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My mentoring experience - Aru Murugiah

01 August 2022

Aru Murugiah (MA, International Political Economy, 2021) is a consultant for the UN World Food Programme, the world’s largest humanitarian organisation. Aru spoke to us about his time mentoring Colin Jun (International Relations, 2022) and offered advice to those who are interested in becoming a mentor in the future.

Why do you mentor at King’s?

It is a great opportunity to share experiences and make a meaningful contribution by guiding someone starting out in their career.

How have you benefited from your mentoring experience with Colin as your mentee?

I was able to further develop skills such as listening, empathising and rapport building. Also, I was able to reflect on careers in both private and public sectors of more than 10 years and share relevant experiences and anecdotes.

It is a great opportunity to share experiences and make a meaningful contribution by guiding someone starting out in their career. – Aru Murugiah

What has been the highlight of your mentoring partnership with Colin?

I would like to count two highlights. One, our mentoring journey of 6 months was all online and when I was in London earlier in June (2022), it was great to finally meet Colin in person. Two, it was amazing when Colin joined the World Food Programme (WFP), where I currently am. I would like to think our mentoring journey had sparked his interest to join WFP and consider a career in the wider UN system.

Why do you think mentoring is important?

I believe that it provides the mentee a different perspective for looking at issues and I was able to point out potential challenges that may happen when doing things in a certain way.

It is a conversation, a dialogue which will facilitate effective feedback, guidance and support.– Aru Murugiah

What do you think are good qualities to have as a mentor?

While this is my first formal mentoring experience, I think key qualities are listening, questioning, and helping a mentee go through a holistic thought process, instead of simply giving answers.

Do you have any advice for aspiring mentors, or those who might have just started mentoring someone for the first time?

It is a process, a journey, and one needs to be flexible to adjust course. Also, it is important to define expectations from the onset, be honest, respectful, and get to know the mentee. Lastly, it is a conversation, a dialogue which will facilitate effective feedback, guidance and support.

Name: Aru Murugiah
Degree: MA, International Political Economy, 2021
Where is he now? Consultant, UN World Food Programme.

To read about Colin's experience of working with Aru, click here

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