What US professionals want from mentorship in 2026
Every time someone books a session on ADPList, they pick the topic they want help with. We looked at 12 months of those bookings from people in the US to see what they actually ask mentors for, who is asking, and where the mentors they talk to work. Everything below is a share or a rank from our own records, and every figure comes from a saved, dated query.
The short answer
In the US, the most booked mentorship topic on ADPList over the past 12 months was resume and portfolio review, at 30.0% of tagged bookings. Entry level professionals made up the biggest share of mentees who set a career level, at 36.6%. The most common current employers of US mentors were Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft.
Key findings
- Resume and portfolio review was the top US booking topic, at 30.0% of tagged bookings.
- Entry level was the most common career level, at 36.6% of US mentees who set one.
- Amazon is where the biggest share of US mentors on ADPList currently work, at 3.1%, followed by Google, Meta and Microsoft.
- How to get promoted climbed 6 places year over year, from #14 to #8, tied with two other topics for the biggest climb.
- About 7 in 10 reviews from US reviewers are 5-star.
1. What US mentees book sessions for
US top 10: Resume and portfolio review 30.0%, Changing roles 15.1%, Design career path 12.4%, Practice mock interviews 12.3%, Breaking into tech 2.8%, Presenting your work with impact 2.1%, How to get promoted 1.7%, Improving design skills 1.6%, Acing technical interview questions 1.4%, Product management career path 1.4%. Global top 10: Resume and portfolio review 23.8%, Changing roles 15.1%, Design career path 13.6%, Practice mock interviews 8.5%, Breaking into tech 2.2%, How to get promoted 2.2%, Presenting your work with impact 2.2%, Improving design skills 2.1%, Product management career path 1.9%, Getting the most out of my internship 1.9%.
Resume and portfolio review led US bookings at 30.0% of tagged sessions, followed by changing roles at 15.1% and design career path at 12.4%, with practice mock interviews close behind at 12.3%. Mentees worldwide share the same top 4, but US mentees lean harder on interview and resume help: practice mock interviews took 12.3% of tagged US bookings against 8.5% globally, and resume and portfolio review took 30.0% against 23.8%. Below the top 4, the global topics ranked 5 to 10 were nearly even, at about 2% each. Bookings tagged "General mentorship" made up 10.1% of tagged US bookings and are shown on their own rather than ranked, since they don't name a specific topic.
Why it matters: if you're preparing your resume or portfolio, you're asking for the same thing as more US mentees than any other topic, so there are plenty of mentors who have helped with it before.
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You're welcome to use this chart in your own reporting. Please credit "Source: ADPList US Mentorship Report 2026" and link to this page.
<figure>
<img src="https://adplist.org/images/insights/mentorship-report-2026-top-topics.png" alt="Bar chart of the 10 most booked mentorship topics among US mentees on ADPList over 12 months. Resume and portfolio review ranks first at 30.0% of tagged bookings, followed by changing roles at 15.1% and design career path at 12.4%. A second set of bars shows the global top 10 for comparison." />
<figcaption>Source: <a href="https://adplist.org/insights/mentorship-report-2026">ADPList US Mentorship Report 2026</a></figcaption>
</figure>2. Which career levels book mentorship most
Among US mentees who set a career level, entry level professionals made up the biggest share of bookers at 36.6%, followed by intermediate at 29.9% and senior at 22.2%. Managers made up 4.6%, director and above (directors, founders and executives together) 4.0%, and leads 2.7%. Career level is optional on ADPList profiles and 42% of US bookers set one, so these shares describe that group, not every mentee.
Why it matters: mentorship isn't only for people just starting out. Intermediate and senior professionals together made up more than half of US mentees who set a level, so plenty of people keep booking mentors well into their careers.
3. Where US mentors on ADPList currently work
These are the companies where the biggest shares of US mentors on ADPList currently work, based on the current role in each mentor's work history. Amazon came first at 3.1% of US mentors, followed by Google and Meta at 2.0% each and Microsoft at 1.6%. We merged names that refer to the same employer, such as Meta and Facebook, Amazon and AWS, and Google, Alphabet and YouTube, and we only list employers with at least 100 current US mentors, which only these 4 companies clear.
Why it matters: if you're aiming for one of these companies, there are mentors on ADPList who work there now.
ADPList is not affiliated with or endorsed by these companies. The company names only describe where these mentors currently work.
4. Which topics are rising fastest
Three topics tied for the biggest climb of any US topic year over year, each rising 6 places: how to get promoted (#14 to #8), conducting good user research (#23 to #17) and creating a product vision (#28 to #22). Giving effective feedback rose 5 places, from #15 to #10. Going the other way, keeping team members motivated fell from #9 to #28, managing people slipped from #12 to #18, and managing burnout fell from #20 to #25. The top 4 topics barely moved. We compare ranks rather than shares here, and only count bookings with a single topic, because far fewer bookings used the "General mentorship" tag this year than last and bookings now carry fewer topics each, which would make every specific topic look like it grew.
Why it matters: if you're aiming for a promotion, better research skills or a bigger say in product decisions, you're in good company; these topics rank well above where they did a year ago, so more mentors are fielding exactly those questions.
5. How mentees rate their sessions
About 7 in 10 reviews from US reviewers are 5-star.
How we got these numbers
- Source: ADPList booking, profile and review records.
- Shares of bookings made Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026, excluding test accounts and bookings that timed out at checkout. A booking with two topics counts toward both, so shares can add to slightly over 100%. US means the country on the person's own profile. Employer shares are as of Oct 2026, among active verified US mentors.
- Year over year: rank changes compare against October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2025.
- Location: we don't use location from IP addresses.
- Topics: mentees pick a topic from a fixed list when they book. Bookings tagged "General mentorship" are reported separately and not ranked. Rising topics use bookings with a single topic only, since bookings carried more topics each last year.
- Career level: self reported on the profile and optional, so shares cover only mentees who set a level.
- Employers: the current role in each US mentor's work history (an entry with no end date), cleaned so that names for the same company are merged. Past employers are not counted.
- Minimum size: we don't publish any figure based on fewer than 100 records, and we hide any cut that could identify a person.
- Figures we report: shares, ranks and trends only.
- Queries: every figure comes from a saved, dated query (October 4, 2026) with its time window stated.
FAQ
What do US professionals most want mentorship for?
On ADPList, the most booked topic among US mentees over the past 12 months was resume and portfolio review, at 30.0% of tagged bookings, followed by changing roles and design career path.
Which career stage seeks mentorship most?
Among US mentees on ADPList who set a career level, entry level professionals made up the biggest share of bookers, at 36.6%.
Where do US mentors on ADPList work?
The most common current employers of US mentors on ADPList are Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft. ADPList is not affiliated with or endorsed by these companies.
How was this data collected?
We used ADPList's own booking, profile and review records from October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026. "US" means the country on a person's own profile. We report shares and ranks only, and never publish a figure based on fewer than 100 records.
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