IN LSAMP recognizes the value of time invested in preparing faculty mentors to engage in summer research with undergraduates and requires this as a component of the National Science Foundation awards to LSAMP programs.
Although mentoring, like teaching, is a skill that some seem to possess innately, it is too critical a function to leave to chance. This is especially true in research-intensive labs, in which mentoring is most often done by a graduate student, post-doc, or other non-faculty member. To assist in developing mentoring skills or enhancing existing skills, a brief overview of effective mentoring practices and resources has been developed (Raman, Geisinger, Kemis, & de la Mora, 2016).
To respect the time constraints on these labs and those faculty mentors who have already committed to a summer undergraduate research scholar, we have designed training around podcasts, webinars, and online resources. To manage the multi-institution nature of our program, we request mentors review the training remotely and at their own pace.
To that end, in 2018 we developed and delivered an online IN LSAMP mentor training platform. First, we request that mentors, as well as graduate students and post-docs supervising IN LSAMP scholars in the research labs, view the 12-minute podcast and fill out the completion survey. Next, the Quick Guide can be printed and used as a checklist for the summer research program. Last, glossaries are available to read to keep up with current terminology, and other faculty mentoring resources are available at the end of the module.
Training Checklist
- View the 12-minute podcast
- Submit the completion survey
- Print the Quick Guide
- Additional Resources & Recognition: current terminology, mentoring resources, Balancing Mentorship with Agility and Resilience article, & IN LSAMP Faculty Mentor Recognition
Raman, D. R., Geisinger, B. N., Kemis, M. R., & de la Mora, A. (2016). Key actions of successful summer research mentors. Higher Education, 72(3), 363-379. doi:10.1007/s10734-015-9961-z
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