How to Choose a Good Graduate School Mentor
Successful Graduate Students Require an Effective Academic Advisor
Dec 22, 2008
The selection of an effective mentor is the most important decisiona graduate student can make. It is a decision that should be informed and carefully considered. The choice of mentor is more important to student success than the choice of the subject to be studied. Luckily, there are clear signs of which mentors are good advisors and which mentors students should avoid.
The Mentor’s Actions Provide Clues to the Quality of Their Mentoring
Effective mentors give clear clues to their abilities. An effective mentor radiates excitement and will choose to work with high quality people. Students will be challenged by an effective mentor and will have a clear vision of what both the mentor and student want to achieve.
An effective mentor creates an environment of collaboration and respect, which ultimately leads to a highly productive research and learning program. Signs of collaboration and respect are clearly visible in a mentor’s communication abilities and their interactions with other students and scholars.
Effective Mentors:
- Thoroughly screen all prospective graduate students and help students to relax and to think intellectually. Good mentors provide early success to their students to stimulate later growth.
- Care about all aspects of a student – their personal lives, their goals and aspirations, and any personal and professional difficulties experienced by students.
- Are well-rounded individuals and select students with a wide range of interests and who have the emotional and intellectual balance to survive the rigors of graduate school. Likewise, good mentors encourage students to have personal lives and to use their talents professionally to explore the possibilities inherent to the program of study.
- Are effective communicators who both talk to and listen to students. Such mentors provide clear ground rules, set clear, mutually acceptable goals for the student and clearly state that the mentorship can be ended for valid reasons. Good mentors maintain appropriate lines of communication, meet face-to face with their students regularly and provide timely feedback to their students.
- Provide a transparent working environment free of underhandedness, unfairness, intimidation, threats or abuse. Effective mentors are always truthful and do not have favorites or pit students against each other. The response of current mentees to the mentor is a good signal of a transparent environment. Current and former students and colleagues who report clear communication between mentor and student and good working relationships with their students are a sign of good mentorship.
- Provide consistent and thorough constructive criticism of written and oral work. Good mentors actively search for ways to improve the student’s work in order to prepare the student for future scholarly endeavors. Effective constructive criticism from a mentor is always apparent when an advanced student is able to anticipate criticisms from outside reviewers of their work.
- Help students to transition to the next step in their career. Effective mentors encourage students to move on when the student reaches the goals defined early in their graduate career and help students to network in order to build the basis for the next phase of their career. Such mentors encourage and enable their students to attend professional events and to make professional contacts to further their studies.
New graduate students are often so relieved to be accepted to the program of their choice that they willing accept any mentor who will accept the student. However, graduate school is a huge investment of time and money. Therefore, prospective students should make use of every piece of available information in their selection of a good mentor.
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