Florida Center for Behavioral Health Workforce
FCBHW NextGen Mentoring Program
Launch your future in behavioral health
Beginning fall 2025, the FCBHW NextGen Mentoring program offers a one-year mentorship experience for rising Florida undergraduate seniors who plan to pursue a clinical graduate degree in Florida.
Selected students will:
- Be matched with a licensed behavioral health professional mentor
- Participate in monthly one-on-one mentorship meetings
- Attend monthly virtual seminars on academic success, graduate school readiness and career development
Each mentee will receive a $5,000 stipend, distributed over two semesters, for meaningful participation.
Mentors will receive either a $1,000 stipend or nine volunteer hours, which may support applications to the Florida Reimbursement Assistance for Medical Education (FRAME) program.
Note: Stipends are considered taxable income. FCBHW will cover the cost of taxes for both mentees and mentors; however, recipients are responsible for reporting the stipend on their federal income tax returns.
Mentee Eligibility
Applicants must meet all of the following criteria:
- Be a rising senior or equivalent standing, with an expected graduation date of May 2026
- Maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
- Be majoring in a behavioral health-related field (such as psychology, social work, criminal justice, behavioral healthcare, aging sciences, sociology, family sciences), or have completed at least nine credit hours of relevant coursework
- Intend to pursue a clinical behavioral health graduate degree in Florida starting
in fall 2026 in one of the following areas:
- Mental health counseling
- Marriage and family therapy
- Clinical social work
- Applied behavioral analysis
- Clinical or counseling psychology
- Psychiatric-mental health nursing
- Psychiatric physician assistant
- Psychiatric medicine
Note: For the 2025–26 academic year, this opportunity is open only to undergraduate students at the ÎÞÂë×¨Çø as part of our pilot launch.
How to Apply
Mentor Applications
Are you a licensed behavioral health professional interested in guiding the next generation? Apply to become a NextGen mentor by July 31.
We are currently seeking mentors from the following licensed disciplines:
- Clinical social workers
- Mental health counselors
- Marriage and family therapists
- Psychologists
- Psychiatrists
- Psychiatric nurse practitioners
- Psychiatric physician assistants
- Applied behavioral analyst
As a NextGen mentor, you will:
- Support a Florida undergraduate senior preparing to enter a clinical behavioral health graduate program
- Commit to one hour per month of mentorship during the academic year (virtual or in-person)
- Be thoughtfully matched with a mentee based on discipline and location
To apply, by July 31.
Mentee Applications
The application period for mentees closed on May 31, 2025. We are currently reviewing submissions and will notify applicants in the coming weeks.
To apply, mentees will need to upload:
- A letter from your academic advisor confirming:
- Your academic standing
- Your major or degree program
- Your cumulative GPA
- Your expected graduation term
- A statement of interest describing:
- Why you are pursuing a clinical behavioral health profession
- Your long-term career interests and goals
- How this mentorship opportunity will support your development