Mentor Immersion: A Virtual Research Experience at PTY
Spring 2026 Mentorships will be announced on October 1!
Mentor Immersion
PTY’s Mentor Immersion program is a unique experience offering in-depth exposure in an academic field and the potential for a culminating project to be created with expert feedback.
The Mentor Immersion Experience
In Mentor Immersion, students engage in accelerated content in a discipline and work toward creating an independent research product or project in their selected field of study with the support of a content expert with whom they are paired. Approximately 10 students are paired with a mentor and teaching assistant. Through this experience, students deepen their understanding in a field of study while making new friends with high-ability peers and creating a project similar to those of practicing professionals.
Academic Year Cohorts
The Academic year Mentor Immersion program (Fall Cohort & Spring Cohort) runs for approximately 4 months and is designed for 10th through 12th grade students. Academic year cohorts meets synchronously once a week for 2.5 hours for approximately 4-months. Mentorship meeting times are in the evenings or weekends to not conflict with school obligations. The times of the meetings vary by mentorship and are be posted with the mentorship description. Students can expect 2-4 hours per week of meaningful asynchronous work during the mentorship experience.
Summer Cohorts
The Summer Mentor Immersion program (Summer Cohort) runs for 3 months and is designed for rising 11th and 12th grade students. Summer cohorts meets synchronously twice a week for 4 hours a week for approximately 3-months. The 3-month time frame in the summer allows for the same number of contact hours as the semester long Mentor Immersion experience offered during the academic year. The summer experience is more intensive because of the condensed time frame. Mentorship meeting times are in the evenings or weekends to not conflict with school obligations. The times of the meetings vary by mentorship and are be posted with the mentorship description. Students can expect 2-4 hours per week of meaningful asynchronous work during the mentorship experience.
Why Mentor Immersion?
We recognize that families have many choices for virtual academic programs. Here are some aspects of Mentor Immersion that set it apart:
• Access to Scholars. Vanderbilt content experts lead most of our mentorships, so students will work with leaders in academic disciplines. Mentor bios are available with each mentorship description.
• Personalized Attention. Each mentorship has a dedicated mentor and teaching assistant. In addition to the live weekly class meeting with their mentor and classmates, students can expect an optional office hour time (1 hour) to meet with their mentor and approximately 2-4 hours per week of meaningful asynchronous work during the mentorship experience.
• Opportunities for Personal and Professional Development. During each weekly session mentees, work with their assigned content expert, peer guide, and approximately 6-10 other students to learn more about the content area of their mentor, explore real world topics, and gain an understanding of how to be successful in a field of study. The experiences and conversations in the early weeks of the program lay the foundation for each student to complete independent research or a project, under the guidance of their mentor, during later weeks of the program.
• Academic Community. All students who participate in Mentor Immersion have demonstrated academic drive and motivation to be productive members of an academic community through committing to attend all class meetings and complete asynchronous work. Students are also joining a historical community of over 1,000 students who have completed mentorships since 2021.