[Jeremy Germita]

I know a few teams that typically have a "one year off" rule. This rule says they won't be accepting mentors who have just recently graduated from high school, suggesting they take one year off instead. I wholeheartedly agree with this rule as the transition from student to mentor can be a tough one. It's not something a lot of people can do without first taking a break.

Also, some schools/districts prohibit volunteers under some age threshold. Know your administration's volunteer policies and respect them.

As mentioned earlier, school(and/or work) comes first. College and the real world are far different from high school. Get yourself acclimated to the college/work schedule and time commitments before you assume you can do it alongside FIRST. I guarantee that it will take a larger chunk of your time and energy than you thought.

For a member who plans on mentoring their high school team after graduating, I advise them to take up to 3 to 4 years off before returning as a mentor. It is difficult to establish yourself as a mentor in the eyes of your former mentors and former teammates. In your former mentors' eyes, you're still a student. In your former teammates'(and often your friends) eyes, you're still a peer. This is puts you in a difficult position as you aren't quite viewed as a mentor, but you aren't a student anymore.

For a member who plans on mentoring another team, I offer this advice: remember that this is a different team to the one you were on. The protocol, structure, and everything will be different. You need to accept that and be flexible to how your new team runs. You should show that you are willing to be a mentor of their team and not a transplant of your old team.

This advice is based off of my experiences as a mentor. Right out of high school, I decided to mentor both my old team and a new team in the area as well as several FTC teams. This was a HUGE time commitment that took a toll on my sanity. I am going into my third year of mentorship and I know I still have a lot to learn.