At London College of Communication (LCC), we pride ourselves on developing careers and entrepreneurship programmes that foster the talents of the makers, thinkers and innovators who pass through our doors.
One of the key ways we support and promote the potential of our students and recent graduates is through our annual Industry Mentoring Programme, which connects young and upcoming creatives across Design, Media and Screen with industry professionals to help them master their craft and achieve their future career aspirations.
When it comes to setting your career goals, mentoring can be a milestone experience. Whether your dream is to be an in-house creator, to go freelance or to kickstart your own business, it provides invaluable access to specialist advisors who can help you take your skills and creative talent to the next level.
Mentorship can be a game-changer, and many of our graduates are supported to become experts in their fields – from running sustainable start-ups that bring cleaner air to our cities to crafting stories and designing covers for world-leading and independent publishers such as Penguin Michael Joseph and Whitefox. But if we flip the coin over, what value does mentoring bring to those on the other side of the relationship?
To find out why supporting the next generation of talent is both a key professional and personal objective for our global network of industry mentors, we caught up with MA Service Design graduate Tiannan Zhao to ask what motivates her as a seasoned LCC mentor.
I was motivated by my own experience of feeling adrift as an international graduate trying to understand how to access industry.
There’s no class for it – you learn by doing, and I love helping students from around the globe to familiarise themselves with the work culture and employability landscape here in the UK.
I’ve worked with many different students – some are goal-oriented and know exactly where they want to be, while others feel a little lost and need help joining the dots to see which roles fit their skills and character.
One thing I tell my mentees is to slow down and make the most out of their studies – skill enrichment is essential when you’re looking to break into industry. Some students come to me thinking that Big Tech is their dream industry as they have a specific idea of what success looks like, but it might be that unpicking their aspirations and interests reveals a start-up or smaller-scale operation is the best way for them to develop professionally, reach their goals and feel fulfilled in their work and trajectory.
Learn to trust yourself, build your confidence, and refine your design and storytelling skills. Questioning yourself is a natural part of the creative journey, but you need to believe in your ability before you can sell your ideas to others.
One: mentoring develops your leadership skills so you can level up. Mentoring works both ways and is an excellent means of upskilling and adding to your professional growth so you too can take the next steps in your creative journey.
Two: networking! You cross paths with many interesting and like-minded creatives from other areas of the industry. It’s fun and you meet some big names from the design world and, in my case, my dream company, as an LCC mentor.
Three: mentoring helps to keep your finger on the pulse of industry and education – I’ve absorbed many new design principles and design philosophies from an academic perspective.
Our Industry Mentoring Programme supports LCC students and recent graduates to explore potential career paths within – and beyond – the creative industries.
Interested in becoming an LCC Mentor? If you would like to join our mentoring ranks from February to July 2025, please visit our Industry Mentoring Programme for more information about what’s involved and how to sign up.
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