Mentoring Policy & Purpose
Purpose
The most understood purpose of faculty mentoring is to help advance a faculty member’s career. This includes:
- Sharing advice on the process and requirements of gaining tenure.
- Reviewing and commenting on works in progress.
- Recommending professional development workshops.
- Providing advice proposal writing, teaching, supervising graduate students, etc.
Mentors provide emotional support and guidance on topics that directly relate to the work environment, such as:
- Offering advice about department politics.
- Listening to and providing guidance on interacting with difficult colleagues.
- Helping to work through issues of balancing obligations of research, teaching, and work/life balance.
Benefits
The benefits of mentoring for the mentee include:
- Contributions to professional development,
- Enhanced organizational commitments.
- Career satisfaction.
The benefits of mentoring for the mentor include:
- Information and feedback from the protégé.
- Possible collaboration.
- Satisfaction in helping others.
- Improved career satisfaction.
While the faculty mentoring program is designed to assist in enabling a faculty member’s success throughout their career at UB, the frequency and quality of mentoring is never a guarantee for achieving tenure and promotion.
Policy
A positive culture of mentoring at the University at Buffalo is necessary to support a diverse and effective workforce. As soon as a faculty candidate accepts a position, the chair/dean should work with his/her colleagues to develop a mentoring plan in collaboration with the new faculty member.