The 2025-26 mentors in the Global Ambassador Mentorship Program will connect with first-year undergraduate international students in the program to help them adjust to life at UC Davis.
Join the Global Ambassador Mentorship Program for its annual kickoff event. You will meet UC Davis undergraduate students from around the world and make connections in an informal speed-friending activity.
Rikiya Hatano returned to Davis in January 2023 to continue working towards a Bachelor of Science in International Agricultural Development. Getting involved with campus programs, Hatano took up the role of a Global Ambassador Mentor Fellow in Spring 2023. Previously a mentee when he first entered UC Davis, Hatano found community through the program and later applied to be a mentor himself.
With the start of the fall quarter, UC Davis welcomes new first-year and transfer international undergraduate students to campus. As the students adjust to their new home, they have the opportunity to receive mentorship, support and guidance through the Global Ambassador Mentorship Program. Administered by Services for International Students and Scholars (SISS) within Global Affairs, the Global Ambassador Mentorship Program helps students adapt to life at UC Davis and in the United States.
The Global Ambassador Mentorship Program is designed to help incoming first-year and incoming transfer international undergraduate students successfully adjust to life at UC Davis. Through peer mentorship and participation in social events, new international undergraduate students make connections with new friends and find a welcoming global community at UC Davis.
When coming into a new environment, finding an uplifting community is vital for feeling welcomed, unafraid, and eager to explore. Through the Global Ambassador Mentorship Program at UC Davis, new first-year and transfer undergraduate international students are matched with current students based on similar social and academic interests in order to foster a greater sense of belonging and friendship. Through social events like group dinners in downtown Davis and craft nights, new students and their mentors share their cultures and develop relationships based on cultural awareness and mutual appreciation.
A UC Davis team of five international undergraduate students has earned a spot in the finals at the 29th Annual Institute of Food Technologists Student Association (IFTSA) Product Development Competition with their Okaranchi Crackers - a nutrient-packed cracker made from okara, the soy pulp by-product of soybean processing.
The Global Ambassador Mentorship Program matches first-year undergraduate international students (mentees) with a current undergraduate student (mentor).
Global Ambassador Mentors represent the diverse student community on campus—both domestic and international, from different academic years and fields of study, and with varied life experiences. Matches are based on similar academic and social interests.
I have studied abroad in Japan twice, so I understand the initial feelings of excitement and nervousness you may have coming to a country with a culture far different from your own. I will be here for you to give advice and am looking forward to sharing some great experiences with you in the future!
