Mentoring and mingling: WIJ Scotland holds first in-person social for 2023 cohort

Mentors and mentees from our 2023 cohort gathered at BBC Scotland headquarters for Women in Journalism’s first ever in-person mentoring social.

Around sixty women attended the event, which took place at Pacific Quay in Glasgow.

Mentors and mentees were able to meet other pairings from the 2023 programme and network.

They heard from a mentor, Anna Burnside, about the benefits of mentoring, which include giving back, sharing skills and experience and boosting confidence in both mentor and mentee.

Shelley Jofre, editor of long form journalism at BBC Scotland, interviewed a mentee, Georgina Davies, to find out about her experience of having a mentor. Georgina spoke about how her career has been shaped by a variety of BBC Scotland women journalists, especially after returning from maternity leave.

Gabriella Bennett, chair of Women in Journalism Scotland, said the evening was an invaluable opportunity for mentees, in particular, to mingle.

“Over and over again we hear that since the pandemic, young women journalists are not getting the chance to socialise with their colleagues or have regular access to an office environment,” she said.

“Working from home has brought many benefits but we aim to plug the gap it has created in providing an essential networking platform.”

Women in Journalism Scotland thanks all at BBC Scotland for making the evening happen. We aim to make our in-person mentoring social an annual event.

We are looking for mentors to join our pool for next year’s intake. Interested? Email wijscotland@gmail.com