Mentor a student through a short-term summer project
UC Santa Cruz Humanities is introducing HumLaunch, a new summer program that pairs UCSC Humanities undergraduate students with alumni for short-term mentorship experiences.
HumLaunch offers two engagement options: job shadowing and project placement. Both experiences offer students career exploration and professional development. HumLaunch Projects provide students hands-on experience using their humanistic skills in a professional setting by completing virtual projects lasting 1-4 weeks.
Mentors must be alumni of a UCSC Humanities program.

Contact: Meredith Pelrine, Humanities Career Engagement Specialist, mpelrine@ucsc.edu
How Do HumLaunch Projects Work?
HumLaunch experiences are intended first and foremost as mentorship opportunities. Mentors join the program, work with the program coordinator to develop their project, and are matched with a student. Projects are designed to be completed virtually, although alumni may choose to offer an in person option if they wish.
| Timeline | Period Opens | Period Closes |
| Projects Developed | February 15 | April 6 |
| Student Applications Open | April 10 | May 1 |
| Experience Matching | May 2 | May 21 |
| HumLaunch Experience Period | August 1 | September 15 |
The deliverables that students produce in HumLaunch Projects may be built on and used by mentors’ organizations.
Project Types
Our team works with you to develop a project specific to your work and organization based on one of our pre-built templates. Templates fall into one of three types, built around humanities-honed skills:
Communication Skills
Marketing Collateral
Using your guidelines regarding design, content, and tone, the student develops promotional materials like flyers and small publications.
Web Copy Updates
The student makes web content updates and/or inputs web text changes in line with your existing web design.
Problem Solving Skills
Engagement Strategy
Using your existing marketing collateral or other materials, the student develops interactive tabling materials or an engagement guide for interactive events.
Event Preparation
You envision your event, and the student supports you with planning, coordination, and/or execution.
Research and Analysis Skills
Competitive Content Audit
The student conducts a social media or competitive content audit to identify gaps and opportunities.
Learning and Development Materials
Building on your existing training materials, the student compiles and/or adapts content for new a audience.
Interested in Learning More?
We are currently meeting with alumni to share more about the program. If you are curious about becoming a HumLaunch mentor or other ways you can support UCSC Humanities undergraduate students, we would love to connect.
Contact: Meredith Pelrine, Humanities Career Engagement Specialist, mpelrine@ucsc.edu