As you consider applying to be a mentor or mentee, we would like to give you some tips that might help your mentoring experience be even better! Some or all of these tips can be discussed together during your first visit with your mentor/mentee or just use as a guide.

Above all, we hope that your mentoring experience is rewarding and useful to enhance your professional career.

Many thanks to Dr. Jessica Henderson Daniel for permission to use her slides from “Centering on Mentoring” and to APAGS for permission to use their slides on APAGS Committee on LGBT Concerns Mentoring Program.  

 

FOR MENTEES:

Advantages of Mentoring for the Mentee

  1. Career advancement
  2. Business skills development
  3. Balancing personal and professional life
  4. Development of professional identity

 

Advice to Mentees

  1. While not supervision, mentoring is an opportunity to seek counsel and advice from an experienced psychologist.
  2. Be proactive.
  3. Be open and honest about your goals for the relationship.
  4. Set SMART developmental goals
    1. Specific
    2. Measurable
    3. Attainable
    4. Relevant
    5. Time-bound
  5. Let the mentor know if your goals are not being met.
  6. Be aware of potential pitfalls: Overbearing mentor, mentor exploitation of mentee’s work. Be sensitive to the difference between asking for help/advice from your mentor and demanding favors from you mentor.
  7. If a problem arises in the relationship, don’t hesitate to contact the Mentorshoppe Coordinator.
  8. Please complete your evaluation at the conclusion of the mentoring relationship so that mentoring experiences can continue to be improved.

 

Thoughts to Consider

  1. What do you believe to be helpful uses of this mentoring relationship?
  2. Are there any topics you would like to be “off limits” or any other boundary issues that feel important to discuss?
  3. How much or little would you like personal growth to be a focus of your relationship?
  4. Is there anything you feel would be unhelpful or beyond what your mentor can provide?

 

FOR MENTORS:

Advantages of Mentoring for the Mentor

  1. A professionally and personally rewarding experience
  2. “Passing the torch to a new generation”
  3. Learning from mentee—new technologies, new developments, important features of next generation

 

Thoughts to Consider

  1. What do you believe to be helpful uses of this mentoring relationship?
  2. If your mentee expresses an interest in personal growth, how comfortable do you feel discussing such topics with your mentee?
  3. Are there any topics you would like to be “off limits” or any other boundary issues that you feel important to discuss?
  4. Is there anything you feel would be unhelpful, or beyond what you can provide?

 

Role of Mentors

  1. Offer advice that helps mentee develop-Role is NOT to make decisions for mentee or micromanage.
  2. Be aware of potential pitfalls: overdependence of mentee, mentee exploitation of mentor’s influence.
  3. Be aware of dynamics of the relationship: Developmental needs may change.

 

Advice to Potential Mentors

  1. Recognize that mentee may be uncomfortable asking for help–break ice by sharing some of your career experiences.
  2. Stay in your zone of expertise/experience.
  3. Be clear that mentee sets pace of relationship.
  4. Extend mentee’s developmental network—Suggest additional resources to address unique needs.

 

FOR BOTH MENTEES AND MENTORS

Communication Styles and Preferences

  1. Everyone has different preferred ways of communicating with others, so it is good to know what feels most comfortable for you and your mentor/mentee.
  2. It is recommended that mentors and mentors check in at least once per month with each other, but some pairs may prefer to check in more frequently.
  3. Thoughts to consider about communication preferences:
    1. How often would you like to check in?
    2. How do you feel about as-needed communications between regularly scheduled times?
    3. What should your mentor/mentee do if you fall out of touch for more than a month? How should they attempt to reach you?
  4. How would you like to communicate? (e.g. phone, email, etc.)

 

After the Program Ends

  1. Formal mentoring relationships will end in May.
  2. Evaluations at end of the program will assess how mentoring met needs of both mentees and mentors.
  3. Program end may not mean the end of the relationship—informal mentoring can continue if both parties agree.