Avoid indicating that you have not served as a mentor if you have not formally served in this capacity. Interviewers understand that time spent training or counseling others informally can qualify as mentoring experience.

"I have served as a mentor many times, and I have also had several mentors. My favorite mentoring opportunities have involved working with interns. I worked as an intern for a company that did not typically hire recent college graduates. They began an internship program to determine if newly graduated candidates could perform well enough to meet the demands of their company. I loved working there, and they hired me after college.

I stayed involved in the internship program and worked directly with several interns over the years. I mentored them on their professionalism, how to tackle various work assignments, and offered advice on handling specific client situations. They shadowed me, and I assigned and assessed their work. I also helped them frame out where they wanted to go professionally after graduating. Several of the interns I mentored went on to roles within my company, and others were successful in finding roles that were a better fit for their style and needs. I really enjoyed giving back to a program that helped me launch my career."