Four-Step Model for finding mentors

Great Mentoring in Graduate School:
A QUICK START GUIDE FOR PROTÉGÉS
Laura Gail Lunsford, PhD & Vicki L. Baker, PhD

Four-Step Model for finding mentors
Step 1 – What is/are my professional goal(s)?
You chose to attend graduate school for a reason. Be clear with yourself and the members of your developmental network about what those reasons are. In the process, work with your mentors/developers to establish short-term goals and activities that will support your long term goals. We strongly encourage you to be aspirational in the process – where do you see yourself (or where would you like to be) in 10 or 15 years? Work backwards from that “end point” to identify the professional and personal experiences that will get you there.
Step 2 – Identify exemplars in the field.
An important way of learning is through observation and second-hand accounts of others’ successes and failures. Identify the advanced graduate student(s) and the early career practitioner or faculty member who is viewed as a “rising star” in your field of interest. Ask to meet with him/her to learn about their experience, the steps taken to get to that position professionally and personally, and ask for advice. If you are lucky, one or more of these individuals will be a member in your developmental network. If not, you still have the power to seek these individuals out and pick their brain about how to get where you want to be. Be sure to come prepared to such a meeting – have questions prepared ahead of time, be sure to inform the individual of your intent in meeting with him/her (perhaps even share the questions ahead of time to be as efficient as possible), and create an action plan based on what you learn from that meeting.
Step 3 – Ask for help.
Through our own work with students, we have come to find that graduate students are afraid to ask for help. They think they should already know the answer or are afraid of looking incompetent if they ask for help. This could not be further from the truth. Faculty members are interested in supporting you, especially the faculty members in your developmental network. They are happy to write a letter of recommendation, they are happy to let you observe their teaching and interaction with students, they are happy to introduce you at networking events, and they are happy to review job packets and job talks. They are also happy to speak honestly about the opportunities and challenges associated with your intended career. Remember, however, that it may be unreasonable to expect one

Great mentoring in graduate school: A quick start guide for protégés 11

faculty member to do all of the items described above. You should be able to locate mentors in your network who can cover most, if not all, of these activities. We can’t say it any other way – LEARN from them and ASK QUESTIONS. Be in charge of your development and let the important individuals in your life participate in that process – they are happy to do so.
Step 4 – Don’t be afraid to fail.

Failure is part of development. If you are in graduate school, you were likely successful in college to get to this position. Perhaps the approach and work ethic you displayed in college was adequate to get you where you wanted to be. However, that can change in graduate school. You will be pushed in ways you have not been prior to that point. Faculty members and program/departmental staff will have high expectations of you, and there will be periods of self-doubt, isolation, and fear. That is normal. Everyone in graduate school has these feelings. It’s ok. In times of failure, comes increased learning, clarity, and confidence (though it might not feel that way in the moment). Use these moments to engage in self-reflection, to revisit the goals you developed in step 1, and rely on your developers/mentors to help guide you through.