We were delighted to get the opportunity to speak with Trina as part of our Mentor Profiles Project, and hear all about her fantastic journey with GROW Mentoring. From joining them as a mentee, to now being a Partnership Manager and Mentor, Trina has a unique level of experience of mentoring within the legal sector.
Read on to discover the story of her journey from mentee to mentor…
How long have you been a mentor?
I started as a mentee first with the charity I volunteer with, GROW Mentoring, who focus on giving legal aspirants access to the legal industry. Oftentimes the legal industry can be considered very gatekept- that if you don’t come from a certain level of privilege then it’s very difficult to understand how to make your way in and sustain yourself.
It was through the support and guidance from my GROW mentor that I was able to secure my training contract with a law firm here, and I then decided to switch to the other side and become a mentor myself.
I was a mentee between 2023 and 2024, and as the mentoring cycle at GROW ran across 6 months, I was lucky enough to sit on two separate cohorts. One of the cohorts I was a mentee with was for Freshfields, where I went on to secure a training contract. Following that, in 2025 I transitioned into becoming a mentor. Due to Freshfields’ existing relationship with GROW, I now mentor as part of their GROW cohort with the charity.
What type of mentoring do you practice?
I do volunteer mentoring as part of GROW Mentoring. I also do undertake mentoring in a personal capacity, which started from just putting a shoutout on LinkedIn offering help to anybody who wanted to reach out. Additionally, as a King’s College London alumni, I continue to help out on their mentoring scheme.
What (if any) type of training have you completed/intend to undertake?
I haven’t undertaken any formal training for mentorship – rather I have mainly learned by example. For instance, the people who mentored me helped me understand how things should be structured in terms of sessions and guidance. I try and gauge whether their approach and format, which helped me, can then help other people.
That said, I am a Partnership Manager at GROW and there is a lot of internal leadership and mentoring guidance that they provide. Whilst it isn’t a certification course, the organisation has developed some very strong mentorship guides and programmes to support their mentors and mentees alike. This includes coherent guidance for both parties on how the relationship should be conducted, which I found very helpful. For example, part of the guide covers how to keep it professional, but not make things overtly formal thereby make mentees nervous or uncertain about being reprimanded for what they say.
I think GROW has been able to provide excellent resources in how to make your mentee feel comfortable, how to raise topics of conversation with them, and how to give them that ease and comfort to get the ball rolling.
What made you interested in becoming a mentor?
I think for me, I saw the value in it. I’m an international student by way of context, so I’m not from the UK. It was only when I was able to secure a mentorship that it really changed the game with employment and then beyond.
A lot of people will assume that mentorship is just for an application cycle or getting a job- which can certainly be very much part of the process. But I think the larger picture of it is to get aligned with someone who’s had similar experiences. One of the great things that GROW does is try to secure you a mentor who is from a similar background and shares commonalities.
That really worked in my favour, as I was paired with a mentor who was an international student and so was able to give me tailored support in how things can be for a person like me- someone who is not from this country and doesn’t necessarily have the right connections or pedigree.
I’m passionate because I have seen the transition for myself. And I am still very much in touch with my mentors- which proves it goes beyond a single application cycle. It’s for every part of your journey. Your mentor can keep supporting you because they are walking the same path themselves.
What is your favourite part about being a mentor?
One side of it is always outcome-drive. I like giving that application advice, making my mentee aware of opportunities that they can leverage, encouraging them to put themselves out there, and then seeing the results. There’s a certain joy in seeing the tangible impact of mentorship – that the advice I am giving is working.
I think mentees also get excited when they see their investment come to fruition.
I also enjoy the perspective I gain when I look back at my first session with a mentee and the progress they make by the end of mentoring cycle, irrespective of what they might have achieved or not. I think that they become more well-rounded people by the end of it. Honestly, I think there is a lot of interpersonal and holistic development in one’s personality, which is what I really enjoy seeing when I mentor people, apart from of course the friendships that eventually blossom with various people.
What is a challenge you have faced whilst mentoring?
I think the main challenge is unresponsiveness from a mentee.
Oftentimes, mentees will come into a programme being unsure about what they want from it (and that is completely fine because mentors and mentees can work together to set an agenda).
So, they don’t necessarily come with a straightjacketed idea of “this is my goal and this is how I want to achieve it.” But if you are still enthusiastic, you can reach that point with your mentor and figure it out, like pieces in a puzzle. You can put them together and realise what you’re looking for.
But if you’re unresponsive, if you don’t show up for a meeting, even though you say you will, if you make multiple unfounded cancellations… I would say that all ties down to one thing: you’re in the programme, but you don’t really want to be a part of it.
So yes, an absent mentee is the biggest challenge I have faced. I’ve been on the organisational side of it as well – where I organised the programme for mentors and mentees – and there’s only so much you can do organisationally, or from a mentor perspective, to nudge a mentee.
If they’re absent, they’re absent.
Success depends on what the mentee brings to the table. I can guide and support someone, but if they are not willing to show up and meet me halfway, then that exchange of thoughts and ideas and improving can’t happen. It is not a one-way process. It has to be driven by the mentee, because at the end of the day it is their needs and goals we are hoping to support. But if they are not going to bring those to the table; not voice what they want to do and be consistent with it, there is very little that a mentor can actually do.
What piece of advice would you give to people thinking about being a mentor?
I think one of the things that works in my favour is trying, in the first couple of meetings with your mentee, to gauge what they are really looking for from the mentorship.
Like I said before, oftentimes mentees will be enthusiastic whilst also being unsure of their goals – not knowing how exactly how a mentor can help them. I think that’s the point at which mentors should be really open with their skill sets and experience.
Even though mentorships should be mentee-led, they might not be at first because of uncertainty. As the mentor you can be more proactive at this point and help establish and drive the relationship initially so that they then become more comfortable to engage.
Remember: There is a fine line between a mentee being unmotivated and them being uncertain. If you can grapple that, then I do think beautiful relationships get formed by the end of it.
Also, a lot of times as a mentee I went in thinking that I had to be super professional, and was unsure about asking questions at the risk of sounding lax. Having a mentor who is able to anticipate a question and cover a topic in breadth- ready to answer something you needed but were unable to articulate- I think those skills are very important to have. It helps the mentee to nudge and ask more questions.
Be open to being a friendly face. “No stupid questions” is the rule that I follow. Really set down those ground rules that most things are on the table if asked respectfully and in a kind manner.
What are your plans for mentoring in the future?
I will continue to be a Partnerships Manager at GROW Mentoring and a mentor for the Freshfields cohort. I feel very strongly for the organisation (GROW) with how it helped me move from mentee to mentor. I think I will stay with the charity and contribute to it for as long as I can.
I also saw a lot of success in the last year when independently mentoring candidates who then secured training contracts or vacation schemes in the 2025 application cycle. I’m extremely passionate about helping international students in particular, because I relate specifically to the challenges that they are facing, so I do think my future mentorship lie in that direction.
So, I want to remain focused on that – in my personal capacity supporting international students, and supporting the charity.
To learn more about what options are available for becoming a mentor in the legal field, check out our Legal Mentor Qualification.