a mentor. However, special consideration is required to properly address the unique needs of changemakers belonging to under-supported groups.
For 2SLGBTQ+ youth, mentors can play an important role in reducing the physical, emotional, and mental harm associated with stigma and bias, bullying, family rejection, and homelessness.
2SLGBTQ+ youth who were mentored growing up said that it greatly helped their mental health, education, and employment when compared to their peers who were not mentored. However…
More than 50% of sexual minority youth and transgender youth faced barriers to accessing mentors during their adolescence compared to approximately 38% of all respondents.
of sexual minority youth and 74% of transgender youth recalled a time between the ages of 6 to 18 when they wished for a mentor but didn’t have one compared to 54% of all youth.
Black youth who had a mentor during their adolescence reported that their most meaningful mentor had a significant influence on several areas linked to their mental health and resilience:
reported that their mentors influenced their confidence in their abilities.
their hope and optimism for the future.
their sense of pride and self-esteem.
66% of mentored Black youth reported somewhat strong or strong sense of belonging to the local community compared to 56% of non-mentored Black youth.
Many Indigenous youth develop informal, natural mentoring relationships with adults in their environments. They are also more likely than non-Indigenous youth to be mentored.
of mentored Indigenous youth reported having a somewhat strong or strong sense of belonging to their local community compared to 46% of non-mentored Indigenous youth and 56% of all mentored youth.
of mentored Indigenous youth reported that their most meaningful mentoring relationship during their teen years focused on providing them with academic support.
of mentored Indigenous youth reported that their most meaningful mentor had a significant influence on their interest in staying in school.
reported that their mentor’s influence pushed them to get involved in school activities.
Some interview participants indicated that relationships with mentors who share their Indigenous background can play an important role to promote reconciliation and the revitalization of Indigenous ways of life. However, interview participants cautioned against assuming that Indigenous children and youth want or need an Indigenous mentor simply because of their background. They noted that cross-cultural mentoring relationships can also be important.
Mentoring relationships can play an important role offsetting some of the adverse life circumstances children and youth experiencing disabilities face in Canada.
of youth with a disability faced barriers to accessing mentors during their adolescence compared to 38% of all youth.
Not knowing how to find a mentor
Not understanding what mentoring was or the value of having a mentor
Not having access to a mentoring program
Mentorship has been proven to improve youth’s mental health and helps them achieve personal and professional growth. In the social impact space, people are focused on helping others so sometimes they forget to help themselves.
By closing the mentorship gap, we can build future generations of healthy social impact changemakers that can maximize their impact on others.
“You don’t need to be the ‘end result’ as a role model - you can be someone in the midst of building your career, in early career stages - I was doubtful about that at first.” – Interview Participant (Mentor)
“It’s an eye-opener, you can help your community in this small way, you don’t need to have everything figured out, it’s enough to just be there” – Interview Participant (Mentor).
They are human. Repair and accountability are what matters.
Some interview participants indicated that relationships with mentors who share their Indigenous background can play an important role to promote reconciliation and the revitalization of Indigenous ways of life. However, interview participants cautioned against assuming that Indigenous children and youth want or need an Indigenous mentor simply because of their background. They noted that cross-cultural mentoring relationships can also be important.
Mentors learn and grow just like mentees and mentees have something to offer.
According to our Raising the profile research, a direct ask is the most compelling reason that would convince someone to become a mentor.
Closing the mentoring gap is a complex and vital undertaking that we must work on together. There is no magic bullet, but it’s not impossible.
