3 What Mentors Do

The following list is a broad sense of the responsibilities that faculty mentoring may entail. Of course, you and your mentor can tailor this list to fit your partnership’s unique needs and circumstances.

• Make sure regular contacts (preferably face-to-face meetings) are maintained, such as monthly.
• Help relocated mentees make the transition to the area.
• Introduce the mentee to the larger academic community and culture.
• Advise the mentee on how to deal with the pressures and crises of professional life.
• Suggest strategies for effective teaching.
• Propose effective ways of interacting with students and colleagues.
• Read and critique research proposals and papers.
• Advise on submission of papers for publication.
• Encourage submission of papers for presentation at professional conferences.
• Advise on tenure and promotion requirements and processes.
• Advise on time allocation for research, teaching and service.
• Provide advice on college policies.
• Refer the mentee to other mentoring resources when needed.
• Let the mentee and Program Coordinator know when a relationship needs to be modified, amplified, diminished or terminated.
• Participate in as many program functions as possible that are relevant.
• Learn what mentees are doing. You needn’t become an expert in their area, but you have to be able to give their “elevator pitch” on what they are doing and why. It will allow you to promote them to colleagues, funding agencies, industrial groups, etc.
• Find out what awards the mentee is eligible for and consider if they are a legitimate candidate. (If you can’t tell, find out.) It’s critical not to nominate candidates who aren’t ready since you’re developing credibility with your colleagues. Who can endorse their nominations? Who is on selection committee?
• Read and comment, in detail, on mentee’s early proposals; make sure they get copies of successful proposals to the same programs.
• For promotions, prepare their dossier with deep thought and care; know it better than they do when you have to defend it.
• Help them plan, a year or two in advance. Be a guide, not a gatekeeper.
• Protect mentees from harmful interactions.
• Provide challenging assignments.
• Provide sponsorship and exposure.
• Provide honest and constructive feedback.
• Try to be compassionate, caring and mindful that these are tough times for early-career faculty members.
• Encourage other mentoring relationships.

adapted from

• “Faculty Mentoring Toolkit: A Resource for Faculty, Mentors and Administrators” by Luz, C.C. (Ed.), Michigan State University (NSF ADVANCE Grant #0811205), shared with a CC BY NC 4.0 license.