Mentor and Technical Advisor Programs
Program Details
There are now two mentorship opportunities for buildings industry professionals and Solar Decathlon alumni to connect with current Decathletes.
- Alumni Mentors: Solar Decathlon alumni from any year and challenge type can volunteer to be paired with a competing team as an Alumni Mentor.
- Mentors provide one-on-one support to a team throughout the competition period, which may include technical or nontechnical review and feedback on project direction, deliverables, and presentations.
- The Mentor Program enables additional support and guidance for student teams and lowers the barrier to entry for first-year teams, but all teams are welcome to apply for a mentor.
- Technical Advisors: Any industry professional, regardless of previous Solar Decathlon experience, can volunteer to be a Technical Advisor on a specific topic.
- Technical Advisors provide limited, one-on-one support to multiple teams for questions in a specific technical topic area. Technical Advisors are available to all teams, and teams will request support directly.
- Technical Advisors are needed for architecture, mechanical engineering, energy modeling, renewables integration, building enclosure, cost analysis, life-cycle analysis, and more.
- The 2025 Design Challenge is the first time Technical Advisors are being added to the competition.
Interested in either mentorship option? Please fill out the Mentor and Technical Advisor sign-up form by Oct. 23, 2024.
Commitment
- Mentors provide support throughout the competition period from October to April to participating teams, which may include technical or nontechnical review and feedback on project direction, deliverables, and presentations.
- Serving as a Technical Advisor is expected to be a lesser time commitment than serving as an Alumni Mentor.
- More details about requirements can be found in the Mentor and Technical Advisor Program Guide.
Benefits
- The program fosters growth in leadership skills while helping Solar Decathlon teams achieve success through critical project feedback and advice, which is expected to be particularly beneficial for students with limited experience in the competition.
- Mentors and Technical Advisors are recognized on the official Solar Decathlon website and social media channels and receive a certificate from the U.S. Department of Energy.
“The [Mentor Program] helped me in developing leadership skills and interacting with new people. From being a student participant to mentoring the student team, Solar Decathlon has taught me many valuable lessons.” – Alumni mentor