February 9, 2021
“I usually do my own technical work. I learned a lot about didactic by being a mentor. How to make people without knowledge in this field understand technical topics. The professional exchange and explaining something in easy words to a beginner was a really good opportunity for me, because I have never done that before.”
Who are you? What do we need to know about you?
Hi, my name is Subhashini Madhavan. I am Indian by origin. I completed my schooling and bachelors and also I have one and half years of working experience in India. I was amazed by the marvellous of engineering, which made me to complete my Master in Information and Communication Systems at Technical University of Hamburg Harburg. During the course of masters, I had an opportunity to work with AUDI AG as an intern and also as an thesis student in the autonomous driving department. I was scouting for an full time position and contribution to the society that is when I came to know about moinworld and its excellent work towards empowering women towards technical field.
Why did you join our program? What makes it special?
The entire program is really well guided. First thing is that I got introduced to a really nice mentee. I really got to know a lot about her when I started the mentorship program and even found a good friend. Furthermore, when you learn things you do not learn everything from top to bottom. There are times when someone asks you a question about something, which you do not fully understand. By explaining how this works, you automatically get a deeper understanding about a certain topic. I like that. Because of the Corona crisis, we could not meet personally. I believe if we would have been able to meet in person, the program would’ve been even better. Now we talk via Zoom, Whatsapp or by telephone.
Were there any challenges you faced during your time as a mentor?
Yes, I would say there were a few challenges for me. My mentee was more experienced than me. This is why I was a bit insecure at first, if she would accept the input I gave her, and if she would be open for it. But she was very open and luckily took everything very well. Another difficulty was that she sometimes asked things I did not know much about which was another challenge for me to learn something new. I tried to understand what she was struggling with and how it works and then explained it to her.
What would you say is important in a relationship between a mentor and a mentee?
I think you should be open to learning things, even as a mentor you should not stick to your point. For me, that is the most important thing. You should open ears and listen to what others are saying.
What do you think makes the moinworld mentorship different from other mentorship programs?
This is my first experience in a mentorship program. I have never done something like this before. I think the effort from moinworld makes it different. I heard from other programs where they just match you with a person but they don’t follow up. They don’t organize meetups. You guys are following up really well. You make sure that everything is going fine by having monthly meetings. It is also a good way to exchange experiences with other mentors. That makes it more special, compared to other programs I heard about.
Has the program also helped you in terms of your personal development?
Yes, definitely. I have never been in a situation like this before. I usually do my own technical work and then I understand what it is. I learned a lot about didactic. How to make people without knowledge in this field understand technical topics. The professional exchange and explaining something in easy words to a beginner was a really good opportunity for me, because I have never done that before.
Would you recommend our program to other women?
Yes, for sure. The problem is that most of my friends are not living in Hamburg. I think it would be helpful to reach more women, if the program would expand even more out of Hamburg. In my social environment a few women are interested in being a mentor or mentee.
The first batch of our program is now over. But are you interested to continue?
Yeah, I would like to continue in the next batch.
Interested?
Apply today here. A moinworld member will get in touch with you for the next steps within 1 week.
Do you have any questions? Get in touch with us at mentoring@moinworld.de.
We will also have a Meetup celebrating the ending of our first mentors and mentees batch in September. Everybody is welcome to join and listen to some of the success stories. Just follow our events!
Read more about some of our great mentors here.