The article deals with an issue of mentoring in the formation of social potential of young people using a sociological approach. In the conditions of changes in society and the labor market, mentoring is becoming an important tool for the adaptation of the younger generation. The purpose of the article is to analyze the key factors in the influence of mentoring programs on the process of training young specialists in production.

The article emphasizes the importance of interaction between a mentor and a mentee in the context of transferring knowledge and work experience. An important feature of the work is a comprehensive analysis of the concept of “social potential of youth”, since it, according to many authors, forms a new working reality. The analysis is based on empirical data collected through surveys of college students who did or did not participate in mentoring programs. The study allowed to identify the students’ attitudes to such innovative programs. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the assessment (and subsequent analysis) of the quality of work of student interns from the point of view of the host party – the factory. The main conclusions of the work are that mentoring plays a key role in shaping the social potential of young people, inspiring them to an active civic position. By participating in significant professional projects within the framework of industrial practice at JSC Moscow Machine-Building Plant “Avangard”, JSC SSC “Keldysh Center”, young people develop professional skills and obtain their first work connections.